Conference turris::cooks

Pot Stickers (a.k.a. Peking Ravioli, Pan Fried Dumplings)

To cook:

Place several dumplings in a hot nonstick skillet with a bit of oil.  Fry until
lightly browned.  Add water to cover by 1/3 to 1/2, and cover.  Boil until the
water is absorbed/evaporates.  Add a small amount of oil and fry until the 
bottom crisps.  Serve with a sauce made from equal parts dark soy and rice
vinegar, whisked with 1/4 as much sesame oil (or sesame oil + peanut oil mixture
if you like less sesame flavor) plus a few drops of hot chili oil (to taste).
Whisk till smooth, and add minced scallion greens.

You can buy reasonable quality dumplings at many Chinese grocers, like Joyce
Chen.  Or you can buy another kind of dumpling (Japanese??) called Gyoza.  These
are MUCH lighter in the pasta part of the dumpling.

Or you can make them.

The filling is uaually ground pork (LEAN LEAN LEAN!), fresh ginger, scallions,
garlic, all minced to a paste, and a bit of soy.  Mix together well.  Add an egg
if a binding is needed.  Instead of pork, you can use shrimp, or turkey, or 
anything else.  It's not as traditional, but every bit as delicious.

The wrapper can be home made pasta, rolled medium thin, cut into 3" circles
with a biscuit cutter.  Or you can use store bought wanton wrappers trimmed into
circles.  You can fold them by hand with a pleated pattern, like the 
store/restaurant ones, or just fold in half and seal with water.  My favorite,
and the easiest way is to find a press (little plastic affair with a useless
paint brush for the sealant.  Put a round of dough on the press, use your finger
to wet the edges with water, add a tbsp of filling, and press.  While the press
is still closed, trim the edges with a knife, including the spot behind the
hinge (makes it easier to remove).  They come out looking like little 
stegosauruses, but they don't taste like them (or maybe they do?).

    
    
     Rep .1
    
    
      I have one of the little plastic presses also and chucked the brush
     that came with it. I now use a 1" pastry brush to wet the edges a 
     couple of passes with the brush and it's done. 
    
    
     -mike
    

    Actually, the recipe I usually make has you fry the bottom of the
    dumplings first, and then add water and cover them to steam them for
    the rest of the cooking time.

Absolutely, as I said in .1, fry first!

The second frying is to provide a bit of crispness after the boiling/steaming.

    All the ones I have bought have been frozen.  Do you defost first or
    just throw them in the skillet?
    
    ...ls

When I use frozen ones, I defrost them first (being very careful to separate
the individual dumplings first, otherwise they stick together in a gooey heap!).
I find that if you don't defrost them, it's difficult to get them to cook all
the way through before the bottoms burn.

--PSW

    I do it the other way (what did you expect?).  I toss frozen ones in
    the pan and brown them on the bottoms.  Then I add the water, and
    cover.  In about 10-15 minutes, they are thawed and cooked thru.  Then
    I uncover, boil the liquid off, and let them crisp up again.

RE: .8

That's the method that I use, too, except for me they don't cook
through before the water boils off if they're frozen to start with.  I probably
need to add more water if the dumplings are frozen to start with, to increase
the total cooking time.

--PSW

I've had good luck with homemade ones by boiling them first, like ravioli.
This avoids the biggest problem I used to have: that any dumplings touching each
other in the pan would stick (if the dough is raw.)  I think this is the way
restaurants do it. In any case, if they are cold, they can be cooked like raw
ones, but with less water.  Or you can take them directly out of the boiling
water and crisp the bottoms in a skillet.

Since I usually serve them as appetizers, I want to do as much of the work
beforehand as possible, so I boil and refrigerate them.

John

    I have been using the method in .1 to cook the dumplings I have
    been buying at JOyce Chen's in Merrimack.  
    
    The first couple of times I made them everything went well.  However,
    the last couple I have found out why they call them pot stickers.
    They have stuck to the pan and completely fell apart when I took
    them out of the pan.
    
    The last time I made sure they were unstuck during the initial frying
    stage, but they got stuck during the boiling off of the water stage.
    
