Chinese Pot Stickers

Although pot stickers may seem like an intimating meal to make, they're actually quite simple. The only really difficult thing is seasoning the pork just right since you can't taste it. For this, I recommend making a tiny patty to cook and then tasting it. If it still needs salt, then add more soy sauce, make another patty, cook it, and taste it. Repeat this as many times as you need to get it seasoned just right. Though, remember that it will be inside a very bland dough, so its saltiness has to make up for both items.

Ingredients:

For the filling

• 1 pound/1/2 kg ground pork
• 1 1/2 cups cabbage
• 1/2 cup green onions
• 3 tbsp ginger
• 4 cloves of garlic
• 2-3 chile de arbol chilis
• 2 tbsp + 1tsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp seasame oil

For the dough

• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup hot water

For the dipping suace

• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 2 tbsp rice wine vinegar
• 2 tsp sesame oil
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• 1 tsp garlic, minced
• 1 chile de arbol chili, minced

Process

For the filling

1. Finely chop the cabbage, green onions, ginger, garlic, and chilis.
2. Add all of the ingredients into a large bowl and mix. Now is the time to make the patty/patties and taste the meat.

For the dough

1. Add all of the ingredients into a bowl and mix with a wooden spoon/spatula until a shaggy dough forms.
2. On a floured surface knead the dough for about 3 minutes, though maybe longer, and add flour if sticky. The first time I made these I kneaded for close to 5 minutes, and the dough came out much better. Place back into the bowl and let it rest for 30 minutes.

For the dipping sauce

1. In a small container, mix all of the ingredients. If you believe it needs more of something or other, then add it to your liking. Also, keep in mind that when the dumplings will be dipped in this sauce only a small amount will actually stay on the dumplings due to it being so liquid, so the sauce should seem extremely salty or exaggerated on its own.

For making the dumplings:

1. After the dough rests separate it into 4 (mostly) equal balls.
2. For each ball, roll it out until it is about as thick as a thumb. Then cut it into 6 (mostly) equal pieces.
3. For each piece, roll it out (I used a large metal straw due to their small size) into a somewhat round shape.
4. Place a small amount of the filling onto the dough. It can be however much you'd like.
5. Using a little bit of water on the edges of the dough, pinch together the sides of the dough to form the dumpling. The most important thing is to make sure it is properly closed so no filling will leak out. Also, don't worry about how they look, what matters is the taste.
6. Place the dumplings into a hot pan with any kind of oil. I recommend using butter and the oil of your choice, as the butter will help brown the dumplings. As for the oil, I used olive oil, but any will do.
7. Once the bottom of the dumplings have been browned, add water to the pan and cover it with a lid. This is to steam the dumplings. Once the dough looks thoroughly cooked and the meat feels cooked (click here for an article teaching you how to know if meat is cooked by touch), remove the lid and let them further cook until all the water is evaporated.
8. Serve with dipping sauce and any sides you like. I made cucumber salad, which I may create another recipe for in the future.