Dumplings 101

For the past month, I’ve decided to brown bag my lunch everyday except on Friday.  And, had decided that dumplings were the easiest for me to prepare. No, I don’t make the dumplings myself. I buy them raw but pre-assembled from different meat shops in Chinatown Manhattan. There are 2 kinds you can choose from, dumplings for boiling or for frying. I’ve mostly chosen the ones for boiling since I’ve been trying to cut down on fat. My favorites so far have been pork & cabbage and chicken & mushroom.

However, I’m beginning to get tired of the boiled ones and had bought some dumplings for frying from H Mart, the Korean food store on 32nd Street in Manhattan. But, there is no way I’m deep frying them. So, I thought it best to cook them the potsticker way.

I’m writing the steps down so I remember:

Step 1: Heat 1 tsp of oil on a 8″ skillet.
Step 2: When the oil is hot on HIGH heat, arrange the frozen dumplings to fill the skillet.
Step 3: Brown the frozen dumplings on one side.
Step 4: When the dumplings are slightly browned, pour a 1/4 cup of water on the dumplings.
Step 5: Lower the heat to MEDIUM. Let the water evaporate.  When there is no more liquid left on the skillet, it’s a sign that the dumplings had thawed and browned on one side. Turn them to brown the other side. The dumplings will be ready to eat after 3 minutes.

The Result:

(From L-R): From Frozen Dumplings on a skillet to beautifully browned dumplings in 20 minutes.

Tips: 

• The Korean dumplings from H Mart in the picture above  were particularly tasty with rice noodle added in the meat mixture added chewiness.  I can’t read Korean so I just have to remember how the packaging looks like.
• Cook dumplings from its Frozen state is best.  This will prevent them from being mushy specially if the skin is thin.  If the skin is thicker, you can thaw them before boiling or frying.