Pork & Cabbage Jiaozi

Jiaozi, gyoza, potstickers or in Cantonese, gow gee are all the same thing. They're an East Asian dumpling with a filling of minced (ground) meat and/or vegetables, which is encased in a thin, chewy skin.

The version I have made is with minced (ground) pork with Chinese leaf (napa cabbage). I have also made the recipe with chicken thighs, where I’ve home-minced (ground) it in a food processor. The resulting jiaozi are pretty good, and I often use them in a Szechuan noodle soup.

I usually make double of the batch from the recipe, place them onto a tray and freeze them. Once individually frozen, I store them in an airtight container in the freezer until needed. When required, simply throw them into boiling water for 5-7 minutes, then drain and serve as needed.


PORK & CABBAGE JIAOZI
Makes 35-40
Adapted from "Dim Sum - Chinese Light Meals, Pastries and Delicacies", by Margaret Leeming & May H. Man-Hui

Ingredients
227 g (½ lb) Chinese leaf (napa cabbage), finely chopped
¾ t salt
227 g (½ lb) minced (ground) pork
1 ½ T water
2 t light soy sauce
1 T sesame oil
¾ t ginger, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed
½ t freshly ground black pepper
40 gyoza/round dumpling skins (homemade or store-bought)

Method
1. In a large bowl, mix the Chinese leaf (napa cabbage) with the salt and sit for 20 minutes. Place into a tea-towel (kitchen towel) and squeeze out the excess water until very dry.

2. In another large bowl, place the minced pork, water, soy sauce, sesame oil, ginger, garlic and black pepper. Using a spoon, stir the mixture in one direction to incorporate.

3. Add the “dry” Chinese leaf (napa cabbage) and stir well in the same direction as before.

4. Divide the meat mixture amongst 35-40 gyoza wrappers using about 2 t of filling per skin, then fold and pleat to form the typical jiaozi crescent shape. Either cook* immediately by placing them into boiling water for 5 minutes or freeze them individually to for frozen storage. Enjoy!

* There are several ways in which you can cook your jiaozi, I prefer to boil them. You can pan fry them, then add water to finish off the cooking – as for potstickers or simply steam them. They are delicious with X.O. or Guizhou black bean chili sauce.