Dim Sum - Chinese Pot Stickers

Okay, so I have to be honest. I don't like chinese pot stickers...atleast not what I've tried once or twice at a chinese buffet. So then you ask "why are you making them?" and to answer truthfully "I'm not sure". I wanted to make something new, something with lots of flavor and something a tad challenging. (I also like to try and make things I think I don't like, in order to find out if I can make it taste so I DO like it) These turned out to be all of the above, except the challenging part, I was surprised at how easy they actually are to make, however, time consuming! I found the recipe on http://www.chow.com/ submitted by one of it's members named Andrea Nguyen, so I can't take credit for it :)

Basic Dumpling Dough:

2 Cups flour
3/4 Cup boiling water

Put the two cups of flour into a bowl and make a dip in the middle

and then add the water

Mix with a spoon until the water is mostly absorbed

It looks dry....but I didn't add any additional water. Turn it out onto a clean surface and mix with your hands and then start kneading it...for about 2 minutes...

...until you get a nice springy dough

Put the dough in a ziplock bag and flaten out as much air as you can and let it rest for about 15 minutes

Then lightly flour a surface and roll it out as thin as you can

Then using a cup, but out circles that are about 3.25in. in diameter - mine were a tad smaller, but worked fine

Now they are ready to fill!

Meat and Chinese Chive filling:

2/3 pounds ground beef (I used about 1 pound of ground beef and pork mixed)
2/3 cup chopped Chinese chives or scallions (white and green parts)
1 1/2 - 2 Tablespoons finely minced ginger (I didn't have any fresh ginger, I used 1 Tbsp ground ginger)
1/2 tsp salt (I omitted this because I used a chicken boullion and thought it was salty enough)
1/8 tsp white pepper (I used black)
1/3 cup chicken stock or water
2 Tbsp Soy Sauce
1 Tbsp Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry (I didn't have either of these, I used a dry white wine)
1 1/12 Tbsp Canola oil
1 1/2 Tbsp sesame oil (I didn't have any, so I just used canola again)

Things I added: a sprinkle of cinnamon, chopped carrots, sliced chinese cabbage

To make the filling, combine the beef, chives and ginger in a bowl (and any other item you are adding). Use a fork or spatula to stir and lightly mash the ingredients so that they start **commingling (**NEVER in my life have I seen this word before!)

In a small bowl, stir together the salt, pepper, chicken stock, soy sauce, rice wine, canola oil and sesame oil. Pour these seasonings over the beef mixture.

Then stirl and fold the ingredients together.

To develop the flavors, cover with plastic wrap and set aside at room temperature for 30 minutes. You should have about 2 cups of filling. (The filling can be prepared 1 day ahead and refrigerated. Bring it to room temperature before assembling the dumplings.)

Now start assembling your dumplings.

Take 1 dough round in your hand, with a watered finger, circle the edge and then put 1 tbsp filling a little off the middle of the round.

Then fold up and pinch in the center. Then fold/pleat and pinch the sides until it's all sealed.

Place the dumpling on a pan that has baking paper on it.

Once all the dumplings are assembled, they can be covered with plastic wrap and refrigerated for several hours; they can be cooked straight from the fridge. For longer storage, freeze them on their baking sheet until hard (about 1 hour), transfer them to a zip-top freezer bag, pressing out excess air before sealing, and keep them frozen for up to 1 month, partially thaw, using your finger to smooth over any cracks that might have formed during freezing, before cooking.

To pan fry the dumplings, use a medium or large nonstick skillet. Heat the skillet over medium-high heat and add 1 1/2 Tbsp oil. Place the dumplings 1 at a time, sealed edges up, in a winding circle pattern. The dumplings can touch. fry the dumplings for 1 to 2 minutes, until they are golden or light brown on the bottom.

Holding the lid close to the skillet to lessen the effect of water hitting hot oil, use a kettle or measuring cup to add water to a depth of about 1/4 inch; expect to use about 1/3 cup. The water will immediately sputter and boil vigorously. Cover with a lid, lower the heat to medium, and let the water bubble away for 8-10 minutes, until it is mostly gone.

After 6-8 minutes, move the lid so that it is slightly ajar to allow steam to escape. When you hear sizzling noises, remove the lid.

 Let the dumplings fry for another 1-2 minutes, until the bottoms are brown and crisp. Turn off the heat and wait until the sizzling stops before using a spatula to transfer the dumplings to a serving plate. Display them with their bottoms facing up so they stay crisp. 

Serve with a dipping sauce.

I didn't have what they said to use for a dipping sauce...so I made my own

1 Tbsp Soy Sauce mixed in with about 1/4 cup Sweet Chili Thai Sauce - the combination with the Dim Sum was really yummy!

*** The meat does shrink away from the dough, so please be prepared for some hot liquids to come out when you bite into them...you can help prevent some of the shrinkage by adding bread crumbs to the meat mixture - soak the bread crumbs in milk and then squeeze out as much liquid as you can before adding it-

Enjoy!