    Any suggestions to keep them from sticking to the pot?
    
    Mark
    

RE: .10

I tried your suggestion of parboiling them before doing the steam-frying, and
it works great.  Thanks.


RE: .11

During the first stage of the frying, it's the oil in the pan that keeps them
from sticking.  When you add the water, the oil floats to the top and there's
the potential for the dumplings sticking to the pan if the heat is up too
high.  In the last stage (after the water has boiled off), the oil can do its
lubrication job again.

So I'd try using a little less heat during the middle stage.  As long as the
water is boiling vigorously, the heat is high enough.

--PSW

re .11

The absolute solution is SILVERSTONE!

I've never had a potsticker stick.

(Makes me wonder, if the Chinese had invented teflon, would they be called
"pot sliders"?)

RE: .13

>The absolute solution is SILVERSTONE!
>
>I've never had a potsticker stick.

*I* have.  You've been lucky.

I specifically avoid doing pot stickers on pans with any sort of specially
treated surface because, if you use a plain metal or ceramic pan, you can
use a good metal scraper to get the pot stickers off in one piece, without
having to worry about ruining the pan surface.

--PSW

Paul, I'm impressed and suprised...

I've never had to use an implement on my pot stickers!  I have a restaurant 
quality pan with silverstome lining (like the frug uses), and my pot stickers 
slide out, occasionally overshooting the plate!  I only tried once making them
in an unlined pan, and they stick so bad I had to serve the tops and the 
meatballs separately.  The stuck part only came out after a a lot of elbow
grease.

  By why way, if anyone in the Manchester, NH area is interested in purchasing
restaurant-quality silverstone pans, check out G & C Restaurant Supply
on Elm Street in Manchester.  They're open odd hours though - only until
noon on Saturdays, and not at all on Sundays.

  I believe the prices for the heavy-duty silverstone pans are:

	10" - $22
	12" - $33
	14" - $44

I have an 8", 10", and 12", and will never go back to those cheap non-sticks
pans!!

--Sharon

    I have a big silverstone frypan that we use only for potstickers -
    works great!

    
    
    Does anyone have a recipe for the sauce that is usually
    served with Potstickers?   Looked through several 
    cookbooks and have turned up nothing.
    
    Thanks,

    Hi Jeanne, a combination of soy sauce, sesame oil and some sesame seeds
    works well for us.  Also, try adding some chopped scallions and ginger.

    re .18
    
    I don't have a recipe (as usual!), but here is what I mix together for
    a dumpling sauce that I like This sauce is similar to the one served at
    Ming Garden in Nashua.
    
    Light soy sauce
    water
    Chiang Kiang (sp) dark chinese vinegar (available at Chinese food stores)
    sesame oil 
    hot chinese oil
    chopped garlic
    chopped scallions
    sugar
    
    I usually use equal amounts of soy and water, and then add half as
    much of the chinese vinegar. Then a few drops of sesame oil and
    hot oil to taste. Maybe a half clove of chopped garlic and a few
    chopped scallions on top. Also, dissolve a small amount ( .5 tsp) of
    sugar in the water when you start. Experiment till you get a sauce
    that you like. Some people like a tangy sauce, others like it real
    sweet, and some like it real HOT!
    
    have fun,
    mike
    

    re: .18
    
    	2 tblsp dark soy sauce
    	1 teasp vinegar
    	1 teasp sesame oil
    	1 tblsp shredded ginger
    	1 teasp hot oil  (chili) 
    
    Mix together.
    
    I would suggest you go slow with the hot oil, taste and add more if you
    want.  I personally like the WHOLE teasp.
    
    You can save this in the refer for the next time you want pot stickers.
    
    Mary Lou

    I noticed that all the recipes in here steam the potstickers with
    water,  I've always used chicken broth to steam them and never had any
    of the stick to the pan.

    I steam mine with water and sesame oil together.  when the Water
    evaporates then the oil takes over.  You watch and remove the lid. 
    They don't stick.  I even do this right from the freezer.
    
    If they weren't frozen then I might brown one side before steaming.
    
