https://therecipehaven.com/fried-pork-gyoza/Crispy Fried Pork Gyoza Recipe – A Japanese Delight
let me tell you something, the first like maybe ten times i made these? disaster. complete disaster.
one time the filling was so wet the wrappers wouldn’t seal. i kept pressing and pressing and they just kept opening up. i got angry. i started pressing harder. the wrappers tore. i had raw pork all over my fingers and broken dough everywhere. and i had like five people waiting to eat. i wanted to just order pizza honestly.
but anyway.
The Cabbage, That’s Where Most People Mess Up.
you chop the cabbage. real fine. like you want it almost the size of rice grains. then you gotta squeeze it. and i don’t mean like a little squeeze. i mean you put it in a kitchen towel and you twist and you squeeze until water comes out. keep squeezing until almost nothing comes out. the cabbage should look kind of… sad? like it gave up? that’s good.
i learned this because i didn’t do it once. just once. and the filling was so wet that when i cooked the gyoza, they all burst open in the pan. the juice leaked out and burned. the filling inside was dry anyway because all the moisture escaped. so i had burnt oil and dry meat and empty wrappers. my wife looked at me and said “what happened?” i didn’t answer.
So Squeeze The Cabbage.
ok then the pork. half pound. 225 grams. don’t buy the lean one. please. i beg you. lean pork makes dry gyoza. i used lean pork once for a small gathering because that’s all the store had. the gyoza came out so dry people kept asking for more sauce. not because the sauce was good. because they needed something to wet the dumpling. embarrassing.
get the pork with fat. if you don’t see fat in the meat, don’t buy it.
then the other stuff.
two green onions, chop both parts, the white and the green, some people only use the green because it looks pretty, that’s stupid, the white part has flavor, use it.
two garlic cloves. but here’s the thing. don’t chop them. grate them. use the small side of the grater. the one that looks like little spikes. because if you chop garlic, you get chunks. and biting into a chunk of raw garlic in a dumpling is not fun. trust me. i’ve had customers complain. “the garlic is too strong” they said. so now i grate it.
one teaspoon of grated ginger. fresh ginger. not the paste in a tube. that paste has no power. i tried it once when i was rushing. the gyoza tasted flat. my regular customer said “did you change something?” i lied and said no. but i knew.
one tablespoon of soy sauce. kikkoman. the red cap. not the sweet one. sweet soy sauce will ruin this.
one teaspoon of sesame oil. the toasted kind. the dark one. don’t use the light sesame oil because it has no flavor. it’s just oil.
half teaspoon salt. quarter teaspoon black pepper.
then you mix. use your hand. not a spoon. spoons don’t tell you anything. squeeze the mixture between your fingers until it feels sticky. you’ll feel it change. at first it’s loose and crumbly. after maybe 15 or 20 squeezes, it starts holding together. that’s good.
then put it in the fridge. leave it uncovered. 15 minutes. cold filling is easier to wrap. room temperature filling is soft and sticks to your fingers and makes a mess. i learned that because my first few batches i didn’t chill it and my fingers looked like i had been playing with wet sand.
While That’s In The Fridge, Set Up Your Station.
wrappers. store bought. i know some people say make your own. but honestly? i’ve made my own. it takes forever. like an hour to make 40 wrappers. and the difference is not that big. unless you’re trying to impress someone who really knows dumplings, just buy the round gyoza wrappers. they’re fine.
keep them covered with a damp paper towel. they dry out fast. i left a stack uncovered once because i got distracted by my phone. came back maybe 15 minutes later. the edges were hard and cracked. i had to throw away like eight wrappers. i was so annoyed at myself.
small bowl of water. for sealing.
a tray with a little flour dusted on it. to hold the finished gyoza.
ok.
Now Wrapping.
this part frustrated me for weeks.
put a wrapper on your left palm if you’re right-handed. scoop about one teaspoon of filling. not more. i know you want to put more because you think bigger is better. but it’s not. too much filling and the wrapper won’t close. or it will burst during cooking. i’ve had both happen. one time i put too much filling and when i tried to seal it, the filling pushed out the side and got all over my hand. i had to start over. waste of time.
so one teaspoon. be strict.
dip your right index finger in water. run it along the top half edge of the wrapper. not the whole edge. just the top half.
fold the wrapper in half. pinch the center closed first. then make three or four small pleats on the side facing you. each pleat you press firmly against the back edge. leave the other side smooth.
why? because the smooth side goes down in the pan. that flat surface gets crispy. if you pleat both sides, the dumpling won’t sit flat. it will wobble. the bottom will burn on one side and stay soft on the other. i figured this out because one day i looked at a gyoza from a restaurant and noticed one side was smooth. i felt so stupid for not realizing earlier.
place each finished gyoza on the tray with the pleats facing up. cover with a damp paper towel.
i make all of them first before i start cooking. some people cook as they wrap but that stresses me out. i like everything ready.
