Make the filling:

• Soak the mushrooms in just-boiled water for 20 minutes then strain and pat dry. Finely chop all the vegetables – a food processor, or mini herb chopper is handy here, but chopping it all with a knife works too!

• Heat a skillet on high heat and coat the pan with oil. Add all the filling ingredients and sauté for 5 to 7 minutes.  Add the soy sauce, cornstarch, sesame oil and white pepper, mixing evenly. Toss in the peanuts.

• Transfer to a large plate to let cool before wrapping.

Make the wrappers: The important part about making crystal dumpling skin wrappers is to make sure the water is boiling hot. I can't stress this enough, but it makes all the difference! Rather than using a stainless steel mixing bowl, I actually mixed mine in a cast iron pot that I warmed up for a minute, so that it retains the heat better.

• In a small saucepan, bring a cup and a half of water to a vigorous rolling boil (you only need a cup of this for the dough, but I'm allowing for evaporation.)

• Place all the starches in a heavy-bottomed cast iron pot. Add the water whilst stirring continuously until a shaggy ball of dough forms. Cover the pot and let this rest for 2-3 minutes. Knead the dough in the pot, either by punching it with a rolling pin or pestle, or with your hands – if it's cool enough to touch. Knead for 8-10 minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic.

• On a clean work surface that's lightly floured with cornstarch, divide the dough into 36 equal pieces. Keep these in the covered pot while you're assembling the dumplings.

Assemble the dumplings one at a time:

• Use a rolling pin to roll each ball out to 4" in diameter x 1/16-inch rounds (it doesn't matter if they're not perfect circles – but try to go thin as possible without tearing the wrapper when assembling. Place the wrapper in the palm of your hand. 

• Scoop one heaped teaspoonful of the filling in the center of the dough round. Take care not to overfill them, or they’ll be difficult to close. Fold the wrapper in half—into a semi-circle—and firmly pinch the edges together to seal/ Although it isn't necessary, you can then pinch pleats / folds (See Dumpling folds here). Place the assembled dumpling on a parchment paper-lined baking tray and continue until you run out of wrappers or filling.

TO STEAM: Place the dumplings in a single layer on a steamer basket lined with a thinly sliced carrot or radish round underneath each one. Pour ¼ cup or 1-inch (3 cm) of water into a wide pot or wok. Place the basket into the pot, ensuring that the water does not touch the dumplings. Cover the basket and bring the water to a boil. Turn the heat down to a medium-low heat and let steam for 8 minutes if cooking right away or 10 minutes for frozen. To freeze dumplings, place them ina single layer on the baking sheet and freeze. When solid, you can transfer them to a bag or container.