Pan-Fried Pork and Napa Cabbage Dumplings
Seared crisp on one side and steamed soft on the other, gone before the second batch is out of the pan.
- Serves
- 4
- Prep
- 45 min
- Cook
- 15 min
- Written
Method
-
Toss the chopped cabbage with the salt and let it sit for 10 minutes, then squeeze it by the handful until it stops releasing water.
-
Mix the cabbage with the pork, scallions, ginger, soy sauce, sesame oil, and cornstarch until the mixture holds together when pressed.
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Spoon a scant tablespoon of filling into the center of each wrapper, wet the edges with water, and pleat closed into a tight half-moon.
-
Heat the vegetable oil in a nonstick skillet over medium-high and arrange the dumplings flat-side down in a single layer.
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Fry undisturbed until the bottoms are deep golden brown, about 3 minutes.
-
Add ¼ cup water, cover immediately, and steam until the water has evaporated and the wrappers turn translucent, about 5 minutes.
-
Uncover and let the bottoms recrisp for a minute before sliding the dumplings onto a plate, seared side up.
Notes
The squeeze is the part people skip and the part that matters — cabbage left wet turns the filling to soup and splits the wrappers in the pan. Wring it out harder than feels necessary; it should look almost dry before it meets the pork.
Freeze uncooked dumplings on a tray until solid, then bag them and fry straight from frozen, adding a minute or two to the steaming step. Ground chicken works in place of pork, and a mix of minced mushrooms and crumbled firm tofu makes a fair vegetarian version.