If you love Chinese food and you love yummy appetizers, then this is the recipe for you!
We have loved authentic Chinese food for so many years. It became a staple in our lives when we lived on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, New York. If you like these, you’ll probably love our Pork Dumplings with Peanut Sauce, Beef and Broccoli Stir-Fry, Homemade Hot and Sour Soup, and our Homemade Egg Rolls! But in the meantime, let’s make some Chinese Potstickers!
How To Make Authentic Potstickers
These little gems may seem difficult to make in your own kitchen, but we promise, they’re really not hard to prepare.
You may need to make a run to your local Asian market or order an ingredient or two online.
Prepping the Ingredients
Before you start assembling the filling, you’ll need to do a little bit of prep work for the dried mushrooms and fresh cabbage.
Let’s focus on the mushrooms first:
EXPERT TIP: You’ll want to first start by rehydrating your dried wild mushrooms. We love using dried shiitake. It’s very important that you do not cook with the dried mushrooms; you MUST first soak them in warm water to reconstitute them. After 30 minutes, drain them and then give them a rough chop.
Now, it’s time to prep the cabbage. We love using Napa cabbage, but really any type of cabbage will work.
Simply salt the cabbage, which will bring out the excess liquid and make it nice and soft.
Use your hands to wring out the water.
Making the Pork Filling
Now, it’s time to bring it all together.
Mix together the uncooked pork with the drained and chopped mushrooms, the softened cabbage, and other delicious ingredients.
EXPERT TIP: The filling can be prepared up to 2 days in advance and kept in an air-tight container in the fridge. You can also freeze the filling for up to 1 month. See the NOTES for instructions on freezing cooked potstickers.
How To Form Potstickers
Now comes the fun part! Forming the dumplings! By the way, you may be asking, what’s the difference between potstickers and dumplings? Learn about the subtle difference here.
Simply place a wonton wrapper on a cutting board and add 1 teaspoon of the filling in the middle, and then fold the wonton over and seal.
EXPERT TIP: We like to use our index fingers to make little pouches on the edges for that authentic look. Make sure you keep your fingers moist, which helps the edges of the wontons adhere to each other. For the wrapper, you can use wonton wrappers or dumpling wrappers. Wonton wrappers can usually be found in the vegan area of the produce department in most well-stocked supermarkets.
Now it’s time to cook them up!
Potstickers are traditionally lightly fried on one side of the dumpling, and then flipped over and steamed for the remainder of the cooking process.
EXPERT TIP: You’ll need to cook them in batches. Simply place the cooked dumplings on a sheet pan and place it in a low-temp oven (250°F) until the next batch is done. Keep an eye on the temperature of the skillet! Don’t let them burn as they are seared and then steaming! And YES! The pork cooks perfectly during the process.
When To Serve Potstickers
These are such a delicious, savory treat to serve for almost any occasion.
We love serving them at parties, but they make a spectacular appetizer for a glorious Asian-themed dinner party.
They’re also so much fun to make for a late-night snack! Serve them whenever you’re in the mood for an incredibly delicious appetizer!
And of course, when you’re serving the potstickers, we highly recommend making a batch of Ginger-Soy Dipping Sauce.
Chopsticks or not, these babies are addictively delicious!
Just look at that!
And the filling is the perfect match to the chewy and delicious wrapper.
Once you take a bite, dip the potsticker back into the dipping sauce, so that the filling soaks up all the goodness. (Serve a separate small bowl of sauce for each person you are serving so no one has to worry about double-dipping!)
These are so good! You and your guests will flip for them, we promise!
Ready to make the best Chinese appetizer in town? Go for it!
And when you do, be sure to take a photo, post it on Instagram, and tag @HowToFeedaLoon and hashtag #HowToFeedaLoon!
