Last weekend, I made a bunch of dumplings, wontons, and Chinese chive turnovers with my mom. It took a few hours of our Sunday afternoon. Quite productive :)
Chinese chive turnovers are called jiu cai he zi in Chinese, which literally translates to chive "boxes". As you can see, they kinda sorta resemble boxes. Boxes containing a delicious, savory, garlicky filling.
Making these is a bit involved, but I swear the results are worth it and impressive!
You will need:
Dough
2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 boiling water
1 tsp salt
Filling
1 bunch of Chinese chives (about a fistful)
2 eggs
1 block spiced baked tofu (the really firm, dry kind)
Salt
White pepper
Vegetable oil
To make the dough, slowly pour in the hot water into the flour and mix until a dough forms. Let the dough cool until you can knead it. You may need to add a bit more flour to make a dough that's not too sticky. Knead until smooth, then cover and set aside.
To make the filling, chop the chives into about half inch pieces. Mince the tofu and beat the eggs with a pinch of salt. In a medium frying pan, heat a teaspoon of oil and scramble the eggs slightly. You don't want to overcook them. Set the eggs aside in a bowl and heat another teaspoon of oil. Add the tofu and sauté a bit. Then add the chives. Season with salt and white pepper to taste. Cook until the chives look wilted. Add the egg and break it up into smaller bits. Set filling aside to cool.
To make the turnovers, divide the dough into 6 pieces. Dust your work surface with plenty of flour and roll out a piece until its pretty thin (cover the other pieces so they don't dry out). Spread the filling over one half of the dough, then fold the other half over to make a half moon. Pinch the edges together, and either crimp the edges like in the photos, or use a fork to press them together. Just make sure that the edge is sealed well. Repeat with the remaining pieces of dough.
To cook, heat a tablespoon of oil in a frying pan until hot. Gently place the turnovers in the pan and cook on each side until golden and crispy, about 5-6 mins on each side. Serve with some black vinegar, sriracha sauce, or whatever you fancy and enjoy!
