The Yummiest Potstickers Ever!

Merriam-Webster's definition:

pot sticker
Function: noun
Date: 1975
: a crescent-shaped dumpling filled usually with pork, steamed, and then fried

My definition of a potsticker:
an absolutely delicious and addictive appetizer that you simply cannot get enough of!

Potstickers, known as guotie (Mandarin word) are pan fried dumplings, normally served in restaurants as side orders or appetizers. They are typically steamed on one side and pan-fried on the other. They are usually filled with pork, but they can also be made with ground poultry or shrimp. The filling is then carefully sealed, using the recommended gyoza wrapper (more details below), pan fried and then steamed. The Japanese version of a potsticker is called gyoza which is a menu item commonly found in a lot of Asian restaurants.

Please note that the short list of ingredients that are readily available at regular grocery stores. If you Google potsticker recipes on the net, you will find hundreds of them calling for a lot of exotic ingredients that may not be easily accessible.

What You Will Need

Filling

1 pound of ground pork
1/3 cup of finely chopped green onions
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 egg
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 can sliced water chestnuts (finely chopped)
Peanut oil (for cooking)

Note: You can use ground chicken, turkey or shrimp. Ground beef is not recommended!

Wrapper:

I don't know about you, but I would rather get Gyoza Wrappers at the store rather than make the dough from scratch. That may be another website in itself!

Gyoza Wrappers are usually found in the freezer section (Whole Foods, Central Market and all Asian stores carry them). They come small packs of 40 or so, and are round in shape. They cost about $1 each, so while you're at the store, just stock up as they are really cheap and a whole lot better than slaving away for hours making dough from scratch!

Sauce:

1 tablespoon soy sauce (if using dark soy sauce, just use 1 teaspoon)
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
1/4 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon Mirin Style sweet cooking seasoning
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar

Note: You can adjust the quantities according to your taste, as these measurements are just guidelines. I usually add a little water to dilute the sauce since I like my sauce a bit milder.

Kikkoman Kotterin Mirin Style sweet cooking seasoning can be found at most grocery stores (usually in the soy sauce section). I highly recommend this ingredient because it adds a subtle sweetness to the sauce. DO NOT substitute with honey or sugar.

If you cannot find rice wine vinegar, you can use cider vinegar but you may have to use less than a teaspoon because it is a bit stronger.

Equipment (or Hardware, quoting the Great Alton Brown)

Large nonstick skillet (at least 12 inches in diameter)
Spatula to turn the potstickers over

Now it's time to actually "create" your yummy potstickers. Here is what you will need:

1. one small bowl of water
2. your gyoza/dumpling wrappers
3. your meat mixture
4. a lot of patience

Put about a teaspoon of the meat mixture in the center of a gyoza wrapper.

Dab some water on one side of the wrapper, then fold over so as to seal the dumpling. Do not overfill because you will have difficulty sealing the dumpling.

After it is sealed, crimp the ends of the dumpling - no need to be too fancy, just make sure the meat mixture is safe and sound in the center of the wrapper.

When you are all done, you can cook the potstickers immediately, or you can seal them in a Ziploc freezer bag or food saver bag and freeze them for future use. For best results, cook immediately! The fresher the better.

Note: Don't be discouraged if you have mutilated potstickers. Trust me, I have gone through a lot of deformed and misshapen dumplings! Practice makes perfect so the more you make, the better they look!

What To Do To Make the Yummiest Potstickers Ever!!!!!!

1. Heat peanut oil (medium to high heat on electric stove) in your nonstick skillet. Flat is good...do not use a wok because you need all the space you can get.

2. Drop the potstickers slowly in the pan (be careful, the oil is HOT!) until you fill the pan, but do not overcrowd to make sure all potstickers brown nicely.

3. It should take a minute or so before the potstickers turn golden brown. This will depend on your pan, your stove, and how hot the oil is of course. Just watch them carefully so as not to burn them! You may want to lower the heat to medium at this point.

4. Once the potstickers are golden brown on one side, flip them over and brown the other side. Now the typical recipe calls for one brown side, one steamed side, but I prefer to brown both sides.

5. When both sides are browned, add about 1/3 cup water to the pan. Use medium heat. This will steam the potstickers and cook the meat inside. Cover the pan and wait until most of the water has evaporated. This process will take about 2 to 3 minutes. When the water is almost gone, the potstickers will brown nicely and will be a bit crispy. If you do not want the crispy texture, take out the dumplings sooner. They will look more "steamed" than "pan-fried."

6. Serve the potstickers on a plate and enjoy with your homemade sauce. ENJOY!!!!

Remember - this is my own recipe with personal preferences. You can always be creative and add your own ingredients like cabbage, carrots, and other types of meat. I have been using this recipe for many years now and I have never gotten anything but rave reviews. I hope you have the same success when you follow this recipe, and even spice it up with your own ingredients!

In the event that you DO have leftovers, which may be few and far between, here are some tips on what you can do.

1. You can keep cooked potstickers in the fridge for about 2-3 days. They have to be sealed well in a container or a Ziploc bag. When you are ready to eat them again, just pop them in the microwave on high heat for about a minute (depending on how hot your microwave is).

2. If you have one of those Food Saver bags, you can
vacuum seal the potstickers and freeze them for an indefinite period of time. Chances are, you will want to eat them sooner than that! Then you can microwave them for about 2-3 minutes (again, this depends on your microwave), then serve with sauce.
You could use Ziploc freezer bags too, but I wouldn't keep them too long in the freezer because the dumplings will have freezer burn sooner or later.

3. The sauce will keep in the fridge for about a week. Of course you can always make the sauce on demand since it is so easy to whip up a small amount. Fresh sauce is always best!

Did you know that....

...potstickers have been around since the Song Dynasty (960 - 1279 A.D.)

...in Boston, potstickers are also called "Peking Ravioli", coined in 1958 at Joyce Chen's Restaurant in Cambridge, MA.

...the potsticker dish was a result of a screw-up? Legend has it that a chef in China's Imperial Court left a pot of dumplings on the stove too long and to his horror, found that the bottoms have burned accidentally. Needless to say, the poor chef feared for his head and did not have enough time to whip up a new batch. As the chef was freaking out, his smart son decided to present the dumplings to the emperor himself. When the emperor asked why the dumplings were burned, he quickly explained that this was a new recipe called potstickers. Luckily for the chef, the emperor loved the crunchy browned bottoms, hence the potsticker came to be.