Hamilton’s Sixth Generation Dumpling Maker on the Craft and History of Handmade Dumplings

What drew you to settle down in New Zealand?

Well, I had a choice to immigrate to New Zealand or the UK. I chose New Zealand because when I heard the name, I thought of beautiful, vibrant blue and green colours. I had a special feeling that I would love it here, and I was right! This country is also where I met my love. He was my classmate at Waikato University. And my boys were born here, so this will always be their home. 

What do you enjoy about living in Hamilton?

I love the community here. People are very friendly. They have close relationships and help each other. I had the option to move to either Auckland or Hamilton and I thought I would enjoy living in this small city by the river. I have lived here for 23 years and have been in business for 14 years now. Strangers have become regulars and regulars have become friends. There is a big extended family feeling. As immigrants, it is important to remember where we came from but also learn and adapt to the new culture. It is important that we contribute our love and our skills to our new culture.

Tell me a bit about the customers who dine at Dumpling House.

We opened our Grey Street store in 2011 in a suburban area, so most of our customers were local people from that area. Now we have a CBD location also, so we have customers from all over Hamilton. I know most of our customers' names, as well as what they like and what they don’t like. 

I feel like we are really a part of the community here. Many of our original customers are still coming to see us now. We have seen them get married and have children and watched their families grow. Many of them move overseas or to other parts of New Zealand, but they always come in to see us when they visit Hamilton. It is very special to be a part of their life and their family. Often we get invited to our customers' weddings or we get to be a part of their special family celebrations. 

Has your food always been well received here in Hamilton?

When we first opened, we were not targeting local Kiwi people because we didn’t understand their preferences. We mostly had Asian customers and they really liked our food so we were always busy. Our Grey Street shop is on the corner of a busy roundabout, and as locals would drive past, they saw how busy we were and thought that we must serve very good Asian food. This is how we attracted local people unintentionally, and through word of mouth, this grew to a huge customer base. Our food tells the story, once people know how good it is they tell other people and they keep coming back.

What makes Dumpling House different from other eateries?

We focus on the quality of our food from start to finish, in every step of the process. As well as dumplings we have authentic street food like fried wontons, pork buns and spring onion pancakes. All of these are handmade from scratch, and people can really taste the difference. We also try to keep our food as affordable as possible so everyone can enjoy it. That has been very tricky this year with all the food prices going up so much. But to me, there is no point in making good food if everyone cannot afford to enjoy it. So we focus on very good quality but also the best value that we can provide.

Can you tell me about your family’s history as dumpling makers and how these techniques were passed down through generations?

Every family has their own special recipes and their own little tricks. When I was little, I would watch my Mum making dumplings. That is how I learned. And my Mum learned from watching her Dad and her brothers. My Mum’s great grandfather actually made dumplings for the Chinese Royal Family. Normally it is only the boys who carry on the family business, but my Mum really loves cooking, and so do I. It is part of who we are. We love to combine our history and our passion to share delicious food with people. 

When my Mum was little, dumplings were eaten at special occasions only, usually during Chinese New Year when all the family was together. They take a very long time to make and back then they were expensive to make, so it was not everyday food. The family would all sit together and make them. Everyone had their own special job to help. This is how we would pass our skills and recipes down through the generations. It is how both me and my Mum would learn to make dumplings from when we were very little. My eight-year-old son can make dumplings now. At first, he would just play with the dough, then he would make some ugly dumplings, and now he makes good ones. 

Tell me about some of the most popular items on your menu.

As we are called Dumpling House, dumplings are the main thing. Real dumplings need to be made by hand. Machine-made dumplings have no soul, and they taste very different. You can really taste the difference in the pastry. Mum also has secret recipes and special ingredients that have been passed down through the family. Her dipping sauce is very special! We also have a good selection of signature dishes in our CBD location. These are bigger dishes for sharing. Customers really love our crispy sweet and sour eggplant, they are really amazed by how crispy it is. 

How do you source your ingredients? 

We source as much as we can locally, but some of the spices like special dried mushrooms and Chinese pepper we need to import from China to make sure we have that authentic flavour. We have good relationships with people from local farmers markets and they deliver fresh to the restaurant in the mornings. Also, my Mum has a huge herb garden that she is very proud of and we use her herbs and spring onions in the restaurants. 

Do you have any special tips for people who want to try making dumplings at home?

Yes! The filling is key. The texture is usually too dry. The trick is to make your own chicken stock and let it cool down until it becomes a jelly. Use this real stock in your filling for the perfect texture and it won’t be dry, the dumplings will be very juicy. Also, make sure you use fresh garlic in your dipping sauce. It is key for the flavour and also good for your health.

Do you prefer steamed or fried dumplings yourself?

I like both! Pork and prawn with chives has been my favourite flavour since I was little. It is the first type of dumpling I learnt to make.  

Do you have any favourite moments from running Dumpling House?

There are many! Recently I was working in the Grey Street shop, we were short staffed and it was very very busy. The wait time was so long and I didn’t even have time to clean the tables. My customers didn’t mind. They were so patient and not grumpy, they just started clearing the tables for me and helping me clean up the restaurant. One lady wanted some takeaway dumplings, and when I told her it would be a 45 minute wait she said that’s no problem. While she waited for her food, she cleaned up the restaurant and did some dishes for me and she did a very good job! I felt so bad, but I really appreciated the support from my community. 

What do you want people to experience when they visit Dumpling House?

We hope that they will enjoy experiencing real Chinese food. The food we make is authentic dishes from North East China. It is very cold there, the winter is 6 months long, so the food is very tasty and full of flavour. Food is love, so we hope that people will enjoy our food and it will help them to learn and understand who we are.