Vegetable gyoza
野菜餃子: crisp-bottomed dumplings filled with cabbage, shiitake, tofu and garlic chives
Gyoza (餃子) came to Japan from China and became a passion in Utsunomiya, a city north of Tokyo that calls itself the gyoza capital, with a gyoza statue outside the station. These vegetarian dumplings are filled with salted cabbage, shiitake, tofu and garlic chives. They're pan-fried and then steamed, so the bottoms turn crisp and golden while the tops stay soft. Shape a big batch and freeze some for later. Chef's tip: squeeze the salted cabbage really hard. Watery filling makes soggy, torn gyoza; a dry filling keeps the wrappers sealed and the bottoms crisp.
- Total time
- 60 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the filling
For shaping and cooking
For the dipping sauce
Method
0/8 doneStep 1: Toss 10 ½ oz Chinese or white cabbage with ½ tsp salt and leave for 10 minutes. Squeeze it hard in a clean tea towel to remove as much water as you can; this stops the filling going soggy.
10 minStep 2: Mix the cabbage, 5 ½ oz firm tofu, 3 ½ oz fresh shiitake mushrooms, 1 oz garlic chives or spring onions, 2 cloves garlic, 1 tsp ginger, 1 tbsp soy sauce, 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil, 1 tbsp cornflour and 1 pinch white pepper with your hand until it holds together.
Step 3: Put a heaped teaspoon of filling in the middle of a wrapper. Wet half the edge with water, fold in half and pinch at one end. Make 5 or 6 small pleats along the front edge, pressing each against the flat back edge, to seal it in a crescent. Set on a floured tray. Repeat with all 30 round gyoza wrappers (egg-free).
Step 4: To freeze, open-freeze the gyoza on the tray, then bag them. Cook from frozen, adding 2 minutes to the steaming time.
Step 5: Heat 1 tbsp of the 2 tbsp vegetable oil in a large non-stick frying pan with a lid over a medium heat. Arrange half the gyoza flat-side down in tight rows and fry for 2 minutes, until the bottoms are golden.
2 minStep 6: Pour in half the ½ cup water (it will spit), cover straight away and steam for 4 minutes, until the wrappers turn translucent.
4 minStep 7: Uncover and cook for 1–2 minutes more, until the water has gone and the bottoms crisp up again. Loosen with a spatula and turn out onto a plate, crisp side up. Cook the rest the same way.
2 minStep 8: Mix 3 tbsp soy sauce, 2 tbsp rice vinegar and 1 tsp chilli oil (rayu) and serve with the hot gyoza.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 330 kcal
- Protein
- 12 g
- Carbs
- 44 g
- Fat
- 12 g
- Fibre
- 4 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does vegetable gyoza take?
- About 60 minutes in total: 40 minutes to prepare and 20 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of chinese or white cabbage?
- Savoy or spring greens, same weight.
- What can I use instead of fresh shiitake mushrooms?
- Aubergine, diced, same weight.
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