Manduguk (Korean Dumpling Soup)

Remember that time my New Years Resolution was to blog at least once a week?  Well, here I am, with loads of recipes to share and two weeks of crickets around here.  Oops.

I blame Netflix.  Hubs and I have been binge-watching Stranger Things and it is not conducive to writing!

Anyway, a couple weeks ago (yes weeks), the boys were at a hockey rink campout (they got to watch the local college hockey team, then camp out in the arena), so I took the opportunity to watch this month’s Food n Flix pick, Always Be My Maybe, hosted by Camilla at Culinary Adventures with Camilla.

The movie is a quirky romance.  There’s snooty Sasha, clueless Marcus, and a super weird (yet hilarious) cameo by Keanu Reeves.

You all know I’m terrible as synopses, so I’ll leave you to find some more extenseive reviews on your own.  Suffice to say, I enjoyed the movie, but don’t plan on watching it a second time.

There were plenty of foodie moments, since Sasha learned homestyle Korean cooking from Marcus’ mom and then becomes a chef specializing in fusion cuisine.  Plus there are many dining experiences.  I don’t want to ruin to Keanu Reeves scene, but suffice to say, I really wish I could’ve created something inspired by that scene (it was hilarious).

In the end, I took inspiration from one of the opening scenes.  Sasha is cooking with Marcus’ mom, making soup.  I looked it up and it was a kimchi-based soup, which, while likely delicious, would be a really hard sell with my family.  I kept searching and found Manduguk, a Korean Dumpling Soup, very similar to wonton soup.  I knew I’d have a winner here!

I opted to making the entire soup from scratch, including the dumpling wrappers (as far as I know, there is no good place to buy those in my area).

I ended up starting this recipe at 5:00 on a weekday (we often eat around 5:30, though sometimes as late as 6:30).  The recipe is intensive, and we didn’t eat until almost 7:30!  Nearly unheard of in my house!  Thankfully, it was delicious and enjoyed by all!  Just maybe start a bit earlier…unless you like eating really late!

 Manduguk (Korean Dumpling Soup)

Adapted from My Korean Kitchen and Savoring Simple

Dumpling Wrappers

1 ¼ cups flour

1 ½ teaspoon salt

¾ cup warm water

Filling

1 teaspoon olive oil

½ cup zucchini, diced small

½ cup spinach, diced

2 green onions, sliced

1 clove garlic, minced

½ pound ground pork

2 ½ tablespoons low sodium soy sauce

1 teaspoons sesame oil

1 teaspoon white wine vinegar

½ teaspoon sriracha

¼ teaspoon ground ginger

¼ teaspoon black pepper

Soup

8 cups chicken broth

2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce

1 clove garlic, minced

1 teaspoon sesame oil

2 eggs, beaten

2 green onions, sliced

First, make the dough for the dumpling wrappers.  Mix all of the dough ingredients together and knead until smooth.  Cover and set aside to rest for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the mandu filling.

Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat.  Add the zucchini and cook for about 2 minutes.  Stir in the spinach, garlic, and onions, and continue cooking until the vegetables are softened.  Set aside to cool.

Add the cooled vegetable mixture to the ground pork and the rest of the filling seasonings.  Mix until well combined.  Set aside.

I used a pasta roller to roll the dumpling dough thin.  Use the roller according to manufacturer instructions; rolling the dough to the second from the smallest setting. 

Use a 3-inch cookie of biscuit cutter to cut dough rounds.

Add about a tablespoon of filling to each dough round.  Wet the edges with a bit of water, then fold over, press to seal and bring the corners around to form a rosebud shape (I found the shaping to be very similar to making tortellini).

Meanwhile, bring the chicken broth to t a low boil.  Add the soy sauce, garlic, and sesame oil.  Add the mandu a few at a time.  Cook for about 5 minutes.

Keeping the soup at a low boil, slowly drizzle the beaten egg into the soup (like egg drop soup.)

Scoop into bowls, garnish with green onion, and serve.