Gyoza Madness! - Making Gyoza Dumplings from Scratch

Back when we were kids, there was a time when Japanese animation broke through the Philippine airwaves. For me personally, it started with Sailormoon and for the boys, I think it was Slam Dunk or Ghost Fighter... Well anyway, that was the start.

Then bit by bit, Philippine channels were swamped with anime, lots and lots of it. And with the animania going on, so did the fanaticism to anything Japanese. Japanese restaurants have been thriving all the while but gained more attention from kids wanting to try that "sushi" thing they see on one or more shows they are absolutely crazy about at the time.

And I was no exception. I became so obsessed with Japanese food that I drove my mom and dad near crazy to have our Sunday dinner in a Japanese restaurant. Those were my first experiences in eating Japanese food. Now, as most people know, Japanese food is known for some of their raw dishes and of course having to eat them with wasabi on the side. (Though I read somewhere that true blue connoisseurs say that eating sushi should only be with a soy sauce dip minus wasabi. This is because chefs usually include a considerable amount of wasabi in sushi between the rice and the fish slice)

By the way, the folding technique applied for this particular batch is called the pea-pod. Most of the usual gyoza you see in the market/restaurant is made with the pleated crescent technique. (Click here for the pleated crescent technique tutorial)

The obsession nearly doubled while I was in the first trimester of my pregnancy. I was almost crying every lunchtime simply because I was hungry and I wanted to eat but I felt like throwing up the moment food landed on my tongue. The only exception was California maki or any Japanese dish with sushi rice. I pored over pages on the internet about sushi and sushi rice, how to make them, and just simply obsessing.

Then one day in October 2010, I stumbled upon a gyoza recipe on the internet. Now, aside from sushi, sashimi, and maki, another big-time favorite I had was gyoza. Basically, gyoza is a Japanese dumpling with a subtle gingery taste. Of course, as I always do with recipes, I take them apart and substitute ingredients to similar ones that can be readily found in our kitchen. So let me share my own version of this Japanese favorite and supply some sources you can use to make that dumpling look like an authentic and professionally made gyoza as if ordered from a Japanese restaurant.


Ingredients:

6 big leaves of napa cabbage (aka pechay Baguio in the Philippines)
2 tsp of finely chopped/grated ginger
4-5 cloves of finely minced garlic
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 tsp rock salt (for iodized salt, use 1/2 tsp)
250 g ground pork or beef
1/2 cup bread crumbs
2 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp light soy sauce (if using regular soy sauce, use 1 1/2 tsp)
1/2 tsp sugar

250 g of packed dumpling wrapper (the round ones) from the supermarket.
and an additional 1 tbsp of sesame oil for pan-frying.

Dipping sauce
2:1 mixture of soy sauce and vinegar (or according to taste. Dipping sauce should taste like a balance of sour and salty)
4 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp vinegar (cane, red wine, rice wine vinegar will do beautifully. As much as possible, do not use white vinegar)

Procedure:

1. Cut off the white stalk of the napa cabbage and just use the green frilly part. Chop finely and rub with salt. Let stand for 10 minutes, then squeeze off excess moisture with a cheesecloth.
2. Combine ingredients in a bowl, using your hands to thoroughly mix the flavors together.
3. Wrap approximately 2/3-1 tbsp of filling using the pleated crescent dumpling method. For an instructional video click here.
4. Heat a skillet (preferably nonstick especially if you're a bit new to cooking) and add 1 tbsp of sesame oil. Reduce to medium heat.
5. Position as many dumplings (with the pleats up, without any parts touching) as you can in the skillet. Pan-fry the dumplings until the bottom part is seared beautifully to a golden brown.
6. Add 1/2 cup of water, cover the skillet and reduce heat to almost a bare simmer.
7. Cook for 10-15 minutes or until the wrappers have turned translucent.
8. Remove from heat and serve immediately. 

*in case they stick to the bottom of the pan, add a little water as you turn off the heat, cover for 1-2 minutes.

This is more of a Filipino version of gyoza as the ingredients I stated here are readily available anywhere in the Philippines.

Itadakimasu!