Gyoza Japanese Pan-Fried Dumpling Technique

Ingredients

• For the filling
• 300 g ground pork, not too lean; 15–20% fat preferred
• 200 g cabbage, finely shredded, salted and squeezed dry
• 50 g garlic chives (nira), finely chopped
• 2–3 garlic cloves, very finely minced
• 1 tbsp sesame paste (nerigoma)
• For the wrappers
• 24 gyoza wrappers, thin; round
• For the hane starch water
• 1 tbsp cornstarch or potato starch
• 150 ml water, mixed with starch immediately before use
• For cooking
• 1 tbsp neutral cooking oil, per batch of 12 dumplings
• 50 ml water, for the steam phase
• For the dipping sauce
• 2 tbsp rice vinegar
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp rayu chilli oil, to taste

Method

1. 1
   Salt the shredded cabbage and leave for 30 minutes. Gather it in a clean cloth and wring firmly until no further liquid can be extracted. Combine the squeezed cabbage with the ground pork, garlic chives, minced garlic, and sesame paste. Mix thoroughly until the mass is cohesive. The filling is ready when it holds its shape on a spoon without weeping liquid.
2. 2
   Hold a wrapper in the cup of the non-dominant hand. Place a scant tablespoon of filling at the centre, leaving a clear border. Moisten the edge with water. Fold the wrapper over the filling to form a crescent, then — working from one end to the other — press 6 to 8 pleats along the front edge only, pinching each pleat firmly against the flat unpleated back. The sealed edge must yield no gap when pressed; any open seam will fail during cooking.
3. 3
   Phase 1 — the sear. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a wide flat-based frying pan over medium-high heat. Arrange 12 gyoza flat-base-down, all touching one another. Cook undisturbed for 2 to 3 minutes. The bases are ready when they release cleanly from the pan and show a uniform golden-brown crust.
4. 4
   Phase 2 — the steam. Pour 50 ml of water into the pan and cover immediately with a tight lid. Steam for 3 to 4 minutes. The wrappers are done when they have turned fully translucent and the tops are tender to the touch of a fingertip.
5. 5
   Phase 3 — the hane. This is where the dish lives or dies: remove the lid and, while the pan is still hot, pour the starch-water mixture (1 tbsp starch dissolved in 150 ml cold water, stirred immediately before use) around and between the gyoza. Do not add the starch water before the steam phase is complete — premature addition produces a pasty coating rather than crispy lace. Cook over medium-high heat, uncovered, until all liquid has evaporated and the starch has set into a golden, continuous web connecting all dumpling bases. The hane is ready when it sounds dry and crisp as the pan is shaken.
6. 6
   Invert a plate over the pan and turn the pan and plate together in one motion, so the hane sheet faces upward with the gyoza suspended within it. Combine the rice vinegar, soy sauce, and rayu in a small dish. Serve immediately alongside.