Opening SESAME: South Indian Pappu and POTSTICKERS, Too

     "Here. Try this."  Floating inches before me was a dumpling-type thing dipped in a thin, dark sauce. Without knowing the dumpling's contents, I bit.  Curiosity, for me, nearly always wins out over uncertainty of the unknown.

          Or...maybe I'm just guilty to sink my teeth into whatever looks good. (Ahem.) Not wise, granted-- but I've found that acting wisely can sometimes be, well, bland.

          "Not bad.  A bit greasy, maybe. What is it?" 

          Behold the potsticker -- a Chinese dumpling stuffed with minced meat, fried on one side and steamed on the other. Chase admitted that this potsticker in particular, obtained from a local chain restaurant, was not special. But potstickers in general could be wonderful.

           Hm....We at the NC could do something interesting with this. Wait, just wait, for the right Indian-spiced dish to come along.....

         Idea: Let soak. Set aside.       

       Fast forward to an intriguing recipe I swiped from Tanuja of Kodalis Kitchen. I declared it to be cooked up at the NC simply because it seemed...peculiar to us Midwestern Americans. Unimaginable, even. Sesame seeds were the starring role in what wasn't a sauce (like tahini), but a stir-fry. It might not be good. But if it was, and you had no food in the house, how cool that would be to create a meal out of...sesame!

          But it was good. It was. Trobee cooked it spicy-hot, Trina cooked it spicy-mild. "There are a lot of possibilities with this," I said.

          Idea: Return to pan and stir.

         And so it happened that we at the NC decided to try stuffing potstickers with Sesame Pappu. Could these potstickers be made successfully using minimal oil?  We would find out. It might be ... cool.

          And it is cool. It is.

          Do bite into this one, especially if you hanker for the Indian-Chinese flavor.And double-especially if you like the idea of dumplings fried in just a DAB of oil...which is all they need.

RECIPE B-R-E-A-K-D-O-W-N

"So... when would you use black sesame seeds and when would you use beige sesame seeds?" 

"With Indian cooking, you can assume they use beige [called til in Hindi].  Actually, sesame is more of a South Indian thing. You'll find the black seeds farther east."

And for the pappu? Beige, of course.

*     *     *

"So I'm wondering...," said I.  "What if a person couldn't get a hold of potsticker wraps, do you think wonton wraps could be used?"

"Absolutely," said Trobee.  "The reason I know is because I asked
the lady at the Asian grocery store.  She said, they're the same except wontons
are square and potstickers are round." 

"Wow, Trobee. You actually asked. Good for you."

*     *     *

Upon Trobee's cooking session of the pappu: "I think I effed this one up, Courty." 

"What do you mean?" 

She confessed to a coarse-grind of the soaked sesame, not cooking the dish long enough....It turned out more like moist breadcrumbs rather than the 'fine paste' the original recipe had called for. We blame our dorky blender.

But you know what? We like it that way.

*     *     *

I noticed from pictures of earlier attempts that our pappu was looking like scrambled eggs.  Can't have that.  Trina and I opted to reduce the turmeric to just an 1/8 of a teaspoon.

*     *     *

Although Trina had cooked the Sesame Pappu with great success, once adding it to a Chinese rice noodle dish, she wasn't enthusiastic about the idea of using it for potstickers. Reason: the girl said she didn't like potstickers.  Shocking, considering her penchant for Chinese and Vietnamese cuisine.  But then, Trina doesn't like some of the uncertain, fatty mixtures of ingredients that are often laced in restaurant potstickers. (Minced pork, for example.)

Once Trobee and I had tried it, we were confident that she would like our Sesame Pappu Potstickers.  ("These are a hit, Court!") Oh yes, we had a feeling that these would rock her world (without the jalapenos of course).

Sure enough... haha. Once Trina had finished cooking them up, she scrambled to mix up her beloved Hoisin sauce with lime juice -- and made happy sounds as she went at em. "You gotta try this!" she said to whomever entered the kitchen.

They didn't last long.

photos by Trina and Trobee

Shout out to Francois of Paris, France for the use of his stunning pic 'Serenity' as a backdrop in our top-of-the-post pic. Check out his amazing online photo gallery here.

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Sesame Pappu Stir-Fry

1 cup sesame seeds
1 Tb oil
1 medium onion, sliced
10-15 jalapeno rings (Tro tends to double this. Trina doesn't add any.)
1/2 tsp cayenne or paprika
1/8 tsp turmeric
Salt
1 tsp garlic paste or minced garlic


Masala:

• 1/2 tsp black mustard seeds
• 1/8 tsp asafetida
• 1/2 tsp raw chickpeas/chana dal
• 5 curry leaves

1. Soak the sesame seeds in 1 cup of water for about 20 minutes. Dump this sesame seed- water mixture into a blender and whizz the stuff into a paste. Set aside.
2. In a medium skillet, heat the oil until it is sizzle-hot. Add the masala. As soon as the black mustard seeds have quit popping, add the onions and jalapenos. Cook until onions are golden brown.
3. Now dump in the sesame paste. Cook until the water evaporates, about. 10-15 minutes. It should be like moist breadcrumbs.
4. Add the cayenne or paprika, turmeric, and salt. Mix well. Sauté for about 1-2 minutes.
5. Add the garlic and sauté for a few more minutes to heat it through. Done.

Sesame Pappu Potstickers 

18 potsticker or wonton wraps
1 cup Sesame Pappu Stir-fry
1 egg
dab of oil


In a bowl, combine the Sesame Pappu Stir-fry and the egg. Place about 1 tsp of the mixture onto the center of the wrap. As you might suspect, Trobee shoved extra jalapenos into the wraps. The little minx.

Dip your finger in water and moisten the outside of wrap. Fold over the filling, making it look like a half-moon. Push firmly together on the rim of thewrap to secure the inside.

Get out your medium skillet and heat a dab of oil. Place the little guys in the pan and fry until their bottoms are golden-brown.

Now add 1/2 cup of water. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Done.

And for the dipping sauce? Go wild. 

Dipping sauces we have used so far:

• Teriyaki sauce
• Hoisin sauce splashed with lime juice (Trina's contribution)
• our own Pineapple-Tamarind Dipping sauce
• and even ranch dressing mixed with a hot sauce