These dumplings aren’t here to be pretty – they’re here to be tasty. Photo: Lucy Ridge.
Isn’t it funny that there are places you walk past all the time but never go into?
Even as a food writer, I can’t eat everywhere (despite my best efforts). One such place is Dumpling King. I’ve walked past it often, but never managed a visit. Until now.
Dumpling King is a compact little restaurant tucked in the corner of Garema Place. They specialise in dishes from Northern China, with a smattering of crowd favourites like honey chicken and Mongolian beef.
Considering the name, dumplings were an obvious choice. But I visited on a bitterly cold day, and so was immediately drawn to the noodle soups on the menu. Fortunately, I could have the best of both worlds by ordering a noodle soup with dumplings. But I figured I should order a few more dumplings on the side (for science, of course).
I had already been recommended the eggplant dumplings by Rina Miyata, chef and owner of Muku Ramen Bar (now sadly closed), and I tossed up whether to have them pan-fried as a starter or to add them to a warming noodle soup. In the end, I opted for soup and picked the pan-fried chicken and corn dumplings as the extra.
The panfried dumplings are very tasty indeed at Dumpling King. Photo: Lucy Ridge.
Perhaps the eggplant dumplings are misnamed: they should perhaps have been called garlic and eggplant instead! Not the sharp, pungent, slap-you-in-the-face kind of garlic, but mellow, sweet, roasted garlic suffused the soft eggplant in the dumpling’s interior. I regretted not ordering two serves of these delightful morsels.
The soup broth was clear and clean. Delicious and fragrant on its own, but extra moreish with a couple of spoonfuls of the chilli and sesame oil provided on the table and a quick dash of soy. The thick, slurpable noodles had a lovely bouncy chew.
My extra chicken dumplings were also delicious, but perhaps not as addictive as the revelatory eggplant. They aren’t pretty: no complex shapes and precise folds here. These are rustic, straightforward, get-you-fed-without-fuss dumplings. But they are full of a tight ball of flavoursome chicken, fragrant ginger and studded with golden corn. The pan-fried bases offer a nice crunch, and while I could have helped myself to soy and vinegar dressings, I actually found myself dipping them into the delicious broth of my soup.
On a quiet weekday lunch, there was a gentle soundtrack of sizzling and the occasional shing shing of a knife being sharpened in the kitchen. But both were drowned out by the sound of my enthusiastic slurping!
I’ll be back: I want to try more from the menu, and I need more of those eggplant dumplings.
Dumpling King is located at 5 Garema Place, Canberra City. They are open seven days a week from 11 am to 9.30 pm. Follow Dumpling King on Facebook or Instagram.
Original Article published by Lucy Ridge on Region Canberra.
