Chicken Scallion Dumplings with Dipping Sauce
My friend Sojung, taught my mah jongg group how to make dumplings a year ago. We had several different fillings and she showed us how to fold and cook the dumpling- a combination of pan frying and steaming them. I’ve been giving free cooking classes to my children on a daily basis during this quarantine, always looking for something fun and different to make. After months of not finding wrappers, my friend Amy surprised me with a package of square wonton wrappers. The folding was different, but the end result was just as delicious! I flipped one over for a glamour shot of the crispy bottoms. Yum!
Tips:
Be careful while filling the dumplings. You don’t want to overstuff them, causing them to open while you are cooking them.
The dipping sauce can be made up to three days ahead of time.
Freeze the dumplings if you aren’t using them immediately. The filling will make them soggy otherwise. Frozen dumplings will take just a few more minutes to cook then the fresh ones. Cook straight from the freezer.
Chicken Scallion Dumplings with Dipping Sauce
Recipe from Food52
Makes about 100 dumplings
PREP 30 minutes
COOK 10 minutes
INGREDIENTS
Dipping Sauce
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup rice vinegar
1 tablespoon Chinese chile garlic sauce
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
1 teaspoon sugar
Dumplings
about 4 cups (12 oz/340 g) Napa cabbage, finely chopped
2 teaspoons sea salt
1 pound ground chicken
2 cloves garlic, grated
1 cup scallions, finely minced
2 tablespoons finely grated ginger
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon sake
2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
Freshly ground black pepper
For the Wrappers
2 10-ounce (284 g) package gyoza skins (about 60 wrappers)
2 tablespoons tablespoons toasted sesame oil, plus an additional 1 teaspoon for extra-crispy gyoza
INSTRUCTIONS
To make the chicken filling, combine the cabbage and 2 teaspoons salt in a medium bowl and massage the cabbage for 2 minutes. Let stand for 15 minutes, then squeeze out excess moisture and discard the liquid. You should have about 1 cup of wilted minced cabbage.
Combine the chicken, cabbage, garlic, scallion, ginger, chicken broth, soy sauce, sake, and sesame oil and season with pepper. Knead the mixture for 4 to 5 minutes, until it is well combined and smooth. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to overnight.
To make the dipping sauce, combine all the ingredients in a small bowl and stir to combine. Refrigerate until you are ready to use.
Fill a small bowl with water and put it next to a cutting board, where you will form the dumplings. The water will be used to dampen and seal the wrappers. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set it next to the cutting board for your wrapped dumplings.
Place the wrappers next to one another on the cutting board without overlapping. Spoon approximately 1 scant tablespoon of the filling into the middle of each wrapper. The amount of filling will depend on the size of the wrapper; you don’t want to be skimpy, but you also don’t want too much filling on your wrapper, as the contents might spill out as they cook.
To wrap a dumpling, dip your fingertip into the water and use it to dampen the whole edge of the wrapper. Lift the front and back edges and pinch them together in the center; the dampness will form a seal between the two edges. Begin pleating along the front edge and folding the pleats so that the folds point toward the center. Fold two or three pleats on the right. Do the same with the left, with the pleats pointing toward the center. Press firmly on each pleat to completely seal the wrapper. Place the sealed uncooked dumplings on the baking sheet, flattening the bottom so it stands upright with the pleated edge at the top. Repeat with the remaining wrappers.
To cook the dumpling, heat 1 tablespoon sesame oil in a 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. You will get the best results when the pan is heated evenly.
Place half of the dumplings into the pan, forming three rows with all the dumplings facing in the same direction and standing in the pan, not lying down. Fry the dumplings for 3 to 4 minutes, until the bottoms are evenly browned. Pour about ¾ cup water, enough to cover the bottom third of the dumpling, into the pan. Be ready to cover the pan immediately with a lid because the water will sizzle and splash. Lower the heat and simmer with the lid on until almost all the liquid is gone, 5 to 6 minutes.
Remove the lid and increase the heat to medium-high. Cook until the bottom of the dumplings become dry and crispy, 3 to 4 minutes. For an even crispier finish, add ½ teaspoon sesame oil to the pan and swirl it around, lifting the dumplings up with a spatula so the oil can spread evenly beneath. Continue to cook for about 1 minute, until the bottoms of the gyoza are crisp. Remove from heat and loosen the dumplings with a spatula. Transfer to a serving plate, bottom-side up. While your diners are eating the first batch, cook the remaining batch in the same way.
Serve immediately with your dipping sauce.