Beef Siomai Recipe is a Filipino style dumpling which has a filling of ground beef, mushroom, and vegetables. It is considered a popular street food snack which is served with chili garlic oil or soy sauce.
While living in the Philippines, I learned that Chinese foods have a great influence on Filipino cuisines. These foods include pancit, siopao, lumpia, and many more others. It is not surprising since Filipino Chinese have been living in the Philippines since the Spanish colonial era.
I have tried and eaten much delicious Chinese-influenced Filipino food, and one dish that brought my attention is siomai.
What is Siomai?
It is a Filipino dumpling that has fillings of pork, beef, or shrimp along with other vegetables and sauce. In terms of cooking method, it is either cook in a steamer or deep-fried in cooking oil. In other recipes, some prefer to mix the ground meat fillings with shrimp or chopped mushrooms, which all taste delicious.
If you are familiar with Chinese dumplings, their shumai is similar to Pinoy siomai, except the ingredients are a bit different. While living in the Philippines, I notice it is found in most food carts in the malls or local streets. It is considered popular among teenagers and young adults since it is affordable and appetizing.
Furthermore, this dish is usually served with white rice and a dipping sauce, which could be either chili garlic oil or plain soy sauce. Because it is one of my favorite Filipino street foods, I will be showing you my version of the beef siomai recipe.
Recipe Ingredients
Several ingredients are needed to make Beef Siomai Recipe.
MEAT: The meat I am using for this recipe is lean ground beef, which is my main source of protein. The ground beef should contain less fat so the meat will not shrink in size when steaming.
FILLINGS: In addition to the ground beef, I am using grated carrots, chopped mushrooms, garlic, and onions. These will give a good flavor to the filling of the meat in your recipe. Furthermore, I am using canned mushrooms that I bought from any grocery store. You can also use fresh mushrooms if you like.
SEASONING SAUCE: To enhance the flavor of your ground meat mixture, I am using the oyster sauce and sesame oil in my recipe. To me, they are very important since it makes the siomai flavorful and delicious.
BINDING AGENT: To make sure the meat mixture holds together without falling apart, I am using egg and cornstarch. They will do the trick.
WRAPPER: The dumpling wrapper I am using is the one I purchased from the grocery. To me, it is much convenient since you can save time by making a homemade wrapper.
Cooking Instruction
Cooking Beef Siomai recipe is easy and straight forward is divided into 3 steps: Mixing the Ground Meat; Shaping the Siomai; and Steaming the Siomai.
I. Mixing the Ground Meat
Add the ground beef and the rest of the ingredients into the large bowl. Mix them using a large spoon or using your clean hand.
Set aside for preparing to assemble the siomai.
II. Shaping the Siomai
In each dumpling wrapper, add two teaspoons of ground meat mixture into the center of the wrapper. Moisten the edges of the wrapper with water to help hold the meat fillings together. Next, by using your thumb and index/middle finger, cup them around the filling and press them lightly. Make sure the top portion remains open.
Put into the plate, and repeat the same process with the rest of the filling. In the top portion of the siomai, garnish each of them with grated carrots. Set aside to prepare for steaming them.
III. Steaming the Siomai
Add little water to the pot and turn ON the fire. Once it started to boil, adjust to very low heat, and place steamer/bamboo steamer into the pot.
Before placing the siomai into the steamer, make sure to brush the steamer with oil to prevent sticking it into the steamer. Cook them for 15 minutes. Lastly, serve it with chili garlic or soy sauce and calamansi.
Recipe Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
You can mix the ground beef fillings with chopped shrimp. If you are not a fan of beef, you can replace it with ground chicken.
II. Why is my ground meat mixture shrink in size and falls off from the wrapper after steaming?
If this happened to you, there are probably two reasons why it shrink in size or fall off:
A. If your ground beef contains a high percentage of fats, it will shrink in size when steaming. To fix this, you should use lean ground beef- meaning the beef must have lower fat content.
B. If you are steaming at a high temperature, this will overcook your siomai, which will cause the meat to shrink and falls off. When using a gas stove, you should adjust to low heat temperature.
Yes, it can be stored in the freezer for up to 3 months. When placing it in a plastic container or baking sheet, make sure you line it with parchment paper first. This will prevent breaking your beef siomai apart when removing them.
Also, you don’t want to arrange or place them close together, or it might stick together. Doing this might also tear them apart.
IV. Does the siomai have to cook or uncooked when storing them in the freezer?
In my experience, I prefer my beef siomai cooked first. That way, it will be easier to reheat them for other times.
V. How do to reheat your siomai?
There are two ways you can reheat them.
A. You can use the microwave at a low-medium intensity for 30 seconds.
B. Or, you can reheat them in a steamer for less than 2 minutes.
Other Filipino Ground Beef Recipe
If you love siomai, here are other delicious Filipino food recipes using ground beef that you may like:
Beef Siomai Recipe
Course: SidesCuisine: Filipino, ChineseDifficulty: Easy25
servings15
minutes15
minutes90
kcalBeef Siomai Recipe is a popular Filipino street food which is mixed with ground beef, vegetables and sauce
Ingredients
500 gram of Ground Beef
1 cup of grated carrots
½ cup of chopped mushroom
1 cup of minced onion
2 tablespoon of grated garlic
3 tablespoon of oyster sauce
1.5 tablespoon of sesame oil
1 teaspoon of salt
1 tablespoon of brown sugar
½ teaspoon of black pepper
1 tablespoon of cornstarch
1 egg
25 pieces of dumpling wrapper
Directions
- In a large bowl, add the ground beef and the rest of the ingredients. Mix it using a large spoon. Set aside.
- Add two teaspoon to 1 tablespoon of ground meat filling into the center of each dumpling wrapper. Moisten the edge of the wrapper with water.
- By using your thumb and index/middle finger, cup them around the filling and press them lightly. Make sure the top portion remains open. Repeat the same process with the rest of the siomai
- Garnish the top portion of siomai with grated carrot. Set aside.
- Add a small amount of water to the pot. Turn ON the gas stove.
- Place the steamer tray or bamboo steamer into the pot
- Brush the steamer with oil before adding the siomai. Steam them for 15 minutes in very low heat.
- Once it looks cooked, remove them from the steamer tray.
- Serve it with chili garlic or soy sauce and calamansi.
Notes
- To reheat the siomai, you can use in microwave in low-medium intensity for 30 seconds, or in the steamer for 30 seconds.
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Yum! This looks so delicious and tasty! I can't wait to give this a try! My family is going to love this!
These look amazing, and I just happen to have dumpling wrappers in the fridge. These would make such a comforting winter meal!
Wow this looks SO incredibly good. I cannot wait to try it! What amazing flavors!
Thank you Tracy. It really taste good. Give it a try!
This is my kind of street food. I have never had the knowledge to make this on my own. Your recipe is perfect and going on my to do list. Thanks 🙂
Thanks ALi. This is similar to Chinese Dim sum which is a popular street food in the Philippines