The Cooking
this is where the crisp happens. or doesn’t happen. most people mess this up.
use a non-stick pan. if you use stainless steel, the gyoza will stick. i tried it once because i thought i could manage. i spent like 20 minutes scraping burnt dough off my pan. my arm hurt. i was cursing. never again.
heat one tablespoon of vegetable oil on medium-high. how do you know it’s hot enough? flick a drop of water into the oil. if it sizzles and disappears right away, you’re ready. if it just sits there, wait another minute.
place your gyoza flat-side down. don’t let them touch each other. they need space. i fit about 10 or 11 in a 12-inch pan. sometimes 12 if i squeeze them but they might stick together.
fry for two to three minutes. lift one with a spatula and check the bottom. you want deep golden brown. not pale. not black. pale means no crunch. black means burnt. i’ve served both. the pale ones were sad and soft. the black ones i had to throw away and start over. that was a bad day.
ok now this is the part that confuses everyone.
pour a quarter cup of hot water into the pan. not cold water. hot water from the kettle. cold water will cool the pan down and the steaming won’t work right. pour the water into the empty spaces, not directly on the dumplings. if you pour directly on them, the water washes off the oil and the bottom gets soggy.
cover immediately with a lid. turn the heat down to medium-low.
now listen. i’m serious. listen to the pan.
first you’ll hear loud sizzling. that’s the water boiling. after about four or five minutes, the sound changes. it becomes softer. a kind of sputtering sound. that means the water is almost gone.
take the lid off.
turn the heat back to medium-high.
now wait one to two minutes. you’ll hear it get loud again. that’s the remaining water evaporating and the oil crisping the bottom again.
this second crisp is the secret. most recipes stop after steaming. that’s why most homemade gyoza have soft bottoms. restaurants do this second crisp. no lid. high heat. one to two minutes.
shake the pan gently. if the gyoza slide around, they’re ready. if they stick, give them 30 more seconds.
now getting them out without breaking the crust.
put a plate upside down over the pan. hold the plate with one hand. hold the pan handle with the other hand. flip quickly. the gyoza will fall out crispy-side up.
don’t use tongs. don’t use a spatula. those will crack the crust. i’ve ruined whole batches trying to be careful with tongs. just flip the pan onto the plate. it feels scary the first time but it works.
The Dipping Sauce.
basic one. two tablespoons soy sauce. one tablespoon rice vinegar. half teaspoon sesame oil. half teaspoon chili flakes if you want heat. mix. done.
but sometimes i make a spicy garlic one. two tablespoons soy sauce. one tablespoon rice vinegar. one teaspoon sesame oil. half teaspoon chili oil. one clove garlic minced real fine. half teaspoon honey. one tablespoon chopped green onions. let it sit for five minutes before serving so the garlic mellows out. raw garlic can be too sharp right away.
things that went wrong for me so you don’t have to go through the same.
one time i used napa cabbage instead of regular cabbage. napa has more water. i didn’t squeeze enough. every single dumpling burst during steaming. i served my family empty wrappers and loose meat. my wife laughed at me. she said “what are these?” i didn’t have an answer.
another time i tried to cook 30 gyoza in one small pan. overcrowded. they stuck to each other. when i tried to separate them, the wrappers tore. i ended up with a connected blob of dumplings that looked like some kind of science experiment. now i cook in batches.
one time i forgot to cover the wrappers while wrapping. the last six wrappers were hard and brittle. i tried to wet them more but they still cracked when i folded. i threw them away. had leftover filling. wasted money.
Storing.
uncooked gyoza freeze great. lay them on a tray without touching. freeze for two hours. then put them in a ziplock bag. cook from frozen. add one more minute to the first fry and two more minutes to the steam. no need to thaw.
cooked gyoza don’t keep well. the crisp dies within like an hour. if you have to store them, fridge for one day max. reheat in a dry pan on medium heat for three minutes. never microwave. microwaved gyoza becomes chewy and sad. the texture is wrong.
What I Charge
three pieces as a starter. ₦1800 per person. eight pieces as a main meal with rice. ₦3500 per person.
minimum 20 people for events. i don’t deliver gyoza. by the time it arrives, the crisp is gone. i tell my clients pick up or eat at the event. some caterers will deliver anyway. i’m not one of them. i’d rather lose the sale than serve bad food.
last thing. and this sounds weird but trust me.
add a teaspoon of water to your filling. just plain water. i know it sounds crazy. water in meat? i thought the same thing. but it works. the water binds with the proteins during cooking and keeps the filling juicy. i don’t know why. i don’t know the science. i just know i tried it once and never went back.
alright biko. that’s it. that’s how i actually make gyoza when nobody’s watching and i’m not trying to sound professional.
