from Ten Little Dumplings
Last December, we featured “Best of Bridge: Everyday Celebrations” at https://canadiancookbooks.ca/best-of-bridge-everyday-celebrations/ They graciously allowed us to provide you with a delectable addition to your Chinese New Year festivities: vegetable pot stickers. Enjoy!
We love the crispy bottom crust of these pan-fried dumplings. There are many variations in fillings. You don’t have to get fancy with the sealing and pleating of the pot stickers; any way you decide, they’ll still be delicious. Be sure to cook the pot stickers in a pan that has a tight-fitting lid to hold in the steam. Using convenient store-bought wrappers make preparing these a little easier. The smaller wrappers create two bite-size pot stickers. Serve with a choice of soy sauce, Sriracha and chili garlic sauce for dipping.
Ingredients
6 dried shiitake mushrooms
Hot water
1 tbsp (15 mL) canola oil
3 cups (750 mL) finely chopped cabbage
1 large carrot, grated
4 green onions, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp (15 mL) grated fresh ginger
2 tbsp (30 mL) vegetarian oyster sauce
1 tbsp (15 mL) sesame oil
50 round dumpling wrappers (about 3 inches/7.5 cm wide)
Canola oil for frying
Instructions
Place mushrooms in bowl, cover with hot water and soak for 30 minutes. Drain, squeeze dry, remove and discard woody stems and finely chop.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.
In a large skillet, heat 1 tbsp (15 mL) oil over medium-high heat; add mushrooms, cabbage and carrot. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 7 minutes, until vegetables soften. Add green onions, garlic and ginger; cook for 1 minute, until most of the liquid has evaporated. Remove from heat and stir in oyster sauce, soy sauce and sesame oil. Mix until well combined.
Place a few wrappers on a clean work surface. (Loosely cover the rest with lightly damp towel to keep them from drying out.) Place a heaping 1 tsp (5 mL) of the filling into the center of each wrapper. Wet the edges of the wrapper with a little water, then fold in a half circle; seal, then pleat if desired. Too much filling will make the wrapper difficult to seal and it might burst during cooking. Place on prepared sheet. Continue until filling and wrappers are used up.
In a nonstick pan, over medium-high heat, drizzle a little oil. Working in batches, place pot stickers in pan, seam side up, spacing them about ¼ inch (0.5 cm) apart. When the bottom of the pot stickers become golden brown, after about 3 minutes, cover pan. Tilt the lid slightly and add about ½ cup (125 mL) water to the pan and immediately close the lid. (Be careful, as the oil may splatter and plenty of steam is created.) Cook for about 8 minutes, until wrapper is cooked through and liquid has evaporated. Check to see if wrapper edge is tender; add more water and cooking time is necessary. Transfer pot stickers to a serving plate. Repeat with remaining pot stickers, adding more oil to the pan as needed.
Make Ahead:
The filling can be made a day ahead. Cover and refrigerate until ready to assemble pot stickers.
Cook only the amount you want to eat. Cover and refrigerate uncooked pot stickers for up to 2 days. Freeze the rest in a single layer on a baking sheet. Once frozen, transfer to a freezer-safe container. Freeze up to 3 months. Cook from frozen as directed, adding a few more minutes to cooking time until filling is heated through.
Tip:
Shorter shreds of carrot will make it easier for filling the wrappers.
Makes 50 small pot stickers.
Nada’s Tips & Tricks: These pot stickers may appear to be fussy but once you get into the rhythm of assembling and cooking them, it’ll go quickly. Make a bunch and freeze for future dinners – a quick addition to a busy dinner hour.
Courtesy of Best of Bridge Everyday Celebrations by Sylvia Kong and Emily Richards © 2022 www.robertrose.ca Reprinted with permission. Available where books are sold.
Image credits:
Cover DESIGN: Naomi MacDougall
Front cover photograph copyright © 2022 Mollie Pie
Interior photographs copyright © 2022 Brilynn Ferguson
