Insider's Kitchen

No.192 (7/22/11)

GYOZA (Fried Dumpling)

By Nao H. Kauffman
Chief Editor

Finally, Misawa is getting hotter. You may want to gain strength by eating stamina foods and prevent yourself from sweltering. Foods with garlic are a good choice! Many of you enjoy eating GYOZA alongside your favorite ramen once you explore local restaurants outside the gate. But how many would attempt to make your own at home? The Japanese people prefer pan-frying gyoza while they can be deep fried or steamed. I normally fry them and freeze the leftovers in a Ziploc bag. Later on, I can quickly make use of those when I feel like making some won ton soup. You should try them and come up with your own creative recipe.

Ingredient:

1 package of round Gyoza no Kawa(won ton)
1/4 Cabbage/Chinese Cabbage (called Hakusai)
1/2 pound of ground pork
Shrimp cocktails (left over, not necessary)
Nira (Chinese leek) -- rich in vitamins and minerals!
Long onions
3 cloves of garlic
A block of ginger
One egg
Sesame oil
Salt
Pepper
Soy Sauce
Sake (Japanese wine)
Corn Starch
Water

Direction:
1. Chop cabbage and sprinkle some salt over to mix.
2. Chop or grade garlic and ginger. Then, chop all the vegetable items and shrimp cocktails.
3. Knead well ground pork with the garlic and ginger.
4. Squeeze water out of the chopped cabbage.
5. Add all the chopped items and form a ball along with the kneaded ground pork. Then, add one egg, a table spoon of sesame oil, sake, soy sauce, and sprinkle some pepper.
6. Mix them altogether very well.
7. Sprinkle corn starch over the large plate. This can help the won ton not stick on the plate by moisture.
8. Pour some water in a finger bowl. Then, after laying a small spoon full of the gyoza mix on the center of a won ton, go over the half top of the won ton with a wet finger in order to seal the won ton. Try to make some pleats as you see the photo. Repeat this until you finish the won ton package.
9. On medium-high heat, add oil in the pan and lay all the gyozas as pleated sides are side up.
10. Mix some corn starch with 1/3 cup of water. Pour the mix in the pan and cover with a lid to simmer.
11. After thoroughly cooking the gyoza, remove the lid to fry them well.
12. Flip all the gyoza on the serving plate as the golden brown part shows up. (I personally prefer cooking both sides, so flip them on the pan to cook a little longer.)

You may use the food processor if you want to save some time instead of chopping all the ingredients. If you have some of the mix left over, you can stir-fry them and cook with steamed rice. It's similar to regular fried rice. This time, my son asked for a pizza! So, I stir-fried the left-over mix and added them onto a Pillsbury pizza dough with cheese and some Japanese mayonnaise. It turned out great! Enjoy!

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