Squash Manti With Gochujang Onions

Directions

1. Make the dough: Beat one egg in a large bowl. Add 1 teaspoon of salt, 1 ½ cups water, and 1 tablespoon vegetable oil and stir. Then add one half-cup of flour at a time, until you’ve added the 6 cups of flour total. The texture of your manti should not be sticky. If it’s sticky, add another quarter to half-cup of flour.
2. Separate the dough into two equal pieces so they’re easier to knead. On a flat surface, knead the two balls dough for 5 to 7 minutes each. When the dough balls have reached a smooth consistency, place them back in the bowl and cover with a cloth and set aside for half an hour to rest. Meanwhile, make the manti filling and topping.
3. In the large bowl of a food processor, add the squash and potatoes in batches and pulse until coarsely chopped. Place the chopped squash and potatoes in a large mixing bowl, and to this mixture add the diced onion. To this, add the vegan ground beef or crumbled tofu, salt, pepper, sesame oil, water, ground coriander, cumin, and garlic. Stir to combine and set aside.
4. In a sauté pan over high heat, heat the sesame oil. Add the sliced onion and the salt and stir. Sauté on high for a couple minutes, then reduce to low. Cook the onions until nearly translucent, 12 to 15 minutes, stirring periodically. (If the pan gets too dry, add additional splashes of oil or water as needed.) Once the onions have become translucent, turn off the heat, add the gochujang, and stir. Set aside.
5. Before you roll out the dough, prepare a metal or tiered bamboo steamer, greasing with oil or lined with parchment paper to prevent sticking. (If you don’t have steamer baskets, you can dip the bottom of each manti in vegetable oil and steam them on oiled plates, dividing each tier with little ramekins or bowls placed in the center of each dish as a trivet.) Place water at the bottom of a bamboo or metal steamer and heat over a low flame.
6. Using a knife, divide both large balls of dough into four smaller balls each, all approximately the same size. Roll each of the eight balls into a rectangle approximately 5 inches by 3 inches. Then, roll the rectangles through your pasta machine on the thickest setting. Roll the dough through the pasta machine again at a medium setting, then at the second-thinnest setting. (Alternatively, you can roll the dough out by hand.) The thickness of the dough should be so thin that you can see a bit of translucency and sunlight come through it when holding it up to the light—similar to wonton or mandu wrappers you buy in the store—but not falling apart.
7. Using a knife or a pizza cutter, cut the dough into approximately 50 even squares about 4 inches by 4 inches. As you receive excess dough from cutting squares, you can roll the excess back into the dough and press it again at the widest setting, a medium setting, and then the second-thinnest setting until it’s ready to cut into squares again.
8. Place two tablespoons of filling on each square. Gather the four corners together at the top, pinching them and sealing them shut. Then, pinch two opposite corners together like you’re gathering a knapsack, and pinch the other two opposite corners together to draw the knapsack to a close. The end result will be a gathered, wrinkled look, like a coin purse.
9. Place your manti in the prepared steamer and steam for 20 to 25 minutes, until the wrappers are soft and chewy and the filling is fully cooked. Depending on the size of your steamer, you may have to do this in batches.
10. To serve, place 5 to 6 manti on each plate in a circle. Top all the manti on each plate with gochujang onions, sliced scallions and sesame seeds (in that order). Dollop a tablespoon of yogurt or sour cream into the center of each plate, and you’re ready to eat.