Put that in your Pot and Stick it....

Happy Chinese New Year! What? Oh… it’s not yet? Oh… well… Ok. Well... we are going to celebrate anyway on Saturday. What are we bringing? Pot Stickers of course… Maybe some fortune cookies too, that’s for another day. Andy wanted to do Pot Stickers and I wanted to practice. So… we did. We saw this neat dumpling tool on Iron Chef and when I saw it in a store, snatched it up. Andy used the best tool he owns to mix up the filling, his hands. He did all the cooking and dumpling making.. they tasted great. I had no idea you fried one side and steamed the other, but it worked. The dipping sauce was good for dipping… not for dousing the poor little things. :)

Pork Pot Stickers
What you need!
3/4 pound ground pork or other meat
1 cup minced cabbage
2 tablespoons minced ginger
1 tablespoon minced garlic
6 scallions, the white and green parts separated, both minced
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons good soy sauce
48 dumpling wrappers
1 egg, lightly beaten in a bowl
4 tablespoons peanut oil or vegetable oil, more or less
1/4 cup rice vinegar or white vinegar

What to do!
1. Combine meat, cabbage, ginger, garlic, scallion whites and 2 tablespoons soy sauce in a bowl with 1/4 cup water. Lay a wrapper on a clean, dry surface, and using your finger or a brush, spread a bit of egg along half of its circumference. Place a rounded teaspoon of filling in center, fold over and seal by pinching edges together. (Do not overfill.) Place dumplings on a plate; if you want to wait a few hours before cooking, cover plate with plastic wrap and refrigerate. Or freeze, for up to two weeks.
2. To cook, put about 2 tablespoons oil in a large nonstick skillet and turn heat to medium-high. A minute later, add dumplings, one at a time; they can touch one another, but should still sit flat in one layer. Cook about 2 minutes, or until bottoms are lightly browned. Add 1/4 cup water per dozen dumplings to pan, and cover. Lower heat to medium, and let simmer about 3 minutes.
3. To make the dipping sauce, combine remaining soy sauce, green parts of scallions and vinegar. 4. Uncover dumplings, return heat to medium-high and cook another minute or two, until bottoms are dark brown and crisp and water evaporates. (Use more oil if necessary.) Serve hot, with sauce.