Potstickers
Video
Equipment
- Skillet (preferably) non-stick with a lid
Ingredients
- ½ cup shiitake mushrooms dried
- 1½ cups napa cabbage roughly chopped
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- ¼ lb pork ground
- ¼ cup chives Chinese chives, if possible
- 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1½ teaspoon Chinese rice wine
- 1 teaspoon ginger minced
- 1 teaspoon garlic minced
- 1½ tablespoon cornstarch
- 20 wonton wrappers or dumpling wrappers
- 2 tablespoon canola oil divided
- ½ cup chicken stock divided
- Ginger-Soy Dipping Sauce for dipping!
Instructions
- Soak the dried mushrooms in warm water for 30 minutes. Stir occasionally. Drain, and then roughly chop. Set aside.½ cup shiitake mushrooms
- Meanwhile, in a large bowl, toss together the cabbage and 1 teaspoon of salt, and let it stand for 30 minutes to leach out water from the cabbage. Use your hands to wring out as much of the water from the cabbage as possible. Roughly chop the cabbage again. Place in a small bowl and set aside.1½ cups napa cabbage, Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Add the mushrooms, cabbage, pork, chives, soy sauce, sesame oil, rice wine, ginger, garlic, cornstarch, and ¼ teaspoon black pepper, and using a wooden spoon, mix to combine the ingredients well.¼ lb pork, ¼ cup chives, 1 tablespoon light soy sauce, 1 tablespoon sesame oil, 1½ teaspoon Chinese rice wine, 1 teaspoon ginger, 1 teaspoon garlic, 1½ tablespoon cornstarch
- To fill each potsticker, place a wrapper on a work surface and brush the edges with water. Cover the other wrappers with a slightly damp kitchen towel to prevent them from drying out. Place 1 teaspoon filling in the center of the wrapper, fold the wrapper in half to enclose the filling, and pleat the outer edge with your thumb and index finger (see photo).20 wonton wrappers
- Place the formed potsticker on a baking sheet and repeat with the remaining filling and wrappers.
- Preheat to 250°F.
- In a large nonstick frying pan over medium-high heat, heat 1 tablespoon of the canola oil. Add 10 potstickers, flat bottom down, and in a single layer. Sear until golden brown on the bottom, 3 - 4 minutes.2 tablespoon canola oil
- Pour ¼ cup of the stock into the pan, cover, and let steam until all the broth evaporates, the pot stickers are tender, but still firm, and the filling is cooked through, 4 - 5 minutes.½ cup chicken stock
- Transfer to a baking pan and place in the oven. Follow the same steps for cooking the remaining potstickers.
- Serve pot stickers once with the ginger-soy dipping sauce.Ginger-Soy Dipping Sauce
Notes
Nutrition
POST UPDATE: This recipe was originally published in October 2016 but was updated with improved tweaks to the recipe, with new tips and photography, and a fabulous new video in November 2020.
This recipe is inspired and adapted from: Williams Sonoma Pot Stickers.
Susan says
I have a quick question. The video says 1/4 cup Chinese chives but the printed recipe says 1/2 cup. I’m making these right now so I’m going to go with 1/4 cup. Is that right?
Kris Longwell says
Hi Susan, Yes, 1/4 cup is good! Sorry for the confusion…
Kris Longwell says
Just fixed the recipe to say 1/4 cup – thanks for catching! Let us know what you think!!
Cindy says
I almost feel brave enough to try this recipe! Actually, I would have more confidence if I was in your kitchen with you two. You are so funny, and the information you share is so helpful. Have a great week.
Kris Longwell says
You can do it, Cindy!!! We’re with you in spirit!! Thank you so much and let us know if you make the potstickers and what you think, or let us know if you have any questions!!! All the best, Kris & Wesley
Mandy says
It is a very detailed recipe. As a Chinese, I recommend this to everyone. PS: the photo is really nice here!
krislongwell says
Thank you, Mandy!!! That really means a lot to us!! They are so delicious!! Stay in touch!! Kris & Wesley