A Japanese teacher invited a bunch of us newly-arrived English teachers from Canada, U.K. and Australia to her home. The activity waiting for us was gyoza-stuffing. We sat around a table and scooped spoonfuls of the stuffing into dumpling wrappers and chatted. When we’d finish a pile, our host would take them into the kitchen for a few moments and come back with hot treasures that we dipped in a sauce that dribbled down our chins. Delectable. Her stuffing was cabbage, minced pork, carrots, garlic, and pickled ginger.
garlic, ginger,carrots, cabbage and dumpling wrappers. Fresh red chili and tamari sauce for dipping.
Gyozas are stuffed dumplings that are fried and steamed at the same time.
Suggested stuffings:
1- cabbage, carrots, tofu, ginger and garlic
2- minced pork, garlic, ginger
3- scrambled egg, green onion
4- shrimp, corriander
use the back of a spoon to wet the outer edge of dumpling wrapper
The combinations are limitless. On St. Laurent in Montreal’s Chinatown there is an exceptional gyoza shop that’s always packed with diners. They serve only gyoza, but the menu is four pages long.
The dumpling wraps are available at Asian shops but I noticed the package also says “perogy wrappers” so that may be easier to find in some towns. I always buy a few packages and freeze them until the urge for gyoza hits.
add stuffing
So here we go- this is more fun with company- thanks Anne!
Grate all ingredients (or in the case of shrimp, chop small) and mix in a big bowl.
moistened edges stick easily
Put one wrapper flat on your hand and use the back of a wet spoon to moisten the outer edge.
Put a big spoonful of stuffing in the middle, fold it over and squeeze the edges shut in a half-moon shape.
stuffed gyozas
Yeah, maybe put some music on.
non-stick pan
Put a little oil in a non-stick pan and bring up to medium heat.
Place the gyozas in the pan and shake to be sure they aren’t stuck.
Stand back and add a little water. Say 1/4 cup.
Cover.
hot gyoza
They take about 10 minutes- just check the bottoms- they’ll be brown and crispy.
By now they’ll be stuck together- hence the Chinese name: pot-stickers.
brown and crispy on the bottom
Flipped a few here so you can see the colour.
Gyozas freeze well.
dip in sauce
The sauce is vital. You can use tamari sauce with a bit of water to thin it, or soy sauce thinned by 50% water or, if you’re lucky, you can find and buy gyoza sauce.
Regardless, add a teaspoon plus of fresh red chili sauce (comes in jars- most grocery stores carry this now) to about 3 tablespoons of tamari. It’s thin and drippy.
Dip and slurp and tell me you love me.
