These extremely filling and energy-rich dumplings can be enjoyed with different sauces or in a vegetable soup. By Sabrina McCormack

Dumplings keep and freeze well and can be prepared in advance at home, or carry in fresh ingredients and make a big batch on your first day to last for several meals. The base recipe makes a vegetarian-friendly meal to which optional chunks of meat can be added.

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• Prep time: 15min
• Cook time: 5–10min
• Serves: 4
• Cost: $8–$12

Ingredients

Dumpling base

• 10 slices of white bread ripped into pieces
• 1 egg
• Handful of fresh parsley (or dried equivalent)
• Approx ½ bag of breadcrumbs
• 1 small onion
• Bit of butter
• 1tsp pepper
• 1tsp salt
• 1tbsp paprika

Sauce

• 2 beef OXO cubes or brown gravy mix
• 200g mushrooms
• Bit of parsley
• Bit of butter for frying

Vegetable soup

• 2 carrots
• Handful of peas
• Other vegetables as desired (optional)
• 1–2 vegetable OXO cubes

Method

Dumplings

Soak bread pieces in some boiling water in a bowl and cover with a lid. Chop fresh parsley finely and gently fry in butter until it begins to wilt. Chop the onion into fine cubes.

Drain the bread and add chopped onion, fried parsley, egg, salt, pepper and paprika.

Mix by squeezing the mixture through your fingers until the bread pieces are really small and it becomes a homogeneous mixture. Add breadcrumbs a spoonful at a time and keep mixing till it becomes hard to squeeze the dough through your fingers.

Take a chunk of the mixture and roll it with wet hands into a golf-ball-sized dumpling. It should roughly keep its shape when placed on a plate. If it’s too soft, add more breadcrumbs.

Heat some water in a pot. When almost boiling, add the dumplings.

Keep the water at a high temperature but don’t let it boil.

The dumplings are ready once they start floating after 5–10min.

Sauce

Make the gravy according to instructions with beef OXO cubes or gravy powder. Chop the mushrooms into chunks and fry with finely chopped parsley in butter. Add to the ravy and cook for a few minutes. Pour it over the dumplings.

Vegetable soup

Turn carrots, peas and vegetable OXO cubes into a vegetable soup base. Add dumplings and let them simmer in the soup for 5–10min.