Pork and Shrimp Siu Mai

These pork and shrimp siu mai feature a juicy filling wrapped in a chewy skin and crunchy tobiko topping.

Now that we’re half way into fall, I find myself with a bit more free time to work on recipes that I’ve put on the back burner. For the longest time, I wanted to make siu mai from scratch, inspired by my friend Amy, who makes the best pork and shrimp siu mai. Siu mai, also known as shumai, is a classic dim sum dish and hands down my favorite. I used the siu mai recipe from  The Complete Illustrated Guide to Chinese Cooking: Techniques, Ingredients & Recipes cookbook. With a lot of tips from my friend and guidance from the cookbook, I was pleasantly surprised to find it slightly more challenging than making wonton. 

My 8 year old son and I spent an afternoon in the kitchen folding the siu mai while listening to Kpop Demon Hunters. His siu mai came out slightly misshapen but the charm of siu mai is they don’t need to be perfect. Growing up, I loved helping my mom fold wontons so it’s nice to make similar memories with my little one. We couldn’t wait for them to come out of the steamer. The pork and shrimp siu mai tasted better than the ones from our local dim sum restaurants. Well seasoned with the perfect texture, these pork and shrimp siu mai became an instant hit!

Ingredient Notes

• Meat: I used skinless pork belly that I ground up myself for the meat. If you buy ground pork, make sure they have 20% fat. The fat rendered will help the siu mai stay moist.
• Shrimp: for the shrimp, use headless, shell-on shrimp since they have better texture and flavor compared to the pre-peeled ones.
• Wrapper: look for thin siu mai (shumai) or wonton wrappers. If you can find round ones, it will save you time on cutting them into circles.
• Fish eggs: I used tobiko, or tiny flying fish roe, on top of the siu mai to give it a slightly crunchy texture and salty flavor. They're completely optional if you can't find them.

How to Make Siu Mai

• Prepare the filling ingredients. Rehydrate the shiitake mushrooms, discard the hard stems, and cut them into small pieces. Dice the carrot. Peel and chop the shrimp into small pieces.
• Make the filling. In a small bowl, whisk rice wine, oyster sauce, soy sauce, sugar, salt, and freshly ground pepper until combined. In a bowl of a stand mixer  fitted with the paddle attachment, add ground pork, shrimp, mushroom, carrot, seasoning, and cornstarch. Beat on low speed for 7 minutes until well combined. Refrigerate the pork and shrimp filling for a minimum of 2 hours, but preferably overnight for the flavor to develop.

• Fold the siu mai. If you got the square siu mai wrappers, use a cookie or biscuit cutter and cut them into 3-inch rounds. Place a scant tablespoon of the filling in the center of the wrapper. Make a C-shape or O-shape by joining the tips of your thumb and index finger. Place the dough disc in the hollow of your hand to form a cup. Pat the filling down with the back of a small spoon. Gather the wrapper up around the filling and form small pleats along the diameter. Flatten the top with the back of a spoon so they don’t bulge up during steaming. Place the folded siu mai on a tray lined with parchment paper. Repeat with remaining ingredients. 
• Steam them. Place the pork and shrimp siu mai in a steamer lined with perforated parchment paper, making sure to leave space in between them. Bring about 3 inches of water in a wok or large pot to a boil. Place the steaming basket on top of the pot or wok, close the lid, and cook for 7-8 minutes until cooked through. Transfer the siu mai to a serving plate and top them with tobiko.

Make Ahead and Storage

Serve the steamed siu mai immediately with soy-based dipping sauce. Store any cooked pork and shrimp siu mai in an airtight container for up to 48 hours. You can freeze uncooked siu mai for up to 3 months. Steam them straight from the freezer for 10-12 minutes.