Open pork and shrimp dumplings (Siu mai)

1. Soak the dried shiitake in lukewarm water for 30 minutes, squeeze out and finely chop; peel and roughly chop the shrimp.

2. Stir the minced pork with the soy sauce, oyster sauce, Shaoxing rice wine, sugar, sesame oil, white pepper and cornflour in one direction for 2-3 minutes until springy, then mix in the shrimp and mushrooms.

3. Trim the corners off the wonton wrappers to make rounds; cut the carrot into very small dice.

4. Make a ring with your thumb and index finger, place a wrapper on top, press a heaped tablespoon of filling into the centre and squeeze with your fingers to form a small open-topped basket; smooth the top with a spoon.

5. Top each siu mai with a few carrot dice and place in a steamer lined with baking paper.

6. Steam over rapidly boiling water for 8-10 minutes until the filling is cooked, and serve hot.

Tip: The yellow-orange baskets of the dim sum table: the top is traditionally orange from fish roe or carrot. You can make a bigger batch – frozen raw, they steam in 12-14 minutes.