Eric Ripert and Laurent Tourondel

Not too long ago I had a rare opportunity to photograph 2 great chefs of NYC, if not the world.

Eric Ripert and Laurent Tourondel.  It was a blind tasting, where the chef's had to guess each others ingredients.  Their palates were truly amazing and precise.  Here are some photos.

Chef Eric Ripert's creation.

Chef Laurent Tourondel's creation

Photographed at Le Bernardin. 

Pot sticker maker.

This would have come in handy. Next time I will definetly use this.

Mandoo, Korean pot stickers

I got this fabulous recipe from my cousin SuJin. Super healthy snacks you can keep in the freezer.
I made mine with fish sauce but if you substitute with salt, it will be vegan.
It's better than restaurant or store-bought pot stickers.
This recipe makes about 40 dumplings.  You can freeze them and eat them steamed, fried or
add to soups.  The hard part is folding the dumplings and make 'em pretty.

Ingredients

7 oz. firm tofu (1/2 package of tofu)

 * cubed and wrapped in cloth and all the liquid squeezed out.  It should be dry crumbly.

5 dried shitaki mushrooms, soaked and chopped (any mushroom is fine)

1 1/2 cup of chopped Asian chives

1/2 cup of chopped scallions

1 cup of chopped and cooked bean thread (optional)

 * available in most grocery stores in Asian section.

2 tbsp of fish sauce (substitute 1 tbsp salt for vegan)

1 tbsp of sugar

2 cloves of garlic

Black pepper to taste

Package of wonton wrappers (round ones) 

Dipping sauce

1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon vinegar
1 tablespoon water
1/2 teaspoon sugar
pinch of black pepper

Chop tofu into cubes and put it in a clean kitchen cloth.

Wrap it tightly and squeeze all the water out.  Put in a large bowl.

Put all the ingredients except for the bean thread in food processor and puree until

everything is finely chopped.

Add fish sauce and sugar, pulse 4 or 5 times.

Put into the bowl with tofu.

Add the bean thread and tofu mix well.

Making mandoo

Wet the edges of wonton wrapper with wet finger and add 1 tbsp of the stuffing.

Wet the edges of the wrapper with water or egg wash and seal tightly (pushing the air out with your fingers).  Cover with damp towel until you are done.

Your mandoo will become prettier as you get used to folding and squeezing.

You can freeze them or eat 'em right away.  Steam, pan fry or add to soup.

Freezing tip.  Line them up on a tray without touching for 30 minutes.  After 30 minutes you can bag them up and freeze them.

Tips for frying.  Fry mandoo till golden brown, add splash of water and closed lid for 2 minutes.

This gives it soft texture that is another way to eat them.