Blue corn dumpling soup

Blue corn dumpling soup is a traditional home-style soup from the Cherokee people of North America. It’s a brothy soup that uses blue corn masa, similar to Mexican cuisine when using tamales. Blue corn is an ingredient widely used by the Cherokee and plays an important part in their culture.

Credit: Supplied.

• serves

  4

• prep

  45 minutes

• cook

  20 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• 1 cup (230 g) blue corn flour (masa harina) (see Note) 
• 160 ml warm water 
• 2-3 white potatoes, peeled and diced coarsely 
• 3 carrots, peeled and diced coarsely 
• 2 bok choy, sliced, leaves and stems separated 
• 1½ – 2 litres chicken stock 
• ½ bunch spring onion, finely chopped  
• 1 tsp onion powder 
• 1 tsp salt  
• 1 tsp pepper  

Instructions

1. In a medium bowl, combine a pinch of salt and the masa harina (blue corn flour). Use your fingers to stir the salt into the flour, then add the warm water all at once. Use your hands to knead the ingredients until a soft, smooth dough comes together - it should have the consistency of fresh Play-Doh! If the dough seems a bit dry, add a tsp of water at a time until the right springy and soft consistency is reached. Let the dough rest under a damp tea towel or wrapped in plastic wrap for at least 15 minutes.
   
2. After the dough has rested, divide it into 12 equal portions. Roll each portion into a small round ball, then press each ball in the centre with your thumb to make an indentation, deep enough to form a little bowl shape. Keep the dough covered with a damp towel while you work on forming the dumplings to prevent the dough from drying out.
   
3. Pour the chicken stock into a large pot over high heat and bring to the boil. Once boiling, add the diced vegetables as well as the bok choy stems. Add the onion powder, salt and pepper to the broth and continue cooking over high heat. This will need boil for 10 minutes. 
   
4. Take the blue corn dough and separate into small chunks. Rolls these in your hands to create small ping pong ball sized dumplings, then press a small indentation into the ball using your fingers.  
   
5. Reduce the temperature to a very slow simmer after 10 minutes of boiling. Once the broth is at a slow simmer, add the blue corn dumpling. (If added while boiling, the dumplings may break apart) 
   
6. Leave the dumplings and soup on the stove simmering for between 5 and 10 minutes. The larger the dumpling the longer the time it needs to simmer in the soup. 
   
7. When the dumplings begin to float on the surface of the soup broth, add the bok choy stems. Leave the dumplings to cook for another 2 minutes. In the last minute of cooking, add the bok choy leaves. Using a wooden spoon, give the soup a light stir. When the dumplings are ready they will have a chewy texture and will slightly glisten on the outside.  
   
8. Dish up a mixture of dumplings and vegetables into a bowl, and enjoy.  

Notes

• Blue corn masa harina can be harder to source in Australia, but similar products including yellow masa harina can be found on the Hispanic Pantry in Australia.
  
• This dish also goes well with some nicely buttered bread on the side or even peppermint tea.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.