This is a copy of my own recent post on the FTC board:
My partner’s nephew is a 13 year old boy, which I mention by way of explaining WHY I was out in Cameron Park, an eastern suburb of Sacramento, out in the very white bread chain restaurant strip mall laden Placer County. I was tasked with taking him to see Morbius, the lastest MCU-adjacent feature in a never-ending sea of blue-grey oatmeal that occasionally passes for movies these days. Quick review: Don’t bother. I like Marvel movies and I was bored. The 13 year old boy was bored.
However, before I picked him up, I had the chance to try Yummy Dumplings, a tiny little family owned place that exists out here for no fathomable reason. We’d passed the place a number of times when visiting, and the timing worked out. The 1st page of the menu is your standard sort of American-Chinese lunch special stuff. Your sweet and sour, your kung pao, etc. The 2nd page, though, is dumplings, all made in house by the same woman one can see in the pics in the google link below. Since it was just me, I went with the pork and chive, and check this out:
10 to an order, these are boiled. Also available potsticker-style (which you should get)
The skins are sturdy enough to withstand my clumsy stabbing and JUST toothsome enough without being tough or doughy.
and check out the interior!
The center holds together without being tough and chewy in the way that some dumplings can be. It’s light and airy, with prominent chives/spring onions and hints of ginger. The dipping sauce is some magic combination of soy sauce, chili crisp, sugar, and maybe vinegar and sesame oil and is simply outstanding.
I liked them so much I got some frozen on the way home. A bag of 25 was $23 (a touch pricey, but worth it) and they threw in several containers of the dipping sauce to boot. Best of all were the cooking instructions:
Boil water. Put in dumplings. When water boils again, add 1 cup cold water. Let it boil again. Do that 3 times. Third time it boils, dumplings are ready.
Haven’t tried them at home yet. Probably this weekend.
[have tried them many times at home. Thumbs way, way up. Note that gentle boiling or steaming for 10-12 minutes will also cook them just fine. Then crisp up the bottoms in a frying pan. Mmmm.]
I’m sure most of this board won’t make it out this way much, but if one is on one’s way to Tahoe, there are some shockingly good eats to be had on the drive out.
Yummy Dumplings, Cameron Park, CA
Check the google link above for menu and more photos.
