05.16.08
Fast Pot Stickers
Mark Bittman offers a recipe for fast and simple pot-stickers:
Round wrappers are somewhat easier to handle than squares, though both work. As for filling, you can use any you like. For a vegetarian pot-sticker, cabbage can dominate, complemented by chopped shiitakes, minced tofu, minced celery and carrots, chives or a combination. Shrimp dumplings are also quite fabulous.
- 3/4 pound ground pork or other meat
- 1 cup minced cabbage
- 2 tablespoons minced ginger
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 6 scallions, the white and green parts separated, both minced
- 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons good soy sauce
- 48 dumpling wrappers
- 1 egg, lightly beaten in a bowl
- 4 tablespoons peanut oil or vegetable oil, more or less
- 1/4 cup rice vinegar or white vinegar
1. Combine meat, cabbage, ginger, garlic, scallion whites and 2 tablespoons soy sauce in a bowl with 1/4 cup water. Lay a wrapper on a clean, dry surface, and using your finger or a brush, spread a bit of egg along half of its circumference. Place a rounded teaspoon of filling in center, fold over and seal by pinching edges together. (Do not overfill.) Place dumplings on a plate; if you want to wait a few hours before cooking, cover plate with plastic wrap and refrigerate. Or freeze, for up to two weeks.
2. To cook, put about 2 tablespoons oil in a large nonstick skillet and turn heat to medium-high. A minute later, add dumplings, one at a time; they can touch one another, but should still sit flat in one layer. Cook about 2 minutes, or until bottoms are lightly browned. Add 1/4 cup water per dozen dumplings to pan, and cover. Lower heat to medium, and let simmer about 3 minutes.
3. To make the dipping sauce, combine remaining soy sauce, green parts of scallions and vinegar.
4. Uncover dumplings, return heat to medium-high and cook another minute or two, until bottoms are dark brown and crisp and water evaporates. (Use more oil if necessary.) Serve hot, with sauce.
Vegetarian Pot-Stickers: Make a filling of 2 cups minced cabbage, 1 cup minced shiitake caps, 1/2 cup minced scallions or chives, and ginger, garlic and soy as above (omit water).
Shrimp Pot-Stickers: Make a filling of 2 cups peeled and minced shrimp (about 1 pound unpeeled), 1/2 cup minced snow peas, 1/2 cup minced shallots, and ginger, garlic and soy as above. Add 1 tablespoon sesame oil (or 1 tablespoon minced bacon).
TYD said,
16 May 2008 at 11:45 am
I used to make potstickers and as I made them, I laid them in a 10″ glass pie pan so that they formed concentric circles. I filled the whole pan and then covered with saran wrap froze it. When ready, I heated up a 10″ skillet I had with a little oil on the bottom, popped the whole frozen disk of pot stickers out and into the pan, and then did like your recipe: browned them a little on the bottom, then poured in a little hot water, covered the skillet and steamed them until cooked.
Ethan said,
19 May 2008 at 12:28 pm
The problem with shrimp potstickers is that the shrimp flavor is largely lost. I usually use ground pork, but my last batch was minced duck (which was quite tasty).
In addition to the soy sauce, I usually put in a bit of dry sherry & sesame oil in the meat mixture. Also minced water chestnut in addition to the other veggies listed by Bittman.
LeisureGuy said,
19 May 2008 at 12:50 pm
That sounds great! I would love the duck ones…
Hmm…. bacon potstickers…