Japanese dumplings, also known as gyoza, are one of my favorite foods to eat. They are as fun to make as they are fun to eat, and they are relatively easy to cook. Most of the ingredients you need are found at home, but if you don’t have them, I recommend going to a local Asian supermarket. They are great for parties and side dishes.

Ingredients:

Dumpling wrappers

Half pound of minced pork

A tablespoon of oyster sauce

Garlic clove

Half-inch of ginger

Tablespoon of sake

Tablespoon of Mirin

Tablespoon of soy sauce

Tablespoon of sesame oil

Tablespoon of rice vinegar

Pepper flakes

One bunch of chives

One bunch of green scallions

Several leaves of cabbage 

Potato starch

Step 1: Making the mixture

• Cut chives, scallions, and shiitake mushrooms
• Microwave cabbage for 2-3 minutes or until soft
• Cut the cabbage into small pieces
• Squeeze water out of the cabbage using a paper towel and let it cool
• Add the cabbage into a bowl along with minced pork, grated ginger, garlic, sake, mirin, soy sauce, oyster sauce, potato starch, sesame oil, and chopped chives and scallions
• Mix until well incorporated

Step 2: Forming the Dumplings

• Get a dumpling wrapper and place a teaspoon of the mixture into the center
• Water the edges of the dumpling
• Close the wrapper over the mixture and make grooves like the ones shown below
• Repeat for all the dumpling wrappers

Step 3: Cooking

• Place the dumplings on a non-stick pan. Do not preheat
• Once the dumplings are on, turn on the heat. Cook until the dumplings start to brown (1-2 minutes)
• When the dumplings are brown, add in a quarter cup of water and cover the pan with a lid (preferably with a small hole in it). 
• Steam the dumplings until the water has evaporated. Once the water is gone, take off the lid and cook the dumplings a little longer to create crispy edges.
• Put a plate on top of the pan and flip it over

Step 4: Sauce

• At this point, you may choose to eat the dumplings right away. However, this sauce is worth the extra wait (or you can just make it beforehand).
• Mix, soy sauce, rice vinegar, pepper flakes, sugar, and sesame oil. Since this sauce is really up to your taste, put as much of each ingredient you want. I usually add a tablespoon of soy sauce and rice vinegar along with a teaspoon of sesame oil, sugar, and pepper flakes. 

Step 5: Garnish

• You can enjoy the dumplings as is, or you can garnish it with chili paste and green onions.