1. Drop dried shiitakes into a small bowl.  Pour boiling water over to cover.  Set aside to let the mushrooms plump and rehydrate — at least 30 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, wrap tofu in kitchen towels and press to get rid of any extra water.  
3. Coarsely chop the broccoli, from stalk to florets. You’ll be using all of it, wasting nothing.
4. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add the broccoli and blanch for half a minutes or so, until broccoli is bright green. Drain well.
5. Pulse the broccoli, shiitakes and tofu, garlic and ginger in a food processor just until mixture becomes pebbly, not processed to a paste. 
6. Add the soy, sesame oil and sea salt and pulse again until everything just comes together.  The shiitakes, ginger and soy provide a little umami, the broccoli and tofu add texture and nourishment. That’s it for the filling. Now comes the stuffing part!
7. Cut wonton wrappers into 3-inch rounds.  You can do this using a biscuit cutter or even the rim of a drinking glass. Cover the wrappers with a slightly damp kitchen towel to keep them from drying out.
8. Assemble the wrappers, the filling, and a spoon.
9. Place a wrapper in your palm, cupping it between your forefinger and thumb.  Place about a teaspoon of the filling in the center. Gently cup the wrapper around the filling so it looks like a blossom.  Congratulations, you’ve made your first shumai. Keep it going.
10. Set shumai in a steamer basket over a pot of simmering water. Steam shumai for 8 to 10 minutes or until they smell rich and the wrappers are opaque.
11. Garnish broccoli shiitake shumai with a few sesame seeds or cilantro leaves, if desired. Serve with the dipping sauce.

Dipping Sauce:

1. In a small bowl, stir together soy sauce, brown sugar, lime juice, sesame oil and water. 
2. Stir  until the brown sugar or palm sugar dissolves.