For a long time, i’ve operated under a very specific, very thorough definition of a dumpling: dough stuffed with something (I know, so eloquent). But today’s Dumpling Diaries episode is dedicated to fufu - a West African dumpling that’s stuffed with…nothing! It’s a stretchy, sticky dough that is essentially a vehicle for sauce or stew. What’s more - when I google “dumplings around the world” I see everything from ravioli (is pasta a dumpling??) to empanadas (are fried and baked savory pastries dumplings??). It seems like we can’t really agree on one definition.
So I want to know: what does “dumpling” mean to you?
(fufu with okra stew and some lamb meat on top because that’s what the cashier recommended!)
Honestly sometimes I think the discussions like "is a hot dog a sandwich" aren't that fruitful! I'd probably classify dumpling like a dough with stuffing in it, and if an Italian person said "I made some traditional dumplings for you" and it was ravioli, I'd be pretty excited.
My mom lived in the southern US for many years and they make "chicken and dumplings" where the dumplings are more like noodles, or sometimes like small wet biscuits (with no filling inside). Fufu would probably fall into the same category (a carb/starch without stuffing).
If the category gets too broad maybe "dumpling" loses some of it's meaning, but on the other hand I can't really imagine a food that is called a "dumpling" that I would pass up!
Honestly sometimes I think the discussions like "is a hot dog a sandwich" aren't that fruitful! I'd probably classify dumpling like a dough with stuffing in it, and if an Italian person said "I made some traditional dumplings for you" and it was ravioli, I'd be pretty excited.
My mom lived in the southern US for many years and they make "chicken and dumplings" where the dumplings are more like noodles, or sometimes like small wet biscuits (with no filling inside). Fufu would probably fall into the same category (a carb/starch without stuffing).
If the category gets too broad maybe "dumpling" loses some of it's meaning, but on the other hand I can't really imagine a food that is called a "dumpling" that I would pass up!