Pork & Ginger Pot Stickers

Last week, while shopping at our local coop, I got inspired to make pot stickers. But, I planned on taking a  shortcut and use premade wrappers. I know, how could I?  Ha, anyways, they didn't have any and since I had already picked out the ingredients to go into this yummy Chinese staple, I decided I would make the wrappers from scratch. When I got home, I checked out an old recipe book I had from Ming Tsai. I remember watching him on the food network back when I was just getting out of culinary school, I found him very inspiring. Just as I thought, I found a simple recipe. Making and kneading the dough takes very little time, and the wrapping goes pretty quickly once you get the hang of it. As you can see by the photo, I didn't exactly shape these "properly", but when you have a young child tugging on your shirt to be held, swung, and biked around the house, I'll take what I can get.

The filling is easily adjustable, so vegans and vegetarians take note! Roast 1-2 sweet potatoes until soft, then scoop out the flesh and replace with the ground pork. I've used sprouted spelt flour here for the dough, which to me digests well and doesn't feel "heavy" when eating them. You'll get about 16-20 dumplings from this recipe.

Pork & Ginger Pot Stickers

Ingredients:

• 8 ounces ground Pork  *Replace with roasted sweet potato for vegetarian option
• 1 cup chopped Napa Cabbage
• 1 Tbsp freshly grated Ginger
• 2 garlic Cloves, minced
• 3 green Onions, sliced thin
• 1/4 tsp ground Red Chili
• A few splashes Ume Plum Vinegar
• A few splashes Nama Shoyu

For the Dough:

• 2 cups Sprouted Spelt Flour
• 1/2 tsp Sea Salt
• 3/4-1 cup Boiled Water (As Needed)

Orange-Miso Dipping Sauce:

• Juice of 1 Orange
• 2 Tbsp South River Miso
• 2-3 Tbsp Nama Shoyu

Use a fork or whisk to combine these ingredients, then set aside.

Preparation:

1. First, prep the dough. Combine the flour w/ the sea salt then slowly add the water while mixing.
2. Add just enough water to form a ball then bring to a work surface.
3. Sprinkle some additional flour on your work surface and knead the dough until smooth and elastic. This takes about 5 minutes.  Cover w/ a damp cloth and allow to rest for an hour.
4. While the dough is resting, prepare the filling. Using your hands or a wooden spoon, stir together everything until evenly mixed throughout. Cook a tester to make sure the filling is to your liking.

Rolling and Filling:

1. Once rested, work with a lightly floured surface, cut the dough in half, then roll into a long 1 inch thick tube. Cut about 1/2 inch pieces and flatten using a rolling pin. You want the wrappers to be about 1/16 inch thick and 3 inches in diameter. *If you don't have proper utensils to cut the rounds, use a lid from a wide mouth Mason jar to cut your circles.
2. Place about 2-3 tsp of the pork mixture and place them into the middle of the wrapper. Be mindful not to get any on the edges, because that can keep them from sticking together.
3. Bring both sides together to form a half moon shape. Crimp the edges to seal then set aside on a lightly floured sheet pan. For tips, check out this video.

Cooking Method:

The pot stickers can be baked, steamed, or pan fried. The Choice is Yours!

1. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add a few Tablespoons of coconut or peanut oil. Add enough pot stickers to fill the pan but don't over crowd them.
2. Brown on one side, then flip to brown the other. At this point, you can place directly in the oven. bake for 5-8 minutes. This will yield a crisp out shell.
3. For a more doughy texture, after browning, pour in 8 ounces of stock or water, cover and allow to steam for 2-3 minutes. The reduced liquid forms a nice glaze. YUM!
4. Serve with the dipping sauce and enjoy!