Timothy has already explained Dim Sum. If you want to try some, you might start with "Pot Stickers". Depending on where you live, you can pick up wonton wrappers at the grocery and skip making the dough part. But there is nothing compared to the soft, homemade dough used for many of the dumplings that are just steamed. The different dipping sauces just add to the wonderful experience of Dim Sum.
My German culinary ancestry exposed me to a potato dumpling about the size of a baseball. These were served as base for Sauerbraten (sour beef). My grandmothers recipe "pickeled" the beef over several days and when cooked a gravy, thickened with gingersnap cookies, was served with the beef over the dumplings. The dumplings were made from baked potatos that were peeled and riced while still very warm. Just enough flour was added to the potatos to make a dough that wasn't sticky. These dumplings had a tablespoon of stuffing in the center. The stuffing was bread cubes, celery, onion and poultry seasoning. The dumplings were cooked in boiling, salted water until they floated. They were great with the braten but even better when the extras were sliced, fried in butter and served with eggs for breakfast the next day! We made sure there were always extras!
A German peasant dish that stretched and "hid" the often "turning" meat.
Craig