Yield:
50-60 Dumplings
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The team at Brooklyn Bugs call themselves "edible insect ambassadors" and promote recipes that help explain why the United Nations endorses edible insects to address global food security and sustainability. Chef Yoon's Lucky Chenel Dumplings veil half crushed and half whole grasshoppers (whose taste is said to resemble mushrooms) in a savory filling of leeks, kale, garlic and Laura Chenel Goat Cheese Crumbles. Doused in a Gochujang Sauce that includes 28 black ants, these delicious dumplings will leave you feeling lucky you're adventurous enough to join the edible insect revolution.

Recipe courtesy of Chef JOSEPH YOON, Executive Chef / Owner - Brooklyn Bugs

Lucky Chenel Dumplings

Ingredients

Dumpling Dough:

  • 737g all-purpose flour, plus more if necessary
  • 170g cricket powder
  • 453g warm water
  • 4 grams salt

Dumpling Filling:

  • 453g leeks, trimmed and chopped
  • 453g kale, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
  • 226g Laura Chenel goat cheese crumbles
  • 113g grasshoppers, half crushed and half whole
  • 113g chives, chopped
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 14g vegetable oil, for sautéing

Gochujang Sauce:

  • 113g gochujang
  • 56g rice wine vinegar
  • 56g mirin
  • 14g granulated sugar
  • 14g sesame oil
  • 113g Laura Chenel spreadable goat cheese
  • 28g black ants

Instructions

  1. First prepare the dumpling wrappers (recipe follows).
  2. Next, cook the dumpling filling (recipe follows).
  3. Finally, prepare the dumpling sauce (recipe follows).
  4. Once the dumpling wrappers, dumpling filling, and dumpling sauce are all prepared, begin wrapping the dumplings. Fill each dumpling wrapper with a tablespoon of filling and pinch to seal. Water is not necessary to seal the dumpling.
  5. Turn the heat on a skillet to medium-high and coat the pan with a thin layer of vegetable oil. Cook the dumplings in batches for 2-3 minutes per side until well-browned on each side.
  6. Arrange all the cooked dumplings on a serving plate and garnish with additional crumbled goat cheese, grasshoppers, ants, and more minced chives, if desired. Serve with black ant gochujang sauce.

Dumpling Wrapper Preparation:

  1. In a bowl, mix all the ingredients together. Transfer to a floured surface and knead, adding more flour as necessary, until a workable dough is formed. Transfer to a bowl and rest as you prepare the filling.
  2. After the dough has rested, return it to a floured surface and roll out to about ⅛-inch thickness. Cut the dough into 3-inch rounds. Cover each round with flour and set aside until all the dumpling wrappers have been cut out from the dough.

Dumpling Filling Preparation:

  1. In a skillet, heat a tablespoon of vegetable oil over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the leeks, kale, and garlic and sauté until softened and vegetables start to turn golden brown in places, about 5-7 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
  2. Transfer the cooked leeks and kale to a mixing bowl and fold in the goat cheese, grasshoppers, and chives. Set aside.

Gochujang Sauce Preparation:

  1. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the gochujang, rice wine vinegar, mirin, sugar, and sesame oil until fully homogenized.
  2. Fold the goat cheese into the sauce and whisk until smooth and creamy.
  3. Stir in the blank ants. Set the sauce aside until ready to serve.
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