Deconstructed Pork Dumplings
A gentle, toddler-friendly take on dumplings with a mild pork and cabbage filling served alongside soft torn wrappers or noodles for dipping and scooping.
Ingredients
- 340 g ground pork11.99 oz ground pork
- 240 ml cabbage, finely minced1.01 cup cabbage, finely minced
- 5 ml ginger, peeled and grated1.01 tsp ginger, peeled and grated
- 5 ml low-sodium soy sauce1.01 tsp low-sodium soy sauce
- 12 each dumpling wrapper
Steps
Make the Filling
- Finely mince the cabbage until no large pieces remain, so it cooks soft and is easy to chew.
- Peel and finely grate the ginger so it blends evenly through the filling.
- Combine the ground pork with the minced cabbage, grated ginger, and low-sodium soy sauce in a bowl.
- Let toddlers help mix the filling together with a spoon or clean hands until evenly combined.
- Cook the filling in a lightly oiled pan over medium heat, breaking it up, until cooked through, about 8 minutes.
Cook the Wrappers
- Boil the dumpling wrappers or plain noodles in water until soft and tender, about 4 minutes.
- Drain well, then tear the cooked wrappers into small, easy-to-handle pieces.
Serve
- Serve the cooked filling alongside the torn wrappers or noodles for dipping and scooping, and check that everything is just warm.
- (Optional) For older kids and adults, offer a tiny bit of diluted low-sodium soy sauce on the side for dipping.
Nutrition
- Calories
- 220
- Protein
- 16g
- Fat
- 8g
- Carbs
- 20g
Tips by age
Serve the soft filling loose and tear the wrappers into very small pieces. Keep the soy sauce minimal, as it is naturally salty for the youngest eaters.
Choking safety: Cut wrappers and noodles into small pieces, as they can be gummy and stick together. Make sure the cabbage is finely minced and soft.
Offer the filling alongside small torn wrapper pieces for scooping. Use only a little diluted soy sauce for dipping.
Choking safety: Tear wrappers and noodles into bite-size pieces, as long or sticky strips can be a choking risk.
Serve as written with wrappers torn into bite-size pieces. Let them practice dipping the wrappers into the filling.
Choking safety: Cut wrappers and noodles to bite-size so they do not bunch together while chewing.
Serve as written and let them assemble bites of filling and wrapper themselves. A small dish of diluted soy sauce is fine.
Serve as written. They can fold filling into whole wrappers or eat it with noodles, with soy sauce on the side.
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