Pan-Fried Gyoza / Potstickers (餃子)

• servings: 4-5?
• active time: 30-45 minutes
• total time: 1-2 hours

Ingredients

Dough (can sub for 1 package of circular gyoza / dumpling wrappers)

1½ cups all purpose flour

½ cup bread flour (or use all APF)

⅔ cup hot water

½ tsp kosher salt, dissolved in the water

Corn starch for rolling

Filling

1 lb ground pork

3 cabbage leaves, finely chopped

3 green onions, thinly sliced

3 cloves garlic

1 inch knob of ginger, finely minced

1 tbsp soy sauce

1 tsp sesame oil

¼ tsp salt

½ tsp sugar

Pan Frying & Skirt Method

½ cup water

2 tbsp all purpose flour

Dipping Sauce

¼ cup white vinegar

¼ cup soy sauce

1 tsp sesame oil

1 tsp chili oil

Directions

(Skip to step 3 if using pre-bought wrappers). For making the dough, combine the flours in a large bowl and get them well mixed. Add the salted hot water into the same bowl and mix until it comes together into a shaggy mass (careful not to burn your hands, you can use a mixing spoon). From there, knead the dough on the counter until it’s smooth, five to seven minutes. Wrap it in plastic wrap and let it rest for 15-20 minutes at room temperature to let the gluten relax.

Divide the dough into four to six workable pieces. Roll each piece out until it’s about 1/16 inches thick, or you can see your hand through it barely. Using a biscuit cutter, glass, or any other circular rimmed object you have in your kitchen, cut out 3-4 inch diameter circles. Roll out any excess trimmings and get more circles out. Repeat with all dough pieces, covering the finished rounds with a damp towel so they don’t dry out.

Combine all of the filling ingredients in a bowl. Knead / mix everything until everything is nicely homogenized, about 2 minutes.

Line up as many dumpling wrappers as you can on baking sheets or your counters. Add one heaping teaspoon in the center of each circle. When you’re ready to start wrapping, take a circle with meat and lightly brush the perimeter with water. To shape, close it like a taco, pinching the top together to fully seal in a half-circle shape. Starting with one side, crimp one part of the dough towards the center, pinch to keep it folded, then keep crimping until the center. Repeat for the other side. Looking up a short video for this process is the easiest way to understand, but you’ll get the hang of it after wrapping a few. Place all fully wrapped dumplings under a damp towel so the surface doesn’t dry out while working with the rest. Freeze any of the assembled dumplings you don’t plan on eating today.

To pan fry these, place a medium non-stick wide pan over medium heat, and add enough vegetable oil to make a thin layer on the bottom. Once the oil has heated up, add dumplings in a circular pattern until the pan is full. Let them cook for 2-3 minutes, or until the bottom of each is golden brown.

Combine the water and all purpose flour for the skirt method in a separate vessel, stirring to ensure there’s no clumps of unmixed flour. Add this mixture to the pan with the gyoza, making sure it coats the entire bottom (don’t pour directly onto the gyoza, but in the gaps between them). Close the lid and let the dumplings steam for 3-4 minutes.

Remove the lid and allow any additional water to bubble out. Once the bottom has crisped up and the gyoza are all connected, carefully loosen it from the pan and invert it onto a plate. Combine the dipping sauce ingredients, along with whatever other spices or flavors sound good. Enjoy!

Notes

Gyoza today is a beloved Japanese dumpling filled with meat and vegetables, often pan fried on the bottom and served with an acidic sauce to balance the richness of the filling. Gyoza originated from China as early as the 17th century, but didn’t really become popular until Japanese soldiers came back post World War Two. Since then, the dish has evolved on its own within Japan and is now distinct from its Chinese origins. There are countless gyoza variations across Japan, but the recipe shown here is the most familiar to westerners (the Tokyo version). The ‘skirt method’ is also shown here, where a starch slurry is added to the pan to create thin crispy wisps that connect the dumplings together in the pan, just like you’d see in Tokyo. The assembled dumplings freeze well, so consider making a bigger batch and pan frying individual servings as needed.