Potstickers with Ground Chicken

Adapted from Use Real Butter and Mijo Recipes

1/2 pound ground chicken thigh meat (the meat of two large thighs, cut into large chunks and minced in a food processor)

2 teaspoons fresh ginger, grated (I always keep frozen ginger root on hand)

1 teaspoon black pepper

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon sesame oil

3 dried shiitaki mushrooms, rehydrated for 30 minutes, chopped

2 tablespoons green onions, chopped

1 medium carrot, grated

1 cup Napa or Savoy cabbage, sliced thin

2 teaspoons cornstarch

24 round dumpling wrappers

Place the thinly sliced cabbage and grated carrots in a small bowl. Sprinkle with about 1/2 teaspoon of salt and toss. Allow to sit for 10 minutes. Squeeze dry with a potato ricer or in a piece of cheesecloth or muslin. Place all of the filling ingredients into a large bowl and stir until well blended. Place in refrigerator until ready to stuff dumplings. For a tutorial on how to pleat Chinese dumplings look here.*

Heat a frying pan with 2-3 tablespoons of canola oil over medium-high heat. Place the dumplings with pleated side up into the frying pan and fry for a few minutes or until the bottoms are golden rotating the fry pan several times. When the bottoms are golden, add 1/2 cup water and cover the pan. Cook until the water has boiled away and then uncover . Reduce the heat to medium low and let the dumplings cook for another 2 minutes. Serve with dipping sauce.

The uncooked dumplings can frozen for 1-2 months. Place on a baking sheet making sure they do not touch and freeze for about 1 hour. Remove and place in zipper bags and return to freezer. Prepare per the above instructions, but allow extra time to ensure the filling is thoroughly cooked or make sure they are thorough defrosted before cooking.

Dipping Sauce for Two

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/8 cup rice wine vinegar (or red wine or black)

1/2 teaspoon sesame oil

1 teaspoon chili garlic sauce

1/2 teaspoon minced fresh ginger

1 small clove minced garlic

1 minced green onion

1/2 teaspoon sugar

Stir until blended and serve with hot dumplings.

Recipe for Homemade Dumpling Wrappers

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup warm water

Place the flour in the work bowl of a food processor with the dough blade. Turn on the processor and pour the warm water in the feed tube until incorporated (it should pull away from the sides of the bowl. Pour the contents onto a work surface and knead until uniform and smooth. The dough should be firm and silky and not sticky but it’s better to have a moist dough and incorporate more flour than have to incorporate more water.

Knead the dough about twenty times then cover with a damp towel for 15 minutes to rest. Flattened the dough and cut into strips about 1 1/2 to 2 inches wide. Here is a good tutorial on how to shape the dough. Shape the strips into rounded long cylinders. On a floured surface, cut the strips into 3/4 inch pieces. Press palm down on each piece to form a flat circle With a rolling pin, roll out a flat disc. Take care not to roll out too thin or the dumplings will break. Leave the centers slightly thicker than the edges. Place a tablespoon of filling in the center of each wrapper and fold the dough in half, pleating the edges along one side and press together. See video referred to above.*