What are pan-fried dumplings?
Pan-fried dumplings are a type of Chinese dumpling that is pan-fried with the bottoms of the wrapper remaining intact. They are also known as potstickers, guo tie (锅贴), and jiaozi (餃子), are popular street food in China but can also be made at home. Potstickers can be made from a variety of ingredients, including meat and vegetables based on personal preference.
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Dumplings have always been one of my favorite foods to eat. Despite the deliciousness, it’s also a Chinese tradition to eat dumplings on Chinese New Year. It's said that it will bring you good luck and prosperity.
Key Ingredients
The stuffing of this recipe includes ground pork, celery, and carrots. I enjoy the flavor of this combination and the color as well!
Ground pork: Most of the traditional Chinese dumplings are made from ground pork, due to the juiciness and the delicious flavor. You can substitute it with your favorite ground meat like ground turkey or ground beef if you want. They all taste as good.
Vegetables: Carrots and celery are the chosen vegetable for my dumpling. Make sure to sprinkle some salt over the celery, and then squeeze the extra liquid out by hand. I also use minced ginger and minced garlic to add extra flavor to the stuffing mixture.
Seasonings: I use most of the commonly used Chinese seasonings such as salt, black pepper, soy sauce, sesame oil, and oyster sauce.
How to Make Pan-Fried Dumplings
Dumplings are also easy to make at home if you follow a few simple steps. Make sure all the ingredients are ready before starting the cooking process.
Homemade dumpling wrappers: Get a bowl and mix the flour with water and salt until you get a soft dough. Knead it well so that the mixture becomes smooth and elastic.
Divide the dough into small balls, and make sure to make equal-sized balls as this will help in cooking evenly throughout the batch. Flatten out the dough into thin small circles by pressing it down using your hand. Roll out the dough to a small circle with a rolling pin on a floured surface.
Mix the stuffing: Start by gathering all your ingredients. Mix the ground pork with chopped green onions, minced ginger, minced garlic, and all the seasonings until well combined.
Fill them up: Fill the dumplings with about 1 tablespoon of filling mixture per wrapper (more if you want them very full).
Pan Fry: Add two tablespoons of oil into a nonstick pan on medium heat, arrange the dumpling into the pan, and brown until they are crispy on the bottom. Add water and cover the lid to continually cook on low heat for another 5 minutes or so.
How to fold the dumpling skin
Dumpling-making is considered a culinary art. When you're folding the skin, it's important to be gentle. You can tear it and make a mess if you're not careful. Here are a few tips to help you fold the skin properly:
Fold the skin back over itself as if making a paper airplane out of a piece of paper. Fold the wrapper over into a half-moon shape and press the edges together tightly so no filling is visible between them. You can use a little bit of water to seal the edges when the dough gets dry.
An Alternative Way to Eat Potstickers—boil it!
Here is a simple method for boiling dumplings: Bring water to a boil in a large pot over high heat then reduce heat to medium-high and add dumplings in batches so they don't stick together or overcook too quickly (don't overcrowd them). Boil for about 2 minutes or until they float to the top of the water.
Add half a cup of cold water and bring to a boil. Rinse and repeat 3 times. This is a classic Chinese way to boil dumplings, then repeat the boiling process making it fully cooked inside and out. 🙂
Dipping Sause for Potstickers
I use soy sauce, black vinegar, roasted sesame seeds, garlic, and sesame oil mix which adds a nice flavor to the dumplings. Chili sauce and fresh cilantro are optional which will bring an extra kick to the sauce mixture.
Versatile
Dumplings are versatile, and delicious, and can be made in different ways. You can eat them as appetizers or main dishes, they're great stuffed with ground meats or vegetables which are often pan-fried, steamed, or boiled. Amazingly, something so simple can be so good! There are also many options for vegetarian versions as well, such as using tofu, mushroom, and glass noodle as stuffing.
How to store Potstickers
Refrigeration: If you want to store your potstickers in the refrigerator, then you need to cook them first. Once they are cooked, place them on a plate covered with plastic wrap and place them in the refrigerator for up to two days. They will remain fresh for this period if they are stored properly.
Freezing: You can also freeze your potstickers before cooking them to keep them fresh for later use. To do this, place the uncooked potstickers on a baking sheet covered with wax paper so they do not stick together while freezing. Place this baking sheet into your freezer until the potstickers are completely frozen solid (about four hours).
Conclusion
I hope you enjoyed this post, try it, and let me know how your pan-fried dumplings turn out. Hope you will fall in love with it. Happy cooking! 😊
Pan-Fried Dumplings
Ingredients
For the dough:
- 2 cups flour
- 1 cup water (room temperature)
- ½ teaspoon salt
Stuffing:
- 1 pound ground pork
- cooking oil for pan frying
- 2 cups of celery minced
- 1 cup carrots minced
- 2 eggs
- ½ cup green onions
- 2 teaspoons grated ginger
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons oyster sauce
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- ¼ cup water
- salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Mix the ground pork with chopped green onions, minced ginger, minced garlic, and all the seasonings until well combined. Set aside.
- Make the dough by combining flour and water in a bowl until you have a soft dough. Knead it well so that the mixture becomes smooth and elastic.
- Divide the dough into small balls, and make sure to make equal-sized balls as this will help in cooking evenly throughout the batch.
- Flatten out the dough into thin small circles by pressing it down using your hand. Roll out the dough to a small circle with a rolling pin on a floured surface.
- Fill the dumplings with about 1 tablespoon of filling mixture per wrapper (more if you want them very full). Fold the wrapper over into a half-moon shape and press the edges together tightly so no filling is visible between them. You can use a little bit of water to seal the edges when the dough gets dry.
- Add some oil to a nonstick pan on medium heat, arrange the dumpling into the pan, and brown until they are crispy on the bottom. Add water and cover the lid to continually cook on low heat for another 4 minutes or so or until the water is evaporated.
- Serve warm with your dipping sauce, enjoy!
To Boil the dumplings:
- Bring water to a boil in a large pot over high heat then reduce heat to medium-high and add dumplings in batches so they don't stick together or overcook too quickly (don't overcrowd them). Boil for about 2 minutes or until they float to the top of the water. Add half a cup of cold water and bring to a boil. Rinse and repeat 3 times.
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