These mouthwatering pork Potstickers are the best! They’re surprisingly easy to make and taste better than your favorite restaurant!
Break out the chopsticks! It’s time to make scrumptious, savory homemade Potstickers — a no-fuss recipe filled with flavor! These soy and sesame-seasoned dumplings turn out crispy on the bottom and soft on top and are oh-so-satisfying! Gyoza wrappers are stuffed with ground pork, cabbage, and green onion and seasoned with garlic, ginger, sesame, and soy. These can be served as an amazing appetizer or entree with a nice, sweet dipping sauce. So much better than takeout!
Don’t Be Intimidated by the Pot Sticker Filling!
The filling for potstickers is surprisingly simple – think “meatloaf” but with an awesome Asian twist! The ground pork and finely chopped veggies are combined with spices and an egg (as a binder) to give you a paste-like filling that’s super easy to spoon into the gyoza wrappers. From there, it’s just a quick pan-fry and steam (in the same pan). They turn out so deliciously crispy and juicy that you’ll wonder why you haven’t been making these all along!
Other Recipes to Serve with Potstickers
- Crab Rangoon are fried wontons filled with crab and cream cheese – amazing!
- Wonton Soup – succulent pork and shrimp-stuffed wontons in a traditional Chinese broth. Comforting and yummy!
Ingredients
Wrappers: Gyoza potsticker wrappers work great to make the “skin” of these pot sticker dumplings!
Protein: Ground pork gives a traditional Asian potsticker flavor and texture + an egg yolk to bind the filling together. (You can substitute ground chicken for the ground pork if you prefer chicken potstickers.)
Veggies: To mix with the ground pork, you will need finely chopped Napa cabbage for texture and thinly chopped green onions for taste.
Seasoning: Pot stickers are loaded with Asian flavors, so you’ll need salt and pepper, grated ginger, minced garlic cloves, soy sauce, toasted sesame oil, and Asian chili sauce. Oh…this is such a fabulous combination of flavors!
How to Cook Pot Stickers
STEP ONE: Squeeze the moisture out of the cabbage by adding the diced cabbage to a fine mesh sieve and place the sieve over a bowl. Sprinkle the cabbage with 1/2 teaspoon of salt and let it sit for 30 minutes. When the time is up, press the cabbage down with a rubber spatula several times to squeeze the excess moisture. Set aside.
STEP TWO: Whisk an egg yolk in a large bowl. Add all the filling ingredients—meat, veggies (including the cabbage), and seasonings—and mix well until thoroughly combined. Feel free to use gloves if you don’t like the feel of raw meat on your hands.
STEP THREE: Get ready to assemble the potstickers by lining a baking tray with parchment paper, moistening a few paper towels or a kitchen towel, and filling a small bowl with water. Then remove one or two gyoza wrappers from the stack and cover the rest with the damp towel until ready to use them. Add one tablespoon of filling to the middle of the gyoza wrapper. Dip your finger in the water bowl and run it around the edge of the wrapper. Fold the wrapper in half to create a crescent shape, then pinch the edges together to seal firmly. Place the filled wrappers on the parchment and cover with a damp paper towel or cloth. Repeat this step until the wrapper or filling is used up (whichever comes first!)
STEP FOUR: Heat 1 tablespoon of oil over medium heat in a large skillet (with a lid). Add about a dozen potstickers to the pan, flat side down. Don’t crowd them—there should be space between each to cook them comfortably until the underside is lightly golden, about 2 minutes.
STEP FIVE: Using one hand to shield the lid, pour 1/3 cup of water around the potstickers, then quickly cover with the lid. Turn the heat down to low and cook until the water has completely evaporated. Yes, the dumplings will stick to the pan—that’s their name.
STEP SIX: When the water is gone, remove the lid, turn the heat up to medium, and cook another few minutes to crisp up the bottoms. Transfer the cooked potstickers to a paper towel-lined plate or tray. Repeat this step until all the potstickers are cooked and you are drooling with hunger! Serve warm with potsticker sauce for dipping.
Tips for Success
- Gyoza wrappers should be easy to find in the refrigerated section of most groceries or Asian markets.
- Dip your finger in water to wet the edges of the wrapper to help it stick when folded together.
- Don’t move the potstickers once you place them in the pan. This allows them to crisp up without breaking open.
- Give each dumpling space in the pan – don’t overcrowd them.
