Collapsed Dumplings

Collapsed Dumplings

　　　These are a beloved local dish served to guests in Yishui. The filling is best made with immature angled luffa, chives, and shepherd’s purse. The angled luffa should not be chopped but sliced into hair-thin strips. Sprinkle with salt to draw out moisture, then squeeze dry, add oil, and mix evenly with mint leaves. The chives are prepared similarly to the filling used for collapsed pancake dumplings. The shepherd’s purse is briefly blanched, finely chopped, and combined with oil, salt, mint leaves, Sichuan peppercorn powder, or tender peppercorn leaves, then mixed evenly.

　　　　The dough is kneaded and rolled into rounds of varying sizes. Place the filling evenly on one side of the wrapper, fold, and use a bowl to cut along the semicircular edge, setting aside the trimmed scraps for reuse. Then cook the dumplings in a flat-bottomed pan or griddle over low heat. After three flips and two turns, the dumpling “belly” puffs up, oil seeps slightly from the edges, you can hear a sizzling sound, and the aroma is irresistible.

　　　　During the Republican era, patriotic general Fan Zhuxian served as county magistrate in Yishui. Once while conducting a rural visit, he became very hungry by noon and stopped by an elderly farmer’s home. With nothing else to offer, the farmer had his wife pick some tender angled luffa to make collapsed dumplings for the magistrate. The general happily ate more than ten without feeling full and was full of praise. From then on, whenever distinguished guests visited the county, the general would always serve them collapsed dumplings.