Jiaozi Chinese Dumplings Recipes

JIAOZI (CHINESE PORK AND SHRIMP DUMPLINGS)

Steps:

• Mix 1/2 cup cold water and cornstarch in a bowl until combined. Combine the filling: pork, shrimp, cabbage, chives, onions, ginger, garlic, cornstarch paste, wine, soy sauce, sesame oil, salt, and pepper in a large bowl and mix well.
• Mix flour and remaining water and knead the dough into a smooth ball. Use extra water/flour to get a slightly smooth and sticky ball. Let sit for 30 minutes. Divide the dough into little balls that roll out into 4-inch diameter circles. You will have about 30 dough circles.
• Place 2 teaspoons of the filling onto the middle of each of the dough circles.
• Wrap by folding the dough circles with filling in the middle in half and pinching the edges to seal.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Gently add about 10 dumplings into the boiling water. Bring the water back to a boil and add 1/2 cup more cold water. Repeat this twice before taking the dumplings out to serve; the pork filling should no longer be pink and shrimp should be firm. Repeat the boiling and adding of cold water with each batch of dumplings. Adding the cold water between boils reduces the starch buildup in the water.

HOW TO MAKE CHINESE DUMPLINGS (JIAOZI)

Steps:

• Mix a small pinch of salt with flour, dig a hole in center and then stir the water in. Mix the flour with water with chop-stickers during the process so you can adjust the water amount if necessary. Then knead the dough for 8-10 minutes with a stand mixer or by hand until the dough is almost smooth. Cover and rest for 15 minutes. Then re-knead the dough for 2-3 minutes so we can get a very smooth dough. Cover and continue resting for 1 hour.
• When the dough becomes soft and smooth, cut into halves and knead each half into a round ball. Take one half and dig a small hole in center. Then shape it to a large circle round. Cut so we will end up a long log. Shape the log around 3cm in diameter. Divide the long log into small dumpling dough pieces (each around 10g). Dust each of them so they will not stick together. Press one down and then roll it into a wrapper around 10cm in diameter. You can refer to the video for the technique.
• Get your assistants here and begin to wrap the dumpling at the fastest speed, because the wrappers will get dried out soon and become harder to seal together.
• In a mixing bowl, add ground pork, a small pinch of salt, egg, light soy sauce, white pepper, oyster sauce grated ginger and salt. Then place the green onion on top and drizzle hot oil on green onions. This helps to improve the aroma of the green onion.
• Stir the filling in one direction for 2-3 minutes until getting a paste texture and the filling becomes quite sticky. Set aside for 1 hour or cover with plastic wrapper and overnight.
• Finely chop chives and mix with 2 tablespoons of sesame oil or other vegetable oil. Mix chive with pork before wrapping.
• Brush 1 tablespoon of oil in a pan (nonstick pan recommended for beginners), place the dumplings in. Pleats side up.
• Heat over medium fire until one side becomes browned. Swirl around 1/2 cup of water and then cover the lid immediately. Continue heating until all of the water is evaporated.
• Slow down your heat and heat until the bottom becomes crispy and golden brown.
• Heat a large pot of water to a boiling, add a small pinch of salt. Then cook the dumplings in batches. Slightly move the dumplings with a large ladle or scoop so they will not sticky to the bottom. Then the water begins to boil again, add around 1/4 cup of cold water. Repeat once. When the dumplings become transparent and expand because of the air inside. Transfer out.

HUI-STYLE LAMB JIAOZI (CHINESE DUMPLINGS)

Steps:

• Grind the meat and the fat. In a large bowl, combine them with the other ingredients and mix.
• Make the dumplings: take a small chunk of the meat mixture and put it in a dumpling wrapper. Pinch the dumpling together on the sides, and use a little water to make it stick.
• Boil a big pot of water and throw the dumplings into it. Boil them in small batches until they float. Scoop out with a slotted spoon or strainer.
• Serve in a bowl with a little of the cooking water over them covered with chopped chilis and cilantro, or on a plate. Serve with soy sauce, vinegar, raw garlic, chopped ginger, chili sauce.

JIAOZI DUMPLINGS

Steps:

• To make the filling, toss the cabbage and salt together in a large bowl and let sit for 15 minutes. Drain the cabbage in a colander over a sink and use your hands to squeeze out excess moisture.
• In a large mixing bowl, combine the cabbage, pork, soy sauce, rice wine, sesame oil, ginger, green onions, and pepper. Stir in one direction with a chopstick until just mixed.
• To form the dumplings, rest a wrapper in the palm of your hand and place a heaping teaspoon of filling in the center. Dip your finger in a bowl of water and run it around the edge to help make a good seal. Lightly fold the wrapper over on itself but don't touch the edges together. Starting at one end, use your fingers to make a small pleat on the side of the wrapper closed to you, then press the pleat into the other side and pinch together firmly. Keep making pleats down the dumpling opening in this way until completely sealed. Repeat this process with the remaining filling and wrappers.
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Drop half of the dumplings into the water and stir once so they don't stick together. When the water boils again, add 1 cup of cold water to the pot. Then when it boils again, add 3 cups of cold water. The third time the water boils, the dumplings are cooked. Remove them with a slotted spoon and repeat with the remaining dumplings. Serve immediately with small bowls of Chinese black rice vinegar for dipping.

BEIJING-STYLE PORK & SHRIMP JIAOZI (CHINESE DUMPLINGS)

Steps:

• Clean the cabbage, chop it, and put it in a large non-reactive pot with salt Set it aside and let it sweat out water for 45 min or so (you can prepare this ahead).
• If you're using a meat grinder, feed the shrimp, pork, garlic, onions, and ginger through the meat grinder, getting everything to be a smooth, yet chunky mixture. If you're using a food processor, you're going to half way freeze the meat, and chop each ingredient on it's own, and then mix them in a pasta bowl. Traditionally, all these ingredients are minced and chopped using a large cutting board and a cleaver. However you do it, it's up to you.
• Put the meat and veggie mixture into a a large bowl. Add the salt, soy sauce, egg and sugar to the mixture.
• In a heavy skillet, heat up the oil. Add the spice powders and toast the spices. Pour this mixture hot over the meat mixture in the bowl, and stir inches.
• Drain the cabbage, rinse it and drain again. Mix it in to the meat mixture.
• (Optional step) Make the dumpling wrappers: mix together 1 1/2 cup flour and pinch of salt and then slowly add just enough water to result in a springy dough. Knead it a lot to make the gluten stringy and strong. Roll the dough out into a long rope, cut the rope apart into ping pong ball sized pieces. Flatten the pieces out into small flat discs, and flour a table or cutting board, and roll them out using a beer bottle or small rolling pin. As you make them, hand them to the person wrapping the dumplings. Or just buy the pre-made wrappers.
• Wrap the dumplings in the dumpling skins, pinching together the sides and tucking in the ends.
• Cook the dumplings: boil a pot of water. Drop the dumplings in, they are ready when the float to the top of the pot. Don't boil too many at once, or they'll stick together. Scoop them out with a strainer, so you can use the water for the next batch.
• Serve with soy sauce, dipping sauce, raw garlic (for true Northern Chinese style eating!), chili sauce, or cut up green onions.