Jamaican Spinners Recipe (2024)

  • Caribbean Food

By

Cynthia Nelson

Jamaican Spinners Recipe (1)

Cynthia Nelson

Food columnist and blogger Cynthia Nelson is the author of "Tastes Like Home: My Caribbean Cookbook." Living in Barbados, Cynthia shares her love of the diverse food of the islands.

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Updated on 02/28/24

Tested by

Colleen Graham

Jamaican Spinners Recipe (2)

Tested byColleen Graham

Freelance writer and co*cktail book author Colleen Graham is a seasoned mixologist who loves sharing her knowledge of spirits and passion for preparing drinks.

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Jamaican Spinners Recipe (3)

Prep: 10 mins

Cook: 7 mins

Rest: 10 mins

Total: 27 mins

Servings: 4 servings

Yield: 12 dumplings

125 ratings

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Jamaican spinners are a type of dumpling, but they're different than what you might expect. While the goal for other types of dumplings is to make them light and fluffy so that they float on top of the broth, Jamaican spinners are dense and hearty. These dumplings are also known as "spinners and sinkers" becausetheir long, tapered shape causes them to sink and spin while they cook, whereas traditional dumplings bob and float.

Best of all, these Jamaican dumplings only require three ingredients to make. The dumplings are typically made of all-purpose flour, though sometimes cornmeal is added. Shaping them is a fun and quick project that kids can take part in too. Spinners are most often cooked in soups and stews, including this Caribbean beef soup recipe. You can also boil and eat them as a side dish.

What You'll Need to Make This Jamaican Spinners Recipe

A Nice Mixing Bowl
A Large Saucepan
A Great Slotted Spoon

"Quick to make, these tasty dumplings are as fun to shape as they are to eat. Adding small amounts of water is key so the dough doesn’t get too sticky. It’s a great recipe, and I will be making these more often when a slimmer dumpling sounds like a good alternative." —Colleen Graham

Jamaican Spinners Recipe (7)

A Note From Our Recipe Tester

Ingredients

  • 1 cup (120 grams) all-purpose flour

  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

  • 1/4 to 1/2 cup water, as needed

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

    Jamaican Spinners Recipe (8)

  2. In a small bowl, combine the flour and salt. Add just enough water, one tablespoon at a time, to make astiff dough. Let the dough rest for 10 minutes.

    Jamaican Spinners Recipe (9)

  3. Pinch off about 1/2 ounce of dough and roll it between the palms of your hands to form a softly tapered cylindrical shape. Repeat until all of the dough has been transformed into spinners.

    Jamaican Spinners Recipe (10)

  4. The spinners can be cooked in a pot of boiling salted water for about 5 to 7 minutes or added to a soup or stew 5 minutes before the dish is due to finish cooking. To test for doneness, cut one open to make sure the dough is fully cooked.

    Jamaican Spinners Recipe (11)

  5. Serve and enjoy!

    Jamaican Spinners Recipe (12)

Tips

  • When mixing the dough, use a measuring spoon to add the water because it provides more control than pouring it from a cup. If you do add too much water and the dough is sticky, add a tablespoon of flour and mix it in (add more if needed).
  • It's helpful to keep your hands floured while shaping the dumplings.
  • Play around with the size of the spinners. They're typically about three inches long and larger, thicker dumplings will take longer to cook.
  • The spinners can be made in advance and kept, uncooked, in the fridge for up to three days.

Recipe Variations

  • Cornmeal dumplings: Add 1/4 cup of cornmeal to the flour mixture.
  • Jamaican spiced spinners: Work the spices of Jamaican jerk seasoning into the dough by adding 1 teaspoon sweet paprika, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice, 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg, and a dash of cayenne pepper (or more, depending on your heat tolerance).
  • Potato dumplings: Add 1 cup of mashed potatoes, 1 beaten egg, and 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder to the dough. These dumplings are more likely to sink than spin.

How to Store and Freeze

  • Freeze the uncooked spinners by placing them on a cookie sheet and putting them in the freezer until they're hard. Once solid, remove the spinners from the cookie sheet and put them in a freezer-grade plastic bag, and store them for up to three months.
  • Frozen spinners don't need to be thawed before cooking. Put them in boiling water or soup and check after 10 minutes to make sure they're cooked through.

Jamaican Beef Patties

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
109Calories
0g Fat
23g Carbs
3g Protein

×

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4
Amount per serving
Calories109
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 0g0%
Saturated Fat 0g0%
Cholesterol 0mg0%
Sodium 158mg7%
Total Carbohydrate 23g8%
Dietary Fiber 1g3%
Total Sugars 0g
Protein 3g
Vitamin C 0mg0%
Calcium 5mg0%
Iron 1mg8%
Potassium 32mg1%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.

