After a massive day at work, all you want to do is beat the day’s putrid stench out of your clothes and sit down for something hearty that doesn’t take aeons to prepare.

Enter the humble dumpling. A humpling?

..And by dumpling, I mean dumpling soup, although I’m sure eating dumplings by themselves is just fine. If you're competent enough to wield a kitchen knife and operate a microwave, you're more than qualified to decide whether drinking some brothy water along with the main course will suit your tastes.

From here on in, I’ll keep it simple, to the point and add lashings of humour just to get you through til your next meal.

Basic Qualifications & Prerequisites

Certificate in Food Preppery;
Diploma in Knife Handlery;
Some experience as a certified 'Microwave Button Presser';
Asbestos-lined Mouth (for the inevitable scalding when over-enthusiastic eating ensues).

The Stuff you’ll Need (Ingredients)

• A bag of frozen vegetable or mushroom dumplings. (No. We’re not making them from scratch.)
• Broccoli head (a small handful of florets for one person)
• Snow peas or sugar-snap peas (about 4 pods)
• Pak Choy or Bok Choy (about 4 or 5 leaves)
• Vegetable Stock (2 tsp)
• Optional Mushrooms (2 whole button mushrooms)

The Doing bit (Method)

First things, first! Grow your vegetables. Now admittedly, this part often takes a few months. Good soil, ample sunlight and growing seasonal vegetables will make or break whether you’re going to have anything to show for your efforts. After all, if you try to grow peas in the heat of summer, you’re probably going to be met with disappointing results. Everyone can do this – even if you’ve got just a balcony. Pots are your friend.

Ok.. I’m shitting with you. If I don’t have expectations of myself to make my own dumplings from scratch, do you really think I expect you’ll grow everything you need yourself? I shall not force that upon you, my dear friend.

• Fill your kettle and turn it on. For the sake of the environment and my own wallet, I only fill up the kettle with as much water as I need at that time. We’re not making tea for an army right now, so up to the brim, we do not need to fill!

• Wash the vegetables if you’re unsure of their sanitary condition. Or if you’re like me, give it a look over and if there’s no visible dirt – don’t bother.

• Chop the broccoli florets off the main stalk into bite-sized chunks. There is nothing wrong with eating the entire stalk. Eat whatever bits you want.

• Slice the stems from the peas where they once connected to their mamma plant. Keep it all in the pods. Sugar-snap and snow peas don’t need to be removed from their pods. All of it is delicious.

• Chinese green leaves can now be separated from the bunch. Keep as much of the white of the leaves as you like. Again, it’s all down to preference of taste.

• If you’re into mushrooms, peel their skin off (I really don’t know why I’ve been taught this, but I do it), pluck out the stem/stalk, and slice finely or as you wish to eat it.

Pour freshly boiled water over the frozen dumplings. Don't thaw them first. If you want eight dumplings, then eat eight. Please don't judge me!

• Toss about 5 frozen dumplings into a microwave safe dish, add the (now) boiling water up to about ¾ full. Remember, you’ll be drinking this water too, as part of the soup. Mmmm. Place into the microwave for about 1 ½ minutes on high.

You can readily buy vegetable or mushroom dumplings from your closest Asian grocer.

Place the lid over, but not sealing the container. It allows heat to escape and not explode in the microwave. That will ruin the serenity that a dumpling soup should be providing you.

• Take the dish out of the microwave and add your veggies. They really won’t need too long. An extra minute to ninety seconds should be enough to further cook the dumplings, wilt the greens and soften the broccoli.

• You can really either add the vegetable stock at the start or now. It doesn’t matter and I don’t believe it adds any more flavour adding it in earlier.

• The last golden step is to quite simply throw the whole mix of dumplings and vegetables into a bowl you like the look of. We all have our favourites in the cupboard.

Chopsticks or cutlery? I'll let you decide (but you look like a pro with the wood in hand - oh my, I'm shocking even myself with all this innuendo!).

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Grovel. Grovel. Grovel. Resteem?

All the best,
Nick

Acknowledgments

All About Mushrooms is a great resource – especially if you’re into fungal biology!
http://www.allaboutmushrooms.com/