Pork and Ginger Potstickers

Potstickers.... yum! I love any food that is small, tasty, and easy to eat, and potstickers certainly fall into this category. I labeled these as appetizers or as an entree because it can be either type of meal, depending on how many you choose to eat!

I have experimented a bit with these potstickers. They are originally based off of a Ming Tsai recipe, and they are super tasty! It takes a little practice to fold the dumplings, but the more you do, the easier it gets. It's even easier if you have some helpers! :o) When I have the time, I make a big batch, and then freeze a whole bunch on a sheet tray and store them in an airtight bag. You don't even have to defrost them when you want to cook them... they just steam up right from their frozen state (dangerous for a snacker like me).

Potstickers can have a variety of fillings, but these pork ones are my favorite combo that I've tried. Enjoy!

Pork Potstickers with Ginger and Cabbage

yield: several dozen, depending on size and patience

Ingredients

Filling:

2 cups chopped Napa cabbage

1/2 tablespoon salt

1/2 lb pork, not too lean

2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger, or 1 tsp dried ginger powder

1 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic

2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil

1 egg

1 cup chicken stock

Hot Water Dough:

4 cups all purpose flour

1/2 tsp. salt

1 1/2 to 1 3/4 cups boiling water

In a bowl, sprinkle the cabbage with the salt and let sit for 30 minutes. In the meantime, make the dough.

Make the dough. In a large bowl, mix together the flour and salt. Slowly stir in the hot water until a dough forms. Once cool enough to handle, form the dough into a smooth ball, cover with a damp cloth, and allow to rest for 1 hour. In the meantime, make the filling.

To make the filling: in a large bowl, mix together the pork, ginger, garlic, soy, sesame oil, and egg. Squeeze the liquid out of the cabbage until it is very very dry. Add the dry cabbage to the pork mixture.

To assemble the potstickers: roll the rested dough into a long log, approximately 1 inch in diameter. Cut the log into 1/2 inch pieces. Lay a piece cut side up and use your palm to flatten into a disk. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough to a circle approximately 3 inches in diameter. Fill each wrapper with a small amount of filling, approximately a teaspoon full. To make the dumplings easier to fold, be careful not to overfill, and also make sure the filling does not touch the edge of the circle. Fold the circle in half around the filling and pinch the edges shut using 7-8 folds. Potstickers can either be cooked or frozen at this point.

To cook the potstickers, cover the bottom of a large sautee pan with vegetable oil and heat until quite hot, but not smoking. Add the potstickers flat side down and cook for a minute or two until the bottom is lightly browned. Carefully and quickly pour the stock into the pan (be careful, it will splatter... have the lid ready!). Quickly cover and allow the dumplings to steam until cooked through and until the liquid has evaporated, approximately 3 more minutes. Once the liquid is evaporated, the filling will be firm and cooked through, and the bottoms will be crispy again. Remove to a plate and serve!

Spicy Soy Dipping sauce:
Mix together the following ingredients and serve alongside the potstickers for dipping. Yum!

1/3 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
1 scallion, sliced
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon sambal oelek or sriracha