Gyoza

Japan, adapted from Chinese jiaozi via Manchuria. The Chinese jiaozi was introduced to Japan by returning soldiers after World War II and adapted into the Japanese form — thinner wrappers, more garlic, sesame oil in the filling, and the distinctive pan-fry/steam hybrid technique that became the Japanese standard.

Japanese gyoza: thin-skinned, pleat-folded dumplings filled with pork, nappa cabbage, garlic chive, and sesame oil. Pan-fried in a technique unique to Japanese cooking — yaki-mushi (steam-fry) — where the gyoza is first seared on the flat base until crisp, then steam-finished with water added to the pan and a lid placed on, then finished with the lid off to evaporate the water and re-crisp the base. The result is a gyoza with a glass-crisp bottom and tender, steamed top.

• Chinese jiaozi (the direct ancestor — thicker wrapper, less garlic, boiled or pan-fried); Korean mandu (dumpling — similar to both jiaozi and gyoza, with a slightly different filling profile including tofu); Nepalese momo (pan-fried dumplings with a similar steam-finish technique).

Cold Kirin Ichiban lager — the clean, slightly bitter Japanese lager cuts through the pork fat and sesame of the gyoza. Or a chilled choko of Ozeki One Cup junmai sake, the informal companion of gyoza at an izakaya.