Sunday March 17th, 2013
Can you say exhausted? Well I couldn’t for most of the day
either due to being brain-dead or unconscious. A severe lack of sleep this week
combined with a looming workload led me to choosing not going to church today.
I just really needed a day to rest plus I’m 90% sure I wouldn’t be able to stay
awake if not.
That decision was further appreciated when my host family
went through the easy but lengthy process oooooooooof making steamed dumplings!
Yay! It was awesome! I now contain the knowledge to craft dumplings! Let me
break it down for ya! You’ll need two main components: the dumpling skin and
the filling.
These are what the dumpling skins look like when you
purchase it from the store, stacks of circular, lightly floured batter.
This would be the filling that (I believe) host grandmother
made at home. I asked what type of meat it had and got “pork” as a response.
You take a single dumpling circle, place a small amount of
filling on top, spread it around the middle and taco it closed. Then you pinch
the perimeter together shut and viola! I think you can also sprinkle a bit of liquid
excess around the edges but not everyone did it. Afterward you place your art
on a floured plate and later cook it. I only took part in the forming of the
dumplings.
The assembly table! Each of our dumplings looked different
from the other person’s.
This was host grandmother’s style. It was the roundest and
plumpest on the bottom.
Two of host mother’s in the front and host father’s in the
back.
Yours truly's! I’m very proud with how my style turned out
like. To me it looks like a fan, which makes me incredibly happy since I love
fans! ^_^
Host grandmother suggested me making a plate completely
containing my dumplings. So I did and it turned out like a lovely appetizing
fan flower. My art is one to savor. ;P
The number of dumplings crafted amounted somewhere in the
hundreds. We made A LOT! What you see here is only a small portion, maybe
fourth of the total number. Yep, there were a whole bunch!
Family photo of our yummy creations!
Apart from dumplings, host grandmother made ‘suan la ta.’
This is a sour soup with tofu, duck blood, carrots and other ingredients. I’m
not the biggest fan but it’s not bad.
On dumpling-making-auto-pilot, I was in zombie mode. At one
point host mother was asking me questions in Chinese but my brain physically
couldn’t translate it because it was shut off. I tried to awake but ended up
apologizing and excusing myself to take a nap. When lunch was ready, they awoke
me and I joined right back in.
The dumplings all steamed and ready to eat! The plate given
to me (the lower left one) was filled with the ones I made. They lost most of
their fan-like appearance but still retained shape, stayed fully closed and
still looked good. Most of them are upside down here and therefore can’t see
the ruffles. Indeed they were tasty! I look forward to when I can make them
back in Texas! :D
Soon after the meal I had to rest again. It was meant to be
an hour or so but extended to about four hours instead. Anything to get back on
track! Once risen, work, dinner, shower, work and sleep. That’s my Sunday for
ya! I’m sure you can guess what the highlight was. ;D
Sweet dreams y’all! Bye-bye! ^_^
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