Gyoza Dumplings

Gyoza Dumplings or Dim Sum are made with a tasty meat filling that touches the heart. Wrapped in Dumpling Dough, Fried to brown one side and steamed to create that wonderful texture while keeping the filling nice and juicy.

These are excellent to make up in big batches and freeze. Served as a side or just to snack on. Gyoza or Pot stickers are just extremely satisfying and addictive. Serve them up with Chinese Dipping Sauce.

My First Dumpling experience was from T&T. They sold Pork Dumplings there 6 for $3.50 at the time. These are so good, that I set out to try to recreate them, and I think I did a pretty good job. It turns out that the filling is almost identical to Egg Rolls too, and I was already familiar with the proper way to do egg rolls.

There are tons of versions out there. But for me, I wanted the ones like T&T. There are many names for it like Pot stickers, Dim Sum, Gyoza, Jiaozi, or Chinese Dumplings.

Chinese Dumpling Wrapper

Homemade wrappers are the best and extremely simple too, especially with a Pasta Roller. Check out my post on Chinese Dumpling Wrappers which also covers Eggroll, Wonton Wrappers, and more.

For this kind of Dumplings, I prefer the same as T & T and how they make theirs with a thick dumpling dough wrapper. Pasta Setting 2 – 3 is ideal for my preference, yours may differ.

Chinese Dumpling Meat Filling

Use 1 lb of Ground Pork or exchange it with ground Chicken or Beef. About 1 Tbl per dumpling for a 3-inch wrapper.

Gelatin is added, but is optional. It adds a nice mouthfeel to the meat. It also holds onto the juices, creating a juicier filling.

There are other versions of Dumplings that dissolve gelatin into the broth. Then chills it until it is solidified and chop it finely to add to the filling. Others add a bit of starch for tenderness and to hold on to moisture.

Liquids in Chinese Dumpling Filling

Soy Sauce & Sake is added to the meat filling and are extremely important to get that beautiful flavor. With a bit of Sesame Oil, which is in the T&T version.

Chinese Dumpling Vegetables

Add minced Garlic & Ginger for supporting flavor.

Add carrots or exchange with Mirin for sweetness.

Chinese Chives are a really nice addition to dumplings overall.

The bulk of the vegetable added is Napa Cabbage. The below three vegetables can be used interchangeably as the main vegetable in the meat filling, or used together in smaller amounts. All three of these deliver on that touches the heart aroma with wonderful flavors.

Napa Cabbage

The Bulk of the Filling is Napa Cabbage, and a lot of it. About 4–5 cups, a little under or over is fine. This is the main flavoring throughout the dumpling. It’s where all the Magic comes from. With the help of some Sake & Soy Sauce, that together creates a smell that touches the heart. A bunch of Green Onions & Leeks creates the same aroma. These can be exchanged or used in combination with the Napa Cabbage.

The very first step is to chop and wash, then salt the Napa Cabbage. This method is the same as preparing Egg Rolls. The objective is to get as much juice out of the cabbages before adding it to the filling.

Shred the Cabbage thin and sprinkle 1 Tbl of Kosher salt and mix it in. then allow it to sit for the salt to work. Chop it into small pieces before adding it to the filling. Squeeze out all the juices from the cabbage.

Leeks

Instead of Napa Cabbage, Leeks may be used, about 1–2 stalks, since Leeks are much stronger in taste than Napa Cabbage. They contribute an Onion and Garlic Flavor. You can also stay with Napa Cabbage as the Main vegetable and add to it some leeks.

Scallions

2 Large Bunch of Green Onions/Scallions can be sliced and used instead of the Napa Cabbage or some Scallions added with the Napa Cabbage.

Folding Dumplings

There are many ways to fold Dumplings. The standard way is the crimping or pleating of one side, which causes the dumpling to curl in, creating a crescent shape with a base that the dumpling sits on.

I often just go for the dumpling press, it’s faster and much simpler. Although, if you get good at crimping these dumplings, this in the long run will be much faster to prepare. It takes time though to become efficient at this. There are also numerous and creative ways to fold dumplings, which are pretty cool.

Cooking Methods

I’ve experimented a lot with this from steaming, to baking in the oven and nothing beats frying it in a pan with some Oil and steaming it with added water.

I believe T & T boils or steams the dumplings first and then lets them dry or refrigerates them until ready to be fried. Then a certain amount is taken out of the fridge and Fried in some oil before being packaged and put out for sale.

Steamed

Place the dumplings in the steamer and steam them for about 8 – 10 minutes. The frozen dumplings can go directly to the steamer for about 15 – 20 minutes. After cooled, these can be eaten as is with dipping sauce or pan fried with some oil. Freeze the remaining dumplings to reheat later.

Boiled

Boiling is actually the preferred way to eat them in China. Simmer the Dumpling for 5 minutes and then scoop them out. Let cool and dry out a bit before consuming. Freeze the remaining dumplings to reheat later.

Fried

This is by far the best method and creates one side or the bottom of the dumpling to brown, which is a really nice addition for texture contrast.

Pan fry freshly made dumplings in a skillet over medium heat for about 3 minutes with about 2 Tbl of neutral Oil with 1 tsp of Sesame Oil.

Add 1/4 C of water and cover immediately. Continue to cook for 3 minutes. Transfer the dumpling to a plate to cool. You can choose to cook further uncovered for a crispier side.

Dumpling Dipping Sauce

A really simple Dipping Sauce and yet so good with not just dumplings, but sushi too.

Combine equal amounts of Soy Sauce & Rice Vinegar. Black Vinegar is really nice as well. To this add a splash of sesame oil & Chili Oil. If you want to bring it on the sweeter side, add some mirin or sugar.

Sliced Green Onions, Chives, minced garlic, and ginger can be added too.

Freezing Dumplings

For us at home, the same technique used by T & T can be applied. Boil the Dumplings and then strain them out. Allow to air dry and cool before placing onto a baking sheet in an even layer and space between each dumpling to freeze. Once frozen, place them into a Ziploc bag.

You can also freeze them as soon as they are made and not cooked to cook at a later time.

Reheating Dumplings

Use any of the cook methods above (Steamed, Boiled, Fried) to cook the dumplings straight from frozen.

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