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Homemade har gow crystal shrimp dumpling on a pink marble platter showing translucent dumpling skin with pink shrimp visible inside.

How to Make Har Gow (虾饺) The Ultimate Guide

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5 from 13 reviews

  • Author: Kelly
  • Total Time: 1 hour 7 minutes
  • Yield: 20 Dumplings

Description

These steamed crystal dumplings are as beautiful to look at as they are tasty!  And they're actually way easier to make than you might think. As always, detailed step-by-step recipe photos and tips can be found in the main post, and be sure to check out the short video below!

Ingredients

FOR THE HAR GOW WRAPPERS 

  • 1 cup wheat starch (135g)
  • 1/2 cup tapioca starch (60g) (sub potato starch or corn starch)
  • 1 1/4 cups hot boiling water (284g) (plus up to 2 teaspoons more if the dough seems dry)
  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil (15g) (sub lard)

FOR THE HAR GOW FILLING 

  • 8 ounces shrimp, cleaned and deveined (226g) (preferably a mix with Argentinian Red shrimp)
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda (6g)
  • 1 tablespoon oyster sauce (15g)
  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil (15g)
  • 2 teaspoons light soy sauce (8g) (or omit)
  • 1 teaspoon Shaoxing wine (5g) (or omit altogether)
  • 1 teaspoon lard (5g) (sub vegetable oil or simply omit altogether)
  • 1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame oil (2.5g)
  • 1 teaspoon cornstarch (2.5g) (sub tapioca starch)
  • 1/2 teaspoon fresh ginger, scraped into a paste (2g)
  • 3/4 teaspoon sugar (3g)
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt (1g)
  • 1/8 scant teaspoon white pepper, or up to 1/4 teaspoon if desired (1 to 2 g)
  • 1 small scallion (green parts only), finely minced (sub chives)
  • 2 tablespoons bamboo shoots, finely diced (or up to 1/4 cup if desired) (30g to 60g)

TO SERVE 

Simple dipping sauce (stir the ingredients together and serve)

  • 2 tablespoons regular soy sauce
  • 2 tablespoons water
  • a pinch or two of sugar
  • 2 to 3 slices fresh ginger
  • scallions

Sichuan Chili Oil 

Instructions

  1. Soak the shrimp in baking soda-water solution. Add the cleaned shrimp to a small bowl and add 1 tsp of baking soda and massage them gently to coat. Add cold water to cover the shrimp and refrigerate for 30 minutes. After the shrimp have soaked, rinse them and squeeze out all of the water that you can (you may even pat them dry with a paper towel if desired, but I don't find it necessary).
  2. Make the har gow filling. Smash and mince half of the shrimp, and roughly chop the remaining shrimp, and add them to a medium-sized mixing bowl. Lay the ginger slices on a cutting board and use a chef's knife to press and scrape them into a paste, and add it to the shrimp along with all of the other dumpling filling ingredients except for the bamboo shoots. Whip the shrimp mixture in one direction (clockwise or counterclockwise) using a pair of chopsticks (or a fork) for 4 to 5 minutes until the mixture becomes lighter in color, somewhat pasty, and all of the liquid has been absorbed. Cover and refrigerate the har gow filling while you make the dumpling dough. 
  3. Make the har gow dough. Add the wheat starch, tapioca starch, and a pinch of salt to a medium-sized bowl and whisk well to blend the starches. Add scalding hot water in a steady stream while simultaneously mixing the starches using a fork until the mixture comes together and you can form a shaggy ball out of it. The dough will be hot at this point, so be careful! Add the oil and begin squishing the mixture together until it's all absorbed. Remove the dough to a countertop and knead it for a couple of minutes until it becomes smooth, soft, and pliable. If the dough seems dry, you may add up to 2 more teaspoons (8g) of hot water.  Working quickly, form the dough round into a log about 1 1/2 to 2 feet long. Cut it into 3 logs, wrap 2 of these logs with plastic wrap, and place them inside a plastic freezer bag (or cover them with a warm, damp towel to stay moist).  
  4. Roll out the har gow wrappers. Working with one dough log at a time, slice off 6 or 7 equal pieces (about 18-20g each). Cover the dough pieces or place them in a freezer bag to keep them from drying out. If using the electric Pastadrive to roll out the wrappers, lightly dust the rollers with tapioca or corn starch, turn the width setting to #2, and run the dough ball through, then set the width to #3, and roll the dough through a second time, finally, set the width to #4 and roll the wrapper through. If using a cleaver, knife, or rolling pin to roll out the wrappers, lightly brush them with oil and then brush the work surface (either a cutting board or countertop) with oil as well. Flatten a dough ball and then use any of these tools to press and slide the dough in one motion until it's perfectly thin. *Alternatively, you may also use a tortilla press using the same technique as pressing corn tortillas. 
  5. Prepare the bamboo steamer. Line the bottoms of the steamer with fresh cabbage leaves, banana leaves, or parchment paper that has slits cut in it. 
  6. Fill the dumplings. When working alone, I prefer to roll a wrapper and fill it immediately. Then roll another wrapper, fill it, and repeat until all the dumplings are filled. If you're working with a partner, have one person roll wrappers and the other fill them. Place a dumpling wrapper in the palm of your hand, add a teaspoon or more of the filling, fold it in half, and pinch the top together in the middle. Then, working on one side at a time, make the first pleat right next to the pinched middle. Keep pleating and pinching until that half of the dumpling is sealed. Repeat on the opposite side (see step-by-step photos). Place filled dumplings into the prepared bamboo steamer about 1 inch apart so they don't touch, or place them onto a parchment-lined sheet tray and freeze them immediately. 
  7. Steam the dumplings. Add enough water to a sauté pan or wok so that you can steam the dumplings for 6 to 7 minutes without running out of water. Never allow the water to have contact with the bottom of the lowest steamer basket (or the dumplings) while steaming. When the water is boiling, add the filled steamer baskets, cover them with the lid, and cook for 6 to 7 minutes. Remove the steamer basket and allow the dumplings to air dry for about 45 seconds or so before moving to a platter, which will help to keep them from sticking to the basket and ripping open. Serve dumplings with chili oil sauce, or the simple dumpling sauce Enjoy!

Notes

Get all the tips for how to make perfect har gow in the main post.

  • Prep Time: 1 hour
  • Cook Time: 7 minutes
  • Category: Dim Sum + Dumplings
  • Method: Steamed
  • Cuisine: Chinese

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 5 dumplings
  • Calories: 245
  • Sugar: 2g
  • Sodium: 620mg
  • Fat: 9g
  • Saturated Fat: 1,5g
  • Unsaturated Fat: 7.5g
  • Trans Fat: 0g
  • Carbohydrates: 28g
  • Fiber: 1g
  • Protein: 13g
  • Cholesterol: 90mg

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