Heirloom recipes are at the heart of Dumpling Daughter

                From 1984 to 2003, Sally Ling's was a favorite destination in Boston's Waterfront District.  Owned by Sally Ling and Edward Nan Liu, the restaurant was one of the first fine dining Chinese establishments in the city.  As the daughter of Ling and Liu, Nadia Liu Spellman opened her own restaurant in 2014: Dumpling Daughter.  Spellman's restaurant has grown rapidly in popularity and currently has locations in Weston, Cambridge and Brookline.  Spellman recently released a cookbook as an ode to her family.  Titled "Dumpling Daughter: Heirloom Recipes from Our Restaurants and Home Kitchens," the cookbook features recipes from both Sally Ling's, Dumpling Daughter, and family recipes passed down through the generations.  Below is the recipe for Nadia's Grandma's Beijing Meat Sauce: Ingredients 6 Tbsp vegetable oil 4 cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced ​​1 large yellow onion, peeled and diced 1 pound ground pork, 80% lean 1 Tbsp Shaoxing rice wine 1 cup hoisin sauce 2 tablespoons Tian Mian Jiang (sweet bean paste) 12 ounces five-spice tofu (or substitute with 14 ounces well-dried, extra-firm tofu), cut into ¼-inch cubes 1 tablespoon XO sauce 1 pound dry white noodles 1 English cucumber Cook Heat a large pan over medium heat.  Once the pan is hot, add the oil.  When it glistens, add the garlic and onion.  Cook until the onion is softened, about 8 minutes.  Add the ground pork and cook continuously, crumbling into smaller pieces.  (I like to use a metal ladle to really press it down and break it up.) Cook until the pork starts to brown, about 3 minutes.  Add the wine and cook until absorbed, about 1 minute.  Add the hoisin sauce, sweet bean paste and ½ cup water and mix well.  Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 4 minutes.  Add the tofu and XO sauce and simmer until the tofu is heated through, about 2 minutes.  Cook your noodles according to package directions.  While the noodles are cooking, prepare the cucumber garnish by cutting into matchsticks.  Once the noodles are cooked and drained, divide into individual pasta bowls and ladle a generous amount of sauce over the steaming noodles.  Garnish with the julienne cut cucumbers.  This sauce will keep for up to 5 days in the fridge.  Freeze in small portions to enjoy for up to 6 months.
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                <strong class="dateline">NEEDHAM, Mass. —</strong>                                          <p>From 1984 to 2003, Sally Ling's was a favorite destination in Boston's Waterfront District.  Owned by Sally Ling and Edward Nan Liu, the restaurant was one of the first fine dining Chinese establishments in the city. 

As the daughter of Ling and Liu, Nadia Liu Spellman opened her own restaurant in 2014: Dumpling Daughter. Spellman’s restaurant has grown rapidly in popularity and currently has locations in Weston, Cambridge and Brookline.

Spellman recently released a cookbook as an ode to her family. Titled “Dumpling Daughter: Heirloom Recipes from Our Restaurants and Home Kitchens,” the cookbook features recipes from both Sally Ling’s, Dumpling Daughter, and family recipes passed down through the generations.

Below is the recipe for Nadia’s Grandma’s Beijing Meat Sauce:

Ingredients

6 tablespoons of vegetable oil

4 cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced

1 large yellow onion, peeled and diced

1 pound ground pork, 80% lean

1 tablespoon Shaoxing rice wine

1 cup hoisin sauce

2 tablespoons Tian Mian Jiang (sweet bean paste)

12 ounces five-spice tofu (or substitute with 14 ounces well-dried extra-firm tofu), cut into ¼-inch cubes

1 tablespoon XO sauce

1 pound dry white noodles

1 English cucumber

To cook

Heat a large pan over medium heat. Once the pan is hot, add the oil. When it glistens, add the garlic and onion. Cook until the onion is softened, about 8 minutes.

Add the ground pork and cook continuously, crumbling into smaller pieces. (I like to use a metal ladle to really press it down and break it up.) Cook until the pork starts to brown, about 3 minutes.

Add the wine and cook until absorbed, about 1 minute. Add the hoisin sauce, sweet bean paste and ½ cup water and mix well. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 4 minutes. Add the tofu and XO sauce and simmer until the tofu is heated through, about 2 minutes.

Cook your noodles according to package directions. While the noodles are cooking, prepare the cucumber garnish by cutting into matchsticks.

Once the noodles are cooked and drained, divide into individual pasta bowls and ladle a generous amount of sauce over the steaming noodles. Garnish with the julienne cut cucumbers.

This sauce will keep for up to 5 days in the refrigerator. Freeze in small portions to enjoy for up to 6 months.

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