- Potstickers are equally good with a sweet sesame or tangy rice vinegar dipping sauce. This homemade potsticker sauce is tasty, or you can buy bottled gyoza sauce to keep things convenient.
What Are Pot Stickers?
Potstickers are pan-fried, steamed dumplings, usually filled with ground pork and cabbage and served with a dipping sauce. They can also be made with other meats or seafood. Potstickers get their name from the first step in the cooking process, which is to brown the bottoms in a pan until they literally stick to the pot and become golden brown and crispy.
What’s the Difference in Potstickers and Dumplings or Wontons?
Dumpling “skins” are made with flour and water dough rolled into balls. They are almost always steamed or boiled, giving them a soft, pasta-like texture.
Wontons are made with flour, water, and soda, rolled flat, and cut into squares. They are filled with a very small amount of meat and are either used in soup (where they are soft) or fried to a very crunchy finish and dipped in sweet and sour sauce.
Potstickers have a dumpling “skin” (just flour and water) and are stuffed with meat and vegetable filling. They are then fried on one side and steamed on the other, giving them a crispy and soft finish.
Other Terrific Asian “Take-Out” Recipes
- Vegetable Lo Mein
- Crispy Spring Rolls
- Shrimp Fried Rice
- Chicken Satay
- Sesame Chicken
- Ginger Shrimp Lettuce Wraps
*This post originally posted on 05/26/2018.
Ingredients
Filling
- 1 cup Napa cabbage finely chopped
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 large egg yolk
- 16 ounces ground pork
- ¼ cup green onions thinly chopped (about 1/2 bunch)
- 1 tablespoon ginger peeled and grated
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 ½ tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 ½ teaspoons toasted sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon Asian chili sauce
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Potstickers
- 40 round gyoza potsticker wrappers (see note)
- 1 cup water divided
- 3 tbsp Vegetable oil
Instructions
Filling
- Add diced cabbage to a fine mesh sieve and toss with ½ teaspoon salt. Place over a bowl and let sit for 20-30 minutes then press cabbage down with a rubber spatula quite a few times to squeeze out excess moisture. Set aside.
- Add egg yolk to a large bowl and whisk. Add all remaining filling ingredients (including the cabbage) and mix with your hands until thoroughly combined.
Assemble
- Line a baking tray with parchment paper and prepare some damp paper towels or a damp cloth. Keep all the wrappers covered with plastic wrap when you are not using them. Fill a small bowl with water.
- Working with 2-4 wrappers at a time (depending on how fast you are), add 1 tablespoon to the middle of each wrapper. Dip your finger in water and run it around the edge of half of the wrapper. Fold the wrapper over in half to create a half-moon shape and pinch the edges firmly together to seal. Place filled wrappers on the prepared baking tray and cover with damp paper towels/cloth. Repeat with the remaining wrappers.
Cook
- Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large skillet (that has a lid) over medium-high heat. Add about 12 gyoza to the skillet flat side down – enough that will comfortably fit without overcrowding. Cook without touching the potstickers until the underside is lightly golden, approximately 2 minutes.
- Stand back and use one hand to hold the lid as a shield as you pour 1/3 cup of water around the potstickers, then quickly place the lid on. Turn the heat to LOW and cook until water has completely evaporated. Remove the lid, increase heat to medium, and cook for 1-2 more minutes to crisp up the bottoms.
- Transfer potstickers to a paper towel-lined plate or baking tray. Repeat until all potstickers are cooked. Served warm with the dipping sauce of your choice.
Notes
- Gyoza wrappers are round wrappers located in the refrigerated section. If your grocery store doesn’t have them, then you should be able to find them at your local Asian Market. Locally, we have Twin Dragon brand potstickers/gyoza wrappers. In a pinch, you can use wonton wrappers. Just be careful, as wonton wrappers are a little thinner, and you may need to cut them into circles since most come in a square shape.
Kelli Parsons says
We love these. I’ve made these several times because my husband asks for them every time I ask “ what sounds good for dinner?” Tonight , I didn’t have cabbage and made them anyway. We actually liked them even more that way.
Jane says
Can these be frozen uncooked? Or should i cook. Thanks
Aubrey Cota says
You can freeze them uncooked but I would do a flash freeze first. Place them on some parchment paper on a cookie sheet and put in the freezer for a couple hours. They will be easier to store than if you were to just throw them all in one container where they may stick together.