    Mary Lou

    I like my pot sticker sauce to have the following:
    
    soy sauce
    vinegar
    slices of ginger
    sesame oil
    

    The best sauce I've pound for pot stickers / Peking Ravs is the kind
    that you buy.  The writing on the bottle is all chinese though so I
    can't give you a name.  You can find it in a Joyce Chen store by
    looking for the bottle with the picture of Peking Ravs on the front. 
    
    The best alternative (though certainly no substitute) I've found since
    I am no longer near a Joyce Chen store is the Sushi Chef ? brand of
    Dark Soy Sauce.  Though it's called dark, it's actually rather light,
    and has more of a vinegar tang to it than the regular thick, muddy soy
    sauces you find in the grocery store.
    
    And failing that :-) you could get an authentic ginger soy sauce from
    Joyce Chen or some other oriental grocery.  The ginger soy sauces in
    the regular grocery stores have so far all been rather thick and muddy
    too, but to be honest I haven't tried every single brand out there.
    
    Sharon

sauce for pot stickers:

chile oil in one cruet and rice vinegar in another cruet.  Pour some chile
oil onto a plate...add vinegar to taste.  rub pot stickers in this as you
eat them.  Delicious and SPICY.

RE: .26

Infinitely superior to store-bought ginger soy sauce is the stuff you can make
up fresh yourself.  Start with any good-quality light (or dark, according to
your taste) soy sauce.  Add peeled fresh ginger root, minced very fine.  Vary
the proportions according to how gingery you want the result to taste.  One
tablespoon ginger to 5-10 tablespoons soy sauce is probably a good starting
guideline for peking rav sauce.  Refrigerate overnight in a closed container
(jar or bottle) to let the flavors marry.


RE: rav sauce

I like to mix mine from soy sauce, hot chili oil (preferably sesame oil),
vinegar (preferably rice wine vinegar), minced ginger, minced garlic, and
minced scallions.

--PSW

We've got a problem when cooking potstickers (the frozen kind you can get at
Joyce Chen).  When we add the water to the pan, the oil spatters everywhere!
Is there a way to avoid/reduce this, or are we doing something wrong?

				Steve

I always keep the pan covered until the water boils completely away.  My 
procedure for the stage where you pour in the water is to hold the cup with 
the water in one hand, the lid to the pan in the other, pour and slam down 
the lid FAST.

--PSW

	Rep .29  Steve

>>>When we add the water to the pan, the oil spatters everywhere!


	What I do is after the rav's have been browned and you are ready
	to add the water just slide the cover over the pan so only a small
	crack is left. Then pour the water through the space. I use
	a measuring cup with a spout to pour the water which makes the 
	whole procedure neat and quick.

	-mike

    	You can also remove the pan from the heat, let it cool some, put
    the water in (with very little splattering), and put it back on the
    heat. It doesn't seem to adversely affect the raviolis any.

    RE: .29  by QUARK::LIONEL 
    
    >We've got a problem when cooking potstickers (the frozen kind you can
    >get at Joyce Chen).  ...
    
    We've had a different problem.  Saturday we cooked some frozen ravioli
    from Joyce Chen's in our wok using a steamer tray which is simply a
    flat inset with 1/4 inch holes in it.
    
    The problem is that some juice from the raviolis dripped into the water
    boiling in the bottom of the wok and when we went to wash it later the
    metal was all discolered up to where the water level was.
    
    This is a heavy guage aluminum wok and we've never had a problem
    cleaning it before.  I wonder what stained the aluminum and how to get
    rid of it.
    

What stained the aluminum is likely acetic acid (from vinegar in the 
ravioli filling).  Don't know how you'd get rid of the stains.

--PSW

    Is it necessary to get rid of the stains?  When I had my carbon
    steel wok, I was told to never scrub it but to allow it to develop
    a rich "patina".  I've never used an aluminum wok (just the idea of
    it seems strange to me).
    
    					Steve

    RE:.33
    
    	To remove those stains from ANY aluminum utensil, fill to stain
    line with warm water and add about 1 teaspoon of Cream of Tartar per
    quart of water. Let stand about 30 minutes. Then wash. Works fine.
    
    						Steve