Chicken and Veges Dumplings product reviews

Yumm i love these dumplings! In fact i have actually been on the look out for them recently but havent been able to find them which is a bit of a let down, i think Pak n Save stopped stocking them and it seems Countdown doesnt either, will be trying other supermarkets in the coming weeks.

Previously when i used these i partly cooked them in boiling water (which kinda makes them go soggy) and then pan fried them to add a nice golden colour and crisp them up. These always turned out perfect for me when i cooked them this way so i never bothered trying any other way. I also have always served these as a side dish on our plates with meat and veges, although i love the idea of serving them with dipping sauces as a snack or entree when you have guests, they would even be great pre- BBQ! :) Id also never considered matching them with a pasta sauce which would also be a great easy dinner!

As far as taste goes i have only ever tried the chicken and vege as the other flavours dont really appeal to me... I dont know really how much "real" chicken is in them but the veges you can certainly see and taste as being real ~ I could definately taste the chicken too! Love the fact that these are a healthier, price friendly and easy meal option ~ fully reccomend to others :)

We had bought the vegetarian dumplings in this range several times, and thought that we would branch out and try this one since we had liked the other one so much. We felt quite dissapointed with it. It cooked well, nice and easy, but the texture and taste of the chicken left a lot to be desired for. We gave it a couple of months and then decided to try it again, only to be let down again. As a result it is not something that I will be buying again. The only thing that I liked about it was the price, but that was all.

I liked these dumplings especially simmered in chicken broth (although I tried them baked in the oven & fried in the pan, all good). These dumplings were well filled & the wrapper tender - when boiled, obviously crisp when you do then in the oven or pan. The chicken was subtly flavoured with spice, maybe '5 spice', nice. I also tasted fresh ginger, which I liked.
I liked the corn, carrot & peas they added colour & texture & the hint of mushroom good too. A good product.

another excellent product in the range, these dumplings are not my total favourite but were still very tasty and went well in a nice asian style soup. simple to cook and the instructions were very easy to follow. the taste was a little quiet for my tastes so i simply spiced up the soup a bit more with a pinch of chili flakes some chicken salt and freshly ground black pepper. I think this is one i will possibly keep on hand for the visitors who like milder foods.

I tried these a while ago but when Pak'n Save stopped stocking them I mostly gave up on them. Now I know where they can be found I will be keeping some in the freezer almost constantly as they are great for quick snack foods for when the clan come around for a Horde Gathering. (Also known as the semiregular weekend family get together)
Quick to cook, I prefer to do them in the mini deepfryer as they come out really nice and crispy all over with a nice colour and taste. Throw them in a bowl with a choice of dips and put them on the table. By the time the next batch is cooked the first batch is well and truly gone.
As someone who adores meat in all it's wonderous variety, these are a really nice way to get a bit of chook into the kids, even those who are not great fans of it. In fact this is a great way to get them to try new flavours too, since they can't immediately tell what is inside until after the first bite.
These are also really nice once cold too, because of the deep-frying they stay crisp for longer.
All in all a great addition to any freezer, though the results you get will vary greatly depending on the method of cooking you choose. Unless you are a fan of the more 'traditional' Asian style foods, I would strongly recommend avoiding any 'boiling' options.

I chose to have a panel for this review and guess what, they all agreed with me. Out of 10, only one didn't list this as their second favorite.

I straight fried these with the lid on and got a nice black colour on each side of these. Please, please, please dont burn them, the charcoal flavour takes away from the flavour of what they are. I think i would like them steamed with some nice green vegetables but didnt think much of the carrot in them.

First off, I need to explain why the scores won't *quite* match what I have to say... it's all about perspective you see.

I had the opportunity to try these dumplings a couple of nights ago at a friend's place - he swears by them (literally, in some cases) - and his cooking method is amazing. The dumplings turned out crispy but not 'sharp', full of flavour and rich to the tastebuds. However, when I tried to cook them the same way, it was an epic fail. Nothing quite says "you botched that one up, didn't you?" like the smoke alarm going nuts... two rooms away. So for the case of the review goods, I decided to try "Asian Italian" - that is to say I boiled the dumplings according to the instructions on the packet, then made my own tomato and herb pasta sauce to go over them. A (heavy) dash of Parmesan cheese over the top, and serve.

Taste suffered because of this, though to be honest I can't actually say the dumplings were overly at fault. Sure, something powerful would have fought it's way through a boiling, but the real flavours comes from frying these little beauts. As Chef Ramsey says, "Colour equals Flavour." Nothing boiled is going to be as flavoursome as something fried, roasted or BBQ'd. So saying, my choice to boil these took away from an otherwise delightful flavour that I *have* experienced when someone who knows how to cook them well does the job.

Linked to this... after being boiled, they aren't exactly the most visually appealing to the European appetite. A soggy, white lump just never really leaps up and screams "Oh baby, I am SO YUMMY!" to me. Again, entirely the result of my choice. I figured at least blobby isn't as bad as badly burnt.

Health-wise, these are pretty good actually. Nothing on the "seriously naughty" list, they survive extremely well in the freezer, for a food with microscopic, if any, preservative agents, and there was nothing in the flavour that said "You shouldn't be eating these, y'know..." so I am quite glad to score them well on the Health factor.

Overall, these are certainly something you should experience, but please, for pity's sake, don't boil them! Be brave, be creative, try frying them, try them in a broth, heck, try anything that catches your fancy (deep frying perhaps, wonton-style?) but if you don't like the idea of looking at a plate on soggy, palid lumps, AVOID BOILING THEM! Good value for money, as a packet can serve two (if they have small appetites or plenty of side-dish) or a single-serve for a hungry adult. Even cold, the fried versions I tried were quite tasty as grab'n'go snacks.