Simple Shrimp and Pork Pot-Stickers

Crossing another one off the bucket list….shrimp and pork pot-stickers! I still have about 6 months to conquer over half of the dishes on that list. A lot of them seem like more wintery/cold weather dishes, such as classic French onion soup and homemade gnocchi. I also have been itching to buy my first wok and  have pad-thai and chow-mein on the list too. I love seeing chefs cook using a wok and how fast everything builds together. I find that style of cooking absolutely fascinating!

Chinese pot-stickers are on the menu for today. I have been reluctant to make these for a while because I first thought they would be too time consuming. I usually like to cook like any other Italian’s wife where I make a large portion of something and everyone can grab from there. Instead, these are individual and each one needs a little time and patience. But to be honest, these didn’t take long at all and are fairly easy.

Of course you could make your own wrapper dough, but common…they sell them by the pack for a few dollars and I am no expert dumpling master.

The filling is super flavorful and so easy to throw together. Ground pork, shrimp and Asian flavors of soy, ginger, garlic and sesame oil. One little bite sure does pack a whole lotta flavor. The folding method was not that hard as well. It may be a tad difficult to explain through writing so what I suggest is to YouTube the folding technique like I did and practice on a few. But for my first time, I’m pretty dang proud of myself!

Here is a video that helped me pleat the pot-stickers.

Method:

1) In a bowl, add together the ground pork, minced shrimp, cabbage, green onion and all the flavorings. Toss to combine until mixed through.

2) Place 1 wrapper  in the palm of your hand and dip your middle finger into water and smear water on 1/2side of the wrapper.  *This will help the dumplings stick together.

3) Place a teaspoon size of the filling in the middle of the dumpling.

4) Now here is the interesting part, take both sides of the dumpling and make “pleats” and make sure to crimp the sides well. You don’t want any of the mixture peaking through, so if there is too much, take some out.

5) As you fill them, place each dumpling on a lightly floured surface so the bottom doesn’t stick.

6) When ready to fry, heat a large non-stick skillet on high heat. Drizzle a touch of olive or grape seed oil on the bottom. Place 5-6 dumplings in the pan and pan fry until the bottom is crispy and golden brown.

7) When bottom is golden brown, add 1/4 c water to the pan. *Be careful, the water may splat up because the pan is very hot! Then cover the pan with a lid or foil and allow to steam  until all the water has evaporated.

8) When done, serve with dipping sauce. In a small bowl, put together soy sauce, rice wine and chopped green onion.

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Simple Shrimp and Pork Pot-Stickers

Author: Samantha Ferraro

Ingredients

Filling

• 1/2 Pound ground pork
• 1/2 c Shrimp uncooked and minced fine
• 1 c Napa cabbage chopped
• 3 Garlic cloves grated
• 1 in piece of ginger grated
• 2 Green onions chopped
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 2 Tb soy sauce
• Wonton wrappers

Dipping Sauce

• 1/4 c soy sauce
• 1 Tb rice vinegar
• Fresh green onion chopped

Instructions

• In a bowl, add together the ground pork, minced shrimp, cabbage, green onion and all the flavorings. Toss to combine until mixed through.
• Place 1 wrapper in the palm of your hand and dip your middle finger into water and smear water on 1/2side of the wrapper. *This will help the dumplings stick together.
• Place a teaspoon size of the filling in the middle of the dumpling.
• Now here is the interesting part, take both sides of the dumpling and make "pleats" and make sure to crimp the sides well. You don't want any of the mixture peaking through, so if there is too much, take some out.
• 5) As you fill them, place each dumplings on a lightly floured surface so the bottom doesn't stick.
• When ready to fry, heat a large non-stick skillet on high heat. Drizzle a touch of olive or grape seed oil on the bottom. Place 5-6 dumplings in the pan and pan fry until the bottom is crispy and golden brown.
• When bottom is golden brown, add 1/4 c water to the pan. *Be careful, the water may splat up because the pan is very hot! Then cover the pan with a lid or foil and allow to steam until all the water has evaporated.
• When done, serve with dipping sauce. In a small bowl, put together soy sauce, rice wine and chopped green onion.

And while you’re looking for other Chinese recipes to try, shrimp chow mein is one of my favorite recipes with fresh vegetables and head on shrimp!