A Tired Person’s Cylindrical Dumplings (Vegan, Gluten Free)

Lydia Jung ’25
Staff Writer

One sweltering July day, I couldn’t find any vegan leftovers in my fridge to eat for lunch and felt too sweaty and tired to turn on a stove or oven. After ruminating in frustration for a moment, I remembered that a container of water heated in the microwave for two and a half minutes is hot enough for my tea, so I thought I could nicely steam vegetables the same way. After trying this out, I can report that everything came out at the expected texture except the cabbage, which retained its crunchiness, but I enjoyed the texture nonetheless. Thus, this stoveless, ovenless, dumpling-like creation was born.

I used banh trang (Vietnamese rice paper wrappers) to wrap the mixture, as there was too little leftover rice or noodles to serve it with and I didn’t feel like cooking any due to the weather. I’ve also put a mixture like this into baozi (Chinese steamed buns) with the addition of salt, maple syrup, and chili crisp for a stronger flavor, but that’s a story for another day. I’m not sure how much the exact measurements of ingredients provided will produce, so feel free to adjust quantities at your discretion. The weather may not be too hot to turn on a stove or oven anymore, but a low-effort well-seasoned meal has many uses. I hope you enjoy!

Note: This is not based on Vietnamese spring roll recipes except for the wrapper and wrapping technique I used. I would recommend @thevietvegan on Instagram for vegan Vietnamese recipes.

Ingredients

– 1-2 green onions, sliced

– 2-4 Shiitake mushrooms, sliced

–  1/5-1/4 medium size cabbage, chopped (you can substitute kale or celery, but I would not recommend spinach)

– 1-2 medium/large carrots or 5-6 baby carrots, sliced

– If you desire, tofu, bean sprouts, or other produce you can fit in your microwave-safe container (cannot confirm that any produce besides carrots, mushrooms, and celery soften nicely in the microwave)

–   Soy sauce (or Tamari if gluten free), sesame oil, and other desired seasonings (about 1-2 teaspoons of each for starters and more to taste, if you must measure)

–   About one package of Vietnamese Spring Roll Rice Wrappers (Banh Trang)

Supplies:

–   Microwave-safe container

–   Cutting board

–   Knife

– Strainer basket (to rinse vegetables)

–  Pan (for submerging rice paper wrappers)

–   Colander (to strain excess liquid)

Instructions:

1. Chop mushrooms horizontally as pictured in figure A, C, or F so they turn into cross sections (figure B).
2. Rinse the other vegetables in a strainer basket or by brushing under running water, dry them, and chop all but the carrots and bean sprouts into horizontal cross-sections similarly to the mushrooms. You should angle your knife at a more diagonal line while cutting the carrots so that the slices form parallelogram shapes on the sides (see illustration figure D). From there you can place them in a food processor or chop them into smaller pieces now that they are flat. Leave the bean sprouts on the side.
3. After washing and chopping everything, place all produce except the bean sprouts in a microwave-safe container, add a small amount of water to the bottom (around 2 tablespoons), and heat the vegetables in the microwave for about 2 1/2 minutes on high. Carrots and mushrooms should have a steamed texture (I would recommend putting them on top of the cabbage).
4. Remove the produce mixture from the microwave-safe container and strain the excess liquid using a strainer basket.
5. Move the produce mixture to a plate or bowl. Add soy sauce/tamari, sesame oil, and any other desired seasonings. If using bean sprouts for your protein, add them in here and mix everything thoroughly.
6. Submerge each sheet of rice paper wrapper successively in cold water in a pan for 10-15 seconds and then leave it out on the cutting board to absorb the water (the wrapper will feel wet to the touch but retain a paper-like texture for another few seconds).
7. Place a few tablespoons of produce mixture on a rehydrated rice paper wrapper and wrap the mixture like a burrito once the wrapper feels bendable. The exact quantity of filling necessary for a full dumpling may vary based on wrapper size, but I would suggest around 1 to 2 tablespoons for a small wrapper and three or four for a large wrapper.
8. Repeat the process until you run out of filling or wrappers. If you have leftover filling, save it as a snack for later.or serve it on top of your rolls.