Hakka jumbo radish rice dumpling

Peel the daikon radish and shred it with a vegetable grater.

Season the shredded radish with the salt, toss thoroughly and set aside 20 minutes to draw out moisture.

Quarter and thinly slice the shallots. Finely dice the garlic. Squeeze the soaked shiitake dry and dice finely.

Variation: if tofu puffs are unavailable, deep fry firm tofu over medium heat until golden brown and roughly dice it.

Squeeze as much liquid as possible out of the radish and discard the liquid.

Heat the wok until smoking hot and add the pork lard.

Add the shallot, garlic and shiitake and stir over medium heat a few minutes until the aromatics are slightly golden at the edge.

Add the sun-dried baby shrimp and pork lard dregs and keep stirring a couple of minutes.

Add the ground pork and stir quickly to loosen the meat. When most of it has changed colour, season with the soy sauce, oyster sauce and dark soy sauce.

Add the tofu puff, then the radish, stirring to fluff the shreds. Add the white pepper, taste and adjust. Set the filling aside.

Combine the rice flour and tapioca flour thoroughly.

Stir the salt into the water, cover with a heat proof lid and microwave on full power 4 minutes or until boiling.

Pour the hot water into the flour immediately, stirring at the same time, so the heat is not lost and the dough stays elastic.

Cover and cool to lukewarm, 10 to 15 minutes.

Turn out and knead 5 to 6 minutes. Add rice flour if sticky or water if dry until the dough is smooth and non-stick.

Roll into a long even log, divide into 12 even pieces and cover with plastic wrap.

Flatten a piece into a round patty and roll it out to a wrapper about 4.5 inches across, rotating with the left hand and pushing the pin with the right.

Put about 50 g of filling in the middle and pack it down with chopsticks.

Bend both sides of the wrapper to the middle, pinch the edge and pleat to seal.

Line the steamer with rectangles of banana leaf, corn husk or parchment paper.

Pre-boil the water in the pot, set the steamer on top and steam over medium heat 20 minutes.

For the dipping sauce, combine the diced cilantro, scallion, minced garlic and diced Thai bird eye chili.

Heat the cooking oil to smoking and pour it over the aromatics, then add the soy sauce and mix.