Tender Oxtail Dumplings

Vegetables prep

1. Preheat the oven to 400F
2. Peel the carrots and dice them into large cubes.
3. Peel the daikon radish and dice them into large cubes.
4. Peel the shallots and cut these in half.
5. Peel the garlic cloves and crush each clove using the side of a knife and press down on them.
6. Combine all the vegetables in a baking pan. Drizzle them with oil, and place it in the oven for about 30 minutes – checking every 10-15 minutes or so until they’re a nice golden brown colour.

Oxtail prep

1. Give your oxtail bones a good rinse with cold water before you start.
2. Scum boil: bring a large pot of water to a boil and once the water comes to a rolling boil, place your oxtail bones into the water. Allow the bones to boil for no more than 15 minutes – you are boiling the bones to remove their impurities. After a few minutes, you will start seeing foam and various bits coming to the top of the water. Keep skimming the scum off the surface of the water as the bones boil.
3. After 15 minutes, remove the oxtails and set aside
4. Remove any leftover scum and save this leftover water for braising later.
5. Cover a pan in a light layer of oil and set this on high heat. When it is hot, add the oxtail to the pan and sear each side until they’re golden brown.
6. In a separate roasting pan, place your seared oxtail bones into the pan and add in the liquid that you boiled the oxtail in earlier – top off with extra water until the oxtail bones are just covered.
7. Once your vegetables have finished roasting, add them to the roasting pan with the oxtails. Cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil.
8. Return the roasting pan to the oven and reduce the oven temperature to 375F. Cook the contents of the pan until the oxtail is tender. This braising time will be about 3 to 5 hours but check on the oxtails every 30 minutes to make sure they’re getting tender and the meat starts separating from the bones.
9. When tender, drain the excess juices from the pan and save this liquid to the side. Move the oxtail to a bowl and, once it’s cool enough to handle, begin stripping and shredding the meat from the bones. Season with the chili flakes, salt and pepper, and soy sauce to taste. You can add some of the braising liquid into this meat mixture for added flavour.

Oxtail jus

1. Peel and chop your onion roughly, the pieces don’t have to be too small. Peel the garlic and crush using the side of a knife.
2. Add the vegetables to a hot pan with a light covering of oil and sautée until the onions become soft.
3. In a separate, dry pan, add the peppercorns to the pan and toast on medium high heat. Keep moving the peppercorns around, being careful not to let them burn. Once toasted, add the garlic and onion into the pan along with your leftover braising liquid and raise the heat to bring its contents to a simmer.
4. Simmer until the sauce is reduced to your desired consistency, then salt and pepper to taste.

Wonton prep

1. Prepare a bowl of lukewarm water (as the ‘glue’) and have your wonton wrappers out at room temperature.
2. Using a teaspoon, fill the centre of each wonton wrapper with your meat mixture, leaving ample space between the edge of the wrapper and the mix so you can close and seal the wrapper. Using your finger, brush water over the exposed wrapper, covering the whole circle. Fold the wrapper over the mix, creating a half moon shape. Then, line up the sides and press down to seal it tightly. Make pleats along the edge of the dumplings (optional), starting at one side and folding the edge over itself in small sections, pinching the wrapper over itself. It should create a fan-like shape.
3. Once you have enough dumplings made, set a pot of water to boil. Once the water reaches a roiling boil, drop your wontons in one at a time so they don’t stick to each other. Boil it for a few minutes, or until the wontons start floating to the top. Once the wrappers become translucent, they are done.
4. If you want, you can now fry the dumplings in a pan coated with oil, until crispy and a light golden brown colour.