Ever wanted a nice hot meal that’s reasonably easy to make and satisfying, while not leaving you paunched? Well, this week, after sipping some delicious rose tea a sista-friend brought in from the States for me, I had the idea to boil some dumplings 🥟 in a mix of the remaining fragrant tea and water, and strum together a slightly tangy sauce to go along with it – a dumpling bath that’s not quite a soup.

Prep time: (dumplings – 5-7 minutes)

Meal serves: 2

Ingredients:

Water (to boil dumplings and add to sauce)

loose Rose tea (1/2 cup)

1 tsp of spice

2-3 tbsps oil

Flour (a small soup bowl 3/4 full)

1 can Brunswick tuna

1 large scoop of grated cheese 

3/4 diced carrot

1 serving spoon of ketchup

1 1/2 pinch of chili

1 decent pinch of salt

1 small onion

2 pods garlic

spices (curry, black pepper, turmeric)

Tuna prep step:

Place the tuna in a small bowl, shred with a fork and add 1/2 pinch of chili, 1/2 of each spice, a tip of diced onion and garlic. Stir and cover with a saucer.

Dumpling prep step:

Shape small dumplings (made from a combo of flour and water added in very slowly.) Add – knead – add – knead making sure to flour hands before rolling. I use my hands, but a spoon can work too. Don’t stir or mix – just gently swipe the water left and right so it gets to most – not all – of the flour. Add more flour on the outside if needed as you shape and round the dumplings (which will increase in size as they boil.) Your hands aren’t meant to be gluey although a little flour will still stick on.

Bring rose tea, spice, and water – enough to cover the dumplings you’ll add. These take about 7 minutes (I like to stir them halfway through, to make sure each side has some proper heat in the water and it’s cooked all the way through.)

Meanwhile prep sauce:

Heat a frying pan and add oil for a minute, then onion and garlic ’til that yummy aroma hits the room (1 min.) Now temper the spices in the same pan and stir. Pour a bit of water in, and add diced carrot and salt (with stove at low-to-medium heat.)  When the carrots are softening and making the sauce a bit like a paste – in goes the tuna, then add a a bit of water, ketchup and the scoop of cheese. Stir in. *{sidenote: speaking of cheese, I’m about to try goat cheese made by a local artisan for the first time, so will definitely be featuring that soon.} To thicken, add 2 sprinkles of flour, to create a sauce consistency. Stir everything around.

Check dumplings by scooping one up and slicing it down the middle to make sure the inside is pleasantly poofy – not smooshy. Remove from heat, drain off water and set in a plate with a slight basin to manage that sauce.

Pour sauce evenly over dumplings (remember to make them small – since no sugar’s added – the smaller they are, the faster the flavour of the sauce hits the interior of the dumpling. Sprinkle a little grated cheese, and add some fresh chives or sage.

And that’s it for now…hope you enjoy! Feel free to share an update when you have a chance to try this recipe.