When I go to a Korean restaurant with American friends, chances are good that they will want to start with fried dumplings. The filling for these dumplings is so tasty: a mixture of pork, mung bean sprouts, zucchini, chives, onion, and tofu seasoned with sesame oil and a hint of ginger. You can find a variety of premade dumplings in Korean grocery stores, but homemade ones always taste better. If you make them yourself, you can be generous with the filling. You can also save some money. (Fifty dumpling skins cost less than $2.) Fifty dumplings may seem like a lot, but once you form them, you can freeze them and then fry or steam them anytime for a quick snack or lunch. To steam them, bring a few inches of water to a boil in a pot fitted with a steamer basket. Steam the dumplings, covered, until they are cooked through, about 10 minutes. You can also add them to soup; stir them into the simmering broth and cook for 10 minutes or so. See the photos.
Makes: 50 dumplings
INGREDIENTS:
FOR THE DIPPING SAUCE:
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon distilled white vinegar
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 green Korean chili pepper (cheong-gochu), stemmed and chopped
- ¼ cup onion, chopped
FOR THE FILLING:
- 8 ounces ground pork or beef (or a combination)
- 1 teaspoon minced peeled ginger
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- 2 cups mung bean sprouts, washed and drained
- 1 small zucchini (about 8 ounces), cut into thin matchsticks
- Kosher salt
- 1 cup chopped Asian chives or scallions
- 2¼ teaspoons vegetable oil
- 8 ounces (about 1 cup) medium-soft tofu
- 1 cup chopped onion
FOR THE DUMPLINGS:
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 (50-piece) package mandu skins (mandu-pi)
- Vegetable oil for pan-frying
INSTRUCTIONS:
- Make the dipping sauce: Combine all the ingredients in a small bowl.
- Make the filling: Combine the ground meat, ginger, garlic, soy sauce, ½ teaspoon pepper, and 2 teaspoons of the sesame oil in a bowl. Cover and refrigerate while you prepare the other ingredients.
- Put the mung bean sprouts in a medium heavy saucepan, add ½ cup water, cover, and cook over medium-high heat for 5 minutes. Drain.
- Meanwhile, mix the zucchini with ½ teaspoon salt in a bowl and let stand for 5 minutes, then squeeze out the excess water with your hands or pat dry with a paper towel.
- Mix the chives with ¼ teaspoon of the vegetable oil in a small bowl.
- Wrap the tofu in a piece of cheesecloth or a paper towel and squeeze out the excess water.
- Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 teaspoon of the vegetable oil and the zucchini and cook, stirring, until slightly softened, 1 minute. Scrape into a large bowl; set the skillet aside.
- Combine the chopped onion with ½ teaspoon salt in a bowl. Let stand for about 5 minutes, then squeeze out the excess water with your hands or pat dry with a paper towel.
- Heat the skillet you cooked the zucchini in (no need to wash it) over medium-high heat and add the remaining 1 teaspoon vegetable oil. Add the onion and cook until translucent, 2 to 3 minutes. Scrape into the bowl with the zucchini.
- Add the meat mixture, mung bean sprouts, chives, and tofu to the zucchini and onion. Add 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon pepper, and the remaining 2 teaspoons sesame oil and mix well.
- Make the dumplings: Set out a small bowl of water. Sprinkle the flour over a large cutting board or baking sheet. Remove one dumpling skin from the package and set on the work surface. Dip your index finger into the water and wet the edges of the skin so that it will seal easily. Spoon a heaping tablespoon of the filling into the center, fold the skin over the filling, and press the edges to seal. Place on the floured cutting board. Repeat with the remaining dumpling skins and filling. (At this point, you can place the dumplings on a plastic-wrap-lined baking sheet and freeze them for at least 5 hours, or overnight, then transfer them to zipper-lock bags for longer freezing. Transfer them to a plate, so they don’t stick together, and defrost in the refrigerator for a few hours before frying or steaming.)
- Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add 2 to 3 tablespoons vegetable oil. Add some of the dumplings, without crowding them, and cook until the bottoms turn golden brown and crisp, 2 to 3 minutes. Turn and cook until the second sides are golden brown, another 2 to 3 minutes. Turn the heat down to low and continue to cook, turning frequently, until the dumplings are evenly browned and the filling is cooked through, a few more minutes. Transfer to a platter. Repeat with the remaining dumplings, adding more oil as necessary.
- Serve the dumplings hot with the dipping sauce
