Pork Potstickers

(makes 40, about 6 per serving)

I’m a huge fan of Trader Joe’s Thai Vegetable Gyoza, however since quarantine I’ve been avoiding going due to the insane lines. If you’re a TJ’s fan, you know exactly what I’m talking about! So, I've spent a decent amount of time looking up various recipes online and learning how to make my own.

What meat works best. What vegetables to use. More importantly, how to make my your own wrappers because I certainly couldn’t find any at the grocery stores.

This recipe is a combination of a few I found online, with the primary inspiration coming from my favorite blogger, Tieghan Gerard (Half Baked Harvest).

Honestly, making the wrappers was time consuming but they were SO worth it. Not only were they really tasty, but this recipe made about 40 dumplings so we had dumplings for days! The best part is, they freeze really well so you can have them ready in no time.

These little pork filled dumplings are great as an appetizer or a side and perfect for lunch and dinner. I like to serve them with some basmati rice and edamame beans for a quick, easy and healthy meal. Added bonus, if you’re a vegetarian you can very easily omit the protein and double up on the veggies. Trust me, once you make them at home you’ll be skipping the freezer section next time you’re at Trader Joe’s!

Dough

Ingredients:

- 2.5 cups flour

- 3/4 cup water

- Salt to taste

Instructions:

Mix all ingredients in a bowl and dump onto a floured surface.

Kneed the dough on a counter until stretchy, adding water 1 tablespoon of water at a time if the dough is too crumbly.

Let rest for 10 mins and re-kneed for 2 mins or so.

Roll out the dough into 40 equally sized, very thin circles. They certainly don’t have to be perfect but should be about 3-4” in diameter.

Note: You can most certainly buy store bough wrappers and stuff them with your own filling.

Filling:

Ingredients:

- 1lb of ground pork (ground chicken or turkey)

- 3 carrots

- 4oz of mushrooms (cooked & drained)

- 3 green onions

- 4 garlic cloves

- 1 cup chopped kale

- 1/4 cup soy sauce

- 3 teaspoons sesame oil

- 1 tablespoon ginger paste (or grated fresh ginger)

- 1 teaspoon of Sriracha or favorite hot sauce

- Salt and pepper to taste

- 1oz sesame seeds (for dumpling assembly)

Assembly:

Chop up all raw veggies in food processor (or finely by hand/ with grater) and place in a large bowl. Add the pork to your food processor and pulse until the meat is finely ground. Combine all of the ingredients and mix until evenly combined.

Spoon approximately 1 teaspoon of the mixture onto the center of the dough circle. Wet perimeter of the dough and fold into a pocket, making sure ALL edges are completely closed. Wet the bottom of the dumplings and dip into sesame seeds. This is optional, but adds a great crunch!

Pan fry dumplings in 1 tablespoon of olive oil on the stove, over medium heat for 3 mins (4-5 if frozen), add 1/4 cup of water, cover with lid and steam for 5-6 mins (6-7 if frozen).

Tip: Be sure not to overcrowd your pan or they will stick together.

These are super easy to freeze! Flash freeze them on a tray in the freezer for 30 mins so they don’t stick together and transfer to zip lock bag or Tupperware. Remove right from the freezer and cook according to the instructions above.

I like to serve these with a mixture of 50% soy sauce, 50% orange juice and a few dashes of hot sauce.

As always, remember to use salted butter!