Pleat around the edge, pinching with your fingers to seal well. The dumpling should look like a small Cornish pasty with a flat base and rounded top. Arrange the round skins on a lightly floured tray and cover them with a damp kitchen towel to prevent them from drying out until you are ready to use them. Mix the marinade ingredients together in a bowl and steep the spareribs in the marinade for about 25 minutes at room temperature. Remove the spareribs from the marinade with a slotted spoon. Allow the cooked rice to cool thoroughly by spreading it on a baking sheet. When it is cool, refrigerate. When the rice is cold, proceed with the rest of the recipe.

Heat a wok or large frying pan until it is hot, then add the oil, garlic, and spring onions. Stir-fry for 20 seconds. Stir in the drained rice noodles and broccoli and continue to stir-fry for 1 minute. Then add the water, oyster sauce, dark soy sauce, and sesame oil and cook for 2 minutes. Once the dough is smooth, shape it into a roll about 23cm/9in long and about 2.5cm/1in in diameter, using your hands. With a sharp knife, slice the roll into 16 equal-sized pieces (each piece is about 15g/½ oz). Using your hands, roll each of the dough pieces into a small ball and then, with a rolling pin, roll each ball into a small, round, flat, 'pancake' about 9cm/3½in in diameter. Heat a wok or large frying pan until it is hot, then add the oil, spring onions, garlic, and ginger, and stir-fry for 10 seconds. Then add the peppers and stir-fry for 2 minutes. Stir in the scallops and the sauce ingredients. Continue to cook for another 4 minutes. Serve at once. Bring the sauce to the boil and then reduce the heat. Add the spareribs, cover and simmer gently for about 40 minutes, stirring occasionally.Add all of the remaining ingredients (except the sesame oil) and 250ml/9fl oz water and cook the mixture over a gentle heat for about two minutes. Cook the fresh peas in a pan of boiling water for about 5 minutes, then drain them in a colander. If they are frozen, simply thaw them. Have your butcher separate the spareribs into individual ribs and then into chunks which are approximately 7.5cm/3in long. Alternatively do this yourself using a heavy sharp cleaver that can cut through the bones. Fill a large pot with water, add salt, and bring to the boil. Separate the broccoli heads into small florets, and peel and slice the stems. Blanch the broccoli pieces in the boiling water for 4 minutes. Place the rice noodles in a large heatproof bowl. Drain the hot water from the blanched broccoli into the rice noodles and immerse the broccoli pieces in cold water. Drain the broccoli thoroughly. Let the noodles stand in the hot water for 2 minutes, then drain. Drain off the juices collected from the beef and add to the wok. Add the oyster sauce and stir for a minute then return the beef to the wok and add the mint leaves. Continue to stir-fry for one minute then remove from the heat.

Place about two teaspoons of filling in the centre of each 'pancake' and moisten the edges with water. Fold the dough in half and pinch together with your fingers. Add the onions to the wok and stir-fry for 1-2 minutes. Pour in 3 tablespoons of water and cook for three minutes. For the stuffing, while the dough is resting, combine the stuffing ingredients in a large bowl and mix them together thoroughly. Set aside.

Ingredients

Peel the cucumbers, slice them in half lengthways and, using a teaspoon, remove the seeds. Then cut the cucumber halves into 2.5cm (1in) cubes. Sprinkle them with 2 teaspoons of salt and mix well, then put into a colander and leave for about 20 minutes to drain. This rids the cucumber of any excess liquid. When the cucumber cubes have drained, rinse them in water and blot them dry with kitchen paper. For the beef, place the beef strips into a bowl and add the light soy sauce, rice wine and cornflour and mix well. Leave to marinate for 10-20 minutes. For the noodles, soak the noodles in a large bowl of warm water for 15 minutes. When they are soft, drain them and discard the water.