The idea came to cookbook author Tara O'Brady the night one of her sons asked for dumplings for dinner. It was a busy weeknight and "the idea of stuffing and steaming a battalion of dumplings for dinner" was more than O'Brady wanted to tackle for the night, she says. When her other son suggested burgers, the inspiration hit: she'd make a dumpling filling of sorts, but then form it into patties and cook it like a burger, which gave her kids the flavors they were craving, plus that crispy burger exterior.
The resulting pork burgers were a hit with her children—as well as here, in the Test Kitchen. A little kicky from a dash of Sriracha, a little nutty from toasted sesame oil, a little sharp from chopped cilantro, and deeply savory, the burgers are topped with a crunchy cabbage slaw and sweet pickles and sandwiched on English muffins (toasted, please!).
But O'Brady's experiment left us wondering: what else would benefit from some dumpling filling inspiration? Here are a few of our ideas:
1. Rice Noodles
Crumble dumpling filling into a pan and cook like ground beef for spaghetti. Then toss with cooked rice noodles and, if you'd like, drizzle with peanut sauce and top with scallions, cilantro, and/or basil.
2. Meatball Soup
O'Brady also forms dumpling filling into meatballs, which she poaches in a "simple, clear broth with handfuls of wilted greens." Keep the uncooked meatballs frozen and you can plop them right into the simmering stock for a lightning-quick weeknight soup.
3. Dumplings, Without the Hassle
Forget the wrapper and follow this method for cooking meatballs with carrots on a sheet pan. Instead of forming perfect balls, the meat mixture is simply dolloped on the pan. The yogurt sauce won't quite go with dumpling flavors, so just serve the meat and vegetables over steamed rice.
4. Pacholas, Asian-Style
Pacholas are Mexcian meat patties that are rolled thin and topped with salsa. Make an Asian-inspired version by cooking dumpling filling rolled into thin patties between two pieces of parchment, searing them in a pan, and then topping with a Sichuan-inspired cucumber salad.
5. Sausage Rolls
Another of O'Brady's dumpling filling ideas: she fills a rectangle of puff pastry with dumpling filling, wraps the rolls into cylinders and bakes them for about 15 minutes in a 375°F oven until the pastry is browned and the filling is cooked through.
6. Fried Rice
Sauté dumpling filling with any vegetables you can raid from your crisper drawer, then follow Anna Stockwell's method for this easy, crowd-pleasing dinner.
7. Sweet Potato Bowls
Top a halved, roasted sweet potato with crumbled cooked dumpling filling and then top with shredded cabbage—or even the slaw from O'Brady's burger recipe. A drizzle of almond butter or tahini wouldn't be out of place.
8. Dumpling Salad
Scatter the dumpling mixture in small mounds on a sheet pan and roast at 425°F for about 15–20 minutes, or until cooked through. Meanwhile, mix together a salad of spring greens with sliced radishes, snap peas, shredded carrots, and a sesame vinaigrette. Top with meatballs and crunchy fried wonton strips.
9. Nachos
Top tortilla chips with crumbled, cooked dumpling filling, kimchi, avocado, and diced cucumber. Enjoy knowing that nachos are an economical and ingenious way to eat dinner any night of the week, and that you've just made a particularly tasty and creative version.
Quick cooking? Check. Flavor powerhouse? You bet.
