Yaki Gyoza (Pan-fried Dumplings)

My first experience cooking this was back in Uni days when Candice & I were sharing an apartment in Melbourne. She taught me how her mom used to make these with tuna instead of pork. I've been using her recipe ever since.

Aside from Katsudon for dinner tonight, I also revisited gyozas with some techniques again inspired by Francis the Dog and made some slight changes to incorporate both recipes.

Kudos to Jack and XQ for helping out and churning out nicely wrapped gyozas in a short time~

This recipe yields 24pcs, but I've made double and the great thing about this is that you can keep the remaining portion in a tupperware lined with kitchen towel, in the freezer and keeps for at least a week. Anytime you wish to eat some, you can either pan fry them straight out of the freezer, or the next time you're cooking instant noodles, throw a couple in the soup together and you'd get 水饺! hehe...

Serves 4-6
Ingredients:
(Yields 24 pcs)

150g Minced Pork
1/2 pc Onion
50g Chives (韭菜), Finely Chopped
50g Cabbage, Finely Chopped
2 cloves Garlic, Grated or Finely Chopped
2 slices Ginger, Grated or Finely Chopped
1 pkt Gyoza wrappings (can be found at Japanese supermarkets or Cold Storage)
1 Egg

- Seasoning -
1 Tbsp Soya Sauce
1 tsp Sugar
1 tsp Oyster Sauce
1 Tbsp Sesame Oil
Pinch of Salt
Pinch of Pepper
1 tsp Corn Starch

- For Frying -
50ml Water
1 Tbsp Cooking Oil/ Sesame Oil

- Dipping Sauce -
Soya Sauce
Vinegar
2-3 drops of La Yu (Jap Chili Oil)

Directions:
1. Gently knead minced pork in a mixing bowl. Add in seasoning and stir quickly so that the pork becomes a sticky paste.
2. Add Chives, Onions, Garlic, Ginger and egg to pork and mix well. Leave mixture in fridge for 20mins to set.
3. To wrap Gyozas, lightly dust tray with corn starch. Place approx 3/4 tsp of pork filling into centre of gyoza wrapping. Dip finger in a bowl of water and dap along the entire edge of the wrapping in a circle. Fold wrapping into half and before joining the two sides, fold outer edge into pleats before sticking to the opposite edge. This way the gyozas are able to stand on their own.

4. To cook gyozas, heat a small flat pan on medium. Heat oil/ sesame oil and place gyozas onto pan (for presentation purposes, do so in rows of 6) and pan fry the bottom of the gyozas.
5. Immediately add in water and cover with lid for so that the steam will cook & soften the top of the gyozas. Lift lid when water has almost disappeared.
6. Add a few more drops of oil into pan to allow the sides to crisp.
7. To serve, turn off heat, and with a spatula, scoop out Gyozas, and place onto plate with bottom facing up.
8. Serve with Soya Sauce, Vinegar and La Yu... or Wasabi/ Chili Mayo. Eat up!