Dumpling lasagna goes viral

A shortcut dumpling recipe called “dumpling lasagna” spread across food feeds this weekend, with cooks layering wonton wrappers and filling instead of folding individual dumplings. (x.com) The version now circulating most widely uses a chicken-and-shrimp filling with napa cabbage, ginger, garlic, mushrooms, soy sauce, oyster sauce and sesame oil, packed into ramekins with stacked wonton wrappers. Chef Romain Avril’s posted recipe calls for 12 portions and 18 to 22 minutes of steaming at 100 degrees Celsius, or 212 degrees Fahrenheit. (chefromainavril.com) Other creators have been making larger-pan versions with pork or chicken, water-dipped wrappers and chili oil on top. A TikTok from My Nguyen that was still visible in search results this month showed 189,600 likes and 787 comments on a pork version steamed for 45 minutes. (tiktok.com) The appeal is mechanical as much as culinary: the dish keeps the wrapper-and-filling structure of dumplings but drops the pleating step. Nicole Modic’s December 18, 2025 recipe post described it as a way to get dumpling flavor “without the assembly line of folding, pinching, and sealing.” (kalejunkie.com) The “lasagna” label comes from the build, not the ingredients. Wonton wrappers are thin dough sheets, often made with flour and water and sometimes egg, and they soften into layers under steam instead of behaving like boiled pasta sheets. (thewoksoflife.com) That also explains why the recipe travels easily across feeds: cooks can swap pork for chicken, add shrimp or mushrooms, and steam the layers in ramekins, mugs or a baking dish. Search results this month show versions from home cooks and recipe blogs using pork, chicken, or mixed fillings, with total cook times ranging from about 20 to 45 minutes. (kalejunkie.com) (tiktok.com) (chefromainavril.com) Because many of the versions use ground chicken, food-safety guidance matters too. United States food-safety charts say poultry should reach 165 degrees Fahrenheit, or 74 degrees Celsius, and Avril’s recipe gives that same target for the finished filling. (foodsafety.gov) (chefromainavril.com) For now, the dish is moving the way viral recipes usually do: one creator posts a neat kitchen hack, then dozens of home cooks rebuild it with whatever wrappers and fillings they already have. In this case, the hook is simple enough to fit in a short video and specific enough to survive the copycats. (x.com)