Hello, this is 6 Minute English from BBC Learning English.
In China, they're crescent-shaped and filled with pork and cabbage.
In Nepal, they're called momos and are fried with buffalo meat.
In Ireland, they're soaked in Guinness gravy, and Italians fill them with spinach and call them gnocchi.
They can be steamed or fried and are found all over the world.
I'm talking, of course, about dyes.
Dumplings are a group of dishes where a filling is wrapped inside pieces of cooked dough.
They're basically dough envelopes with a filling inside.
Fillings can be anything from meat and fish to vegetables,
tofu or cheese, and the dough is usually based on a starchy grain like wheat, rice, corn or potato.
In fact, the English word dumpling comes from a 17th century adjective, dumpe, meaning dough-like.
The really amazing thing about dumplings is that they're found all over the world.
Over the centuries, different countries and regions have experimented with flavours and fillings to create something unique.
Wherever in the world you are, there's probably a special kind of dumpling for you.
we'll be sampling a dumpling from the West African country of Ghana, and as usual, we'll be learning some useful new vocabulary as well.
Great, but first I have a question for you, Beth.
Probably the most famous British dumplings, suet dumplings, are cooked on top of a chicken or beef stew.
They're made from suet, but what exactly is that?
Is suet a, wheat, b, potato, or c, animal?
Okay, Beth, we'll find out if that's the correct answer later in the programme.
The of dumplings are a mystery.
Historians think the dish is very old,
but no one knows for sure when or where the first dumpling was One theory puts the birthplace of the dumpling along the Silk Road,
linking China with Central Asia and Turkey.
the dumpling journeyed through the Middle East and across Africa to Ghana,
where today it's a favourite way of adding carbohydrates to a dish, as well as soaking up sauces and juices.
Kafui Ajdar is a businesswoman and fan of the Ghanaian dumpling called Kenky.
Here, she introduces Ken Key to Ruth Alexander, presenter of the BBC World Service programme, the Food Chain.
I love Ken Key, if I know I had Ken Key this afternoon.
You've had some this afternoon.
And a gan where the gan where is one of the tribes in Ghana.
And is the astepul food, even though it's eaten across the whole country.
Now we have to eat kenke what we call shito chili sauce.
But we also have the black sauce with shrimps, fish, and all sort of proteins in it.
And then yam yam, you go at it, you dig in.
So is this really satisfying comfort food?
Kincai is loved by most people who do manual works because it feels that Tommy and it takes you almost a whole day before you feel hungry again.
Kafiri says eating kinky really hits the spot.
If something hits the spot, it's exactly what you wanted and totally satisfied.
Kenky dumplings are made from maize, sourdough and eaten across Ghana.
Kenky is their staple food, a basic and important type of food that is regularly eaten by a large portion of the population.
In Britain, for example, bread and eggs are staple foods.
Kinky takes time to make.
The maize needs to be soaked in water for a week.
But when they're ready and served with a hot chili sauce, Kafui uses two phrases to show it's time to eat.
Yum yum is used to say that food tastes or smells very good.
And dig in is another exclamation, meaning don't wait, start eating, and eat as much as you like.
For Ghanaians, Kinky is...
something which is enjoyable to eat and makes you feel happier.
And more, it fills your tummy or stomach.
Whatever type you eat and wherever in the world you eat them, dumplings are a great way to spread a little love, including in Britain.
Ah yes, it looks like we're back to my earlier question.
I asked you what the traditional British suet dumpling is made from.
Beth guessed it was animal fat, which was the correct answer.
Suet dumplings aren't the healthiest, but for some Brits they're certainly comfort food.
Food that makes you feel happier because it tastes good or because it reminds you of home.
Okay, let's recap the rest of the vocabulary we've learnt in this programme, starting with
the idiom hits the spot, meaning that something is satisfying and exactly what you wanted.
A staple food is a basic and important type of food that is regularly eaten by a large portion of the population.
The exclamation, yum yum.
food tastes or smells delicious.