(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

Recipe Tags:

  • Dumplings
  • side dish
  • african
  • family dinner

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Jamaican Spinners Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What flour is best for dumplings? ›

These dumplings start with all-purpose flour, which creates structure and holds the other ingredients together. Baking powder is a leavening agent, which means it releases gas that makes the dough expand. It's responsible for the dumplings' light and fluffy texture.

What's the best way to cook dumplings? ›

One of the most popular cooking methods for dumplings is simply steaming them. Steaming your dumplings is a great way to get beautiful texture in the wrapper while cooking them in a super healthy way. Steamed dumplings are warm, juicy, and soft.

How long to steam raw dumplings? ›

Steam dumplings for 15 to 20 minutes or until tender and cooked through. Combine ginger, soy sauce, vinegar, sugar and coriander in a bowl.

What are the 3 components of dumplings? ›

What are dumplings made of? The dumpling dough is made of three main ingredients: flour, water and salt. But which flour you use depends on which dumpling you want to make.

What happens if you use plain flour instead of self raising flour? ›

Because plain flour contains no extra ingredients, including rising agents, your cakes and pastries won't rise if you use this type of flour as it is. You'll need to add a rising agent, such as yeast or baking powder, into the plain flour if you want your baked goods to rise and become appetisingly fluffy.

Do you boil dumplings with lid on or off? ›

The second secret to making really good dumplings is to keep the lid closed while the dumplings cook. With the soup simmering over a low flame and the dumpling dough ready, you'll drop spoonfuls of the dough onto the surface of the simmering broth, then cover the pot with a lid.

Do dumplings float when done? ›

Cover and bring to a vigorous boil. Add roughly one cup of cold water and return to boil while covered. Repeat this step again. The dumplings will be completely cooked and ready when they float on the surface of the boiling water.

Do you cover dumplings when boiling? ›

To boil dumplings, fill a large pot two-thirds of the way with water. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Add as many dumplings as can fit comfortably in a single layer in the pot and cook them until they float. Let them cook an additional two to three minutes.

How do you know when dumplings are done? ›

Boiled Dumplings

Typically, they are done when they float to the surface of the boiling water. However, if your dumplings have meat fillings, you may want to wait an extra minute or two to ensure the insides are completely cooked.

How do you boil dumplings without them falling apart? ›

Here are some additional tips:
  1. Use a large pot or saucepan. This will give the dumplings enough room to cook without crowding each other.
  2. Add a tablespoon of oil or broth to the cooking liquid. ...
  3. Gently stir the dumplings once or twice while they are cooking. ...
  4. Do not overcook the dumplings.
Mar 20, 2023

Which cooking method is initially used to cook most dumplings? ›

In fact, most dumplings are initially cooked by poaching.

What is the difference between steamed and boiled dumplings? ›

Steaming will produce silky, tender dumplings with skin that is slightly firmer than that of boiled dumplings, but still stretchy. If you are making your own dumpling wrappers, use the hot water dough for this method, as this will give you a softer morsel.

Can I use aluminum foil for steaming dumplings? ›

All you'll need to steam the soup dumplings is a plate, a shallow pan, and three balled-up pieces of aluminum foil. The aluminum foil balls should all be roughly the same size. To get started, place your aluminum foil balls in the pan. Fill the pan with about 1.5 inches of water, and turn on the heat.

Can you steam dumplings on the stove? ›

Cover the pan with oil. Add dumplings to the pan in a single layer and cook until the bottom layer is golden brown, about two minutes. Then add a half cup of water to the pan and cover with a lid. This will steam the dumplings and cook them completely through, about five minutes.

What is dumpling flour made of? ›

For dumplings made with wheat flour, all purpose or plain flour will suffice. If your recipe calls for leavening, you'll need to add baking powder and salt. Alternatively, you can use self-rising flour which has the leavening included. For a lot of dumplings, plain flour is all that is required with no baking powder.

Can I use bread flour instead of all purpose for dumplings? ›

You don't need speciality dumpling flour to make these wrappers – regular plain, all-purpose flour is absolutely fine. You could also use bread flour if you have it. Water. This recipe is a hot water dough, which I find a lot easier to work with.

What dough are dumplings made of? ›

From-scratch dumpling dough requires only two ingredients — flour and water — and the water temperature yields different types of wrappers. Cold water is best for boiled dumplings because it causes the flour's proteins to form the gluten that makes dough chewy and able to withstand vigorously boiling water.

Is bleached or unbleached flour better for dumplings? ›

Unbleached flour produces terrific flavor, but bleached flour imparts a brighter finish that some Asian cooks like. Chinese black vinegar is available at most Asian markets.

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