3.25.2010

Asian Dumplings

By whatever name you call them, (gyoza, mandu, pot stickers), Asian dumplings are humble, satisfying, delicious morsels. We've ordered them in countless Asian restaurants, and have been tempted, then disappointed, by a few frozen versions.

This week we wanted to make them ourselves. But, it being a weeknight, and having recently made homemade ravioli on a weeknight, we decided it was necessary to cheat a little bit and used Nasoya brand wonton wrappers instead of making them from scratch. For the filling, we chose a traditional pork and cabbage mixture; our recipe is below. We assembled for what seemed like forever (it's amazing how far a pound of ground pork can go!), and were left with about six dozen little packets of yumminess. 


We pan-fried a few to taste, dipping them in a (store bought) soy-ginger dipping sauce. The rest we froze for later, for more pan-frying, steaming, or to put in soup.  The dumplings were not at all difficult to make, nor were the ingredients particularly expensive. What they were? Satiating, savory, scrumptious. We have plenty of them to enjoy, and to share. Best of all, we know exactly what's in them.

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground pork
3/4 cup Nappa cabbage, chopped finely
3 green onions, chopped finely
1/4 cup chopped water chestnuts
2 teaspoons peeled and grated fresh ginger
2 teaspoons minced garlic
2 teaspoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons rice vinegar
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
1 teaspoon white pepper
2 packages Nasoya brand wonton wrappers
small bowl of water

In a large bowl, mix together all ingredients except wonton wrappers. One by one, lay out a wonton wrapper and place a teaspoon of the mixture in the center. Brush the edges of the wrapper with water and fold into desired shape. Fry, boil, steam and/or freeze as needed.

1 comment:

jck said...

Aw! Darn! No "parts is parts" in them potstickers? Can't wait to try them.