Pork Dumplings

My brother and I lived together for a few years and I would always do the cooking. "You're better at it..." is something he used to say (not a direct quote ;) ). But turns out when he moved out on his own and started cooking for himself, he's a pretty great cook. And very adventurous! He makes all sorts of things I've never tried and uses exciting spices I don't even have (and I've got a pretty good spice collection!). Recently at a party, I tried his pork dumplings which were delicious. He was in town this past weekend so I asked him to teach me how to make them.

Yields about 30 dumplings

Ingredients
1lb ground pork
1 tbs light soya sauce
1 tbs dark soya sauce
1 tbs Chinese black vinegar
1/2 tbs seasme oil
1 tbs dried Sichuan pepper, crush (optional to roast them prior)
1 1/2 tbs finely chopped green onion (green parts)
1/2 tbs grated fresh ginger
Optional: ~ 1 tsp tapioca starch
Dumpling wrappers
Bowl of Water

In a large bowl, combine ingredients from the ground pork to ginger. Mix by hand. If it seems a little "wet" you can add some tapioca starch - no more than a tsp. You don't want the meat to soak the dumpling wrappers. Prepare are large plate or baking sheet with parchment paper. You will put the dumplings on here prior to cooking.

Take a dumpling wrapper and put 1 tbs of filling directly in the middle. Dip a finger in the water and go along the edge of one half of the wrapper. Fold over and pinch the edges closed. My brother was closing the dumplings with a fancy "coin purse" method, but I was struggling with that. A simple "messy" pinch gets the job done.

Once you've used all the filling or dumpling wrappers, heat a medium sized non-stick pan over medium-high heat with 2-3 tbs of vegetable oil. Make sure you have a lid that will properly fit this pan. Once hot, add some dumplings. You want all of them to touch the bottom of the pan, so don't over crowd. Pour in 1/2 cup of water and cover with the lid. Cook undisturbed for 6 minutes and then remove the lid. Remove the lid and flip the dumplings and continue cooking for 1-2 minutes or until desired crispiness or the water has evaporated (I still had a little water left). Repeat the same process over - no need to discard any remaining water/oil that may still be left. Add just a splash more of oil, the dumplings, more water and cover the pan and repeat.

My "messy" pinch closure

Post 6 minutes with lid cover with a flip

They're ready!