My sister sent my daughter links to people making awesome and creative looking filled dumplings. Then, she sent me a link and frequently questioned whether we had made them yet. She knew my daughter loves Asian dumplings, so she decided to have fun by pairing up with her niece to bug me. What she did not know was that I had a package of dumpling skins in my freezer that needed used, so I had already been thinking about it.
We decided to try to make some pork potstickers instead, but my daughter went ahead and experimented with making different dumpling shapes.
The reason we went with potstickers instead of steamed or boiled dumplings was liking the texture of the crunchy bottom of a potsticker with the soft chewiness of the rest. Plus, it only requires a skillet and covering to make instead of steamer baskets and a pot of water. Also, I read boiling dumplings without them losing their filling is difficult.
While you can make your own dumpling/potsticker skins, I think it is perfectly acceptable or buy them already made in the frozen food section of a grocery store or Asian market. It is definitely a time saver.
I had some ground pork in the freezer, so I decided to make the ever-popular pork filling. However, I found that I lacked any cabbage that most pork potsticker/dumpling recipes used. I also lacked the green scallion onion that most recipes included. I never even considered using an Asian grandma’s secret of including some ground shrimp in my pork dumpling, because I was sure I did not have any shrimp. I would not have wanted to spend the time and effort to grind it anyway.
I did gain some information from watching the grandmother videos though. I discovered that using chopsticks seemed to make stirring the filling easy compared to the videos where they used a spoon when stirring by hand. Plus, they all included water to get the right consistency.
In the end, I decided just to what I did have on hand and make something I thought we would like. The result was a filling that I really liked. Frankly, I liked it more than any other pork potsticker/dumpling filling that I ever remember eating. I definitely succeeded in customizing it to my taste.
These pork potstickers are really easy to make. The filling quickly comes together. The only thing that takes much time is physically filling and sealing the potstickers before cooking.
Pork Potstickers
Ingredients
- 3/4 lb. ground pork (ideally 20 to 30 % fat)
- 1 sm. or 1/2 med. sweet onion, minced
- 1 Tbsp. ginger, minced
- 1 clove garlic, grated or 1 tsp. garlic granules
- 2 Tbsp. oyster sauce
- 2 tsp. soy sauce
- 1 - 2 Tbsp. water
- *1 egg white (may be needed if using lean ground pork)
- 1 Tbsp. cornstarch combined with 1/4 c. water (if needed to seal wrappers)
- 40 to 50 dumpling or gyoza wrappers (3 to 4 inches in diameter)
- 1 to 2 Tbsp. oil for frying (peanut, vegetable, etc.)
- 1/4 c. water
Instructions
- Combine pork, onion, ginger, garlic, oyster sauce, and soy sauce. Mix with chopsticks, a fork, or your hands.
- If the pork is very lean, the mixture may not adhere together well. Add the egg white, if needed.
- Add water, 1/2 tablespoon at a time while stirring until the pork is smoother, more like a paste. The amount of water needed will vary.
- Place desired amount of filling in the center of the wrapper, 1 1/2 tsp. to 1 Tbsp. (I use a melon ball scoop).
- If using commercially prepared wraps, you may want to spread a little of the corn slurry along the edges of the wrap before sealing the potstickers using your preferred method. Place on a tray or plate until all are filled that you want to cook immediately.
- Place oil a non-stick skillet (nicely seasoned cast-iron works too) and heat over med./high.
- Place potstickers in the skillet, flattening the bottom before placing in the skillet, if necessary.
- Fry until the bottoms of potstickers start to crisp.
- Add water, cover, and cook until water has evaporated.
- Remove cover continue cooking until the bottoms are golden brown.
- Serve warm with your favorite dipping sauce. (Sweet soy and Sweet Chili sauces are great with these)
- Any of the potstickers that you do not plan on cooking soon can be individually frozen on a baking sheet. Once frozen, place the potstickers in plastic freezer bags and freeze until ready to use.
