For those of you in the know, Gyoza are the most delicious thing this side of italian food. I mean, what could be better than little fried packets of vegetables and meat? Seriously. The only thing better than restuarant gyoza is homemade – its actually pretty easy, and if you are willing to spend the time, totally worth it.
This is an interesting twist on the standard gyoza recipe that uses chicken (ok) and/or pork (delicious) – instead we used some of the duck confit that’s been looking so good in the fridge. If you don’t have duck, substitute about a 1/2 pound of ground pork. This recipe will make about 30 gyoza, but can be portioned up or down easily.
Ingredients:
- Meat from 1 duck confit leg, or about 1 cup depending on the size of the leg
- 2 cups cabbage, finely chopped
- 1 cup onion, finely chopped
- 1/2 cup scallions (aka green onion), chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 shallot, minced
- 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
- 1 teaspoon tamari
- 3 tablespoons peanut oil
- 1 egg
- 1 4oz package of round gyoza wrappers (about 30 per pack, available at any asian grocery)
Making the Filling
1) Pick the meat off the duck leg. There really is no clean way to do this, so don’t be afraid to get your fingers greasy. Once you’ve picked all the meat from the bones, chop it into a medium fine dice. Remember, it’s got to go inside gyoza, so make it small, but not too small that it gets lost.
2) Heat a large skillet or wok over medium heat and add 2 tablespoons of the peanut oil. Once hot, add the onion, garlic, shallot and ginger. Cook until tender, but not mushy, about 5 minutes. Add the cabbage and continue to cook for another 4-5 minutes, or until the cabbage is soft.
3) Add the duck meat, scallions, tamari and egg to the pan and cook for 2 minutes more, or until the egg stops being runny. Remove from the pan into a bowl.
Making the Gyoza
I usually prepare a space ahead of time for making the gyoza. You’ll want a little dish of water, a towl to dry your hands, and a spoon. The wrappers can get very sticky and tear easily if wet, so be sure to wipe off your hands if they get messy.
4) Take a gyoza wrapper and place flat on the work surface. Moisten half the edge of the gyoza wrapper by dipping a finger in the dish of water and running it along the edge of the wrapper.
5) Next, place a half spoonful of the filling mixture in the middle of the gyoza wrapper and bring the edges together to form a taco shape.
6) Working from one side, bring the edges together and pinch them so they stick. The water will make the inside edge slightly tacky, helping the process. Create 5 crimps along the edge to ensure the sides stay joined. Continue until all the filling and wrappers are used.
Cooking the Gyoza
7) Add the remaining tablespoon of the peanut oil to a heavy bottom skillet (I prefer cast iron) and heat on medium for a few minutes. Once hot, add the gyoza to the pan, fold side up. Cook for about 4 minutes on medium heat, or until the bottoms are crispy and brown.
8 ) Add 1/4 cup of water to the pan and cover immediately. I usually add the water with one hand and have the lid in the other so I can cover quickly and minimize the hot oil spraying everywhere. Continue cooking the gyoza until the water has cooked off, or about another 5 minutes.
9) Remove the lid and cook for 1 minute more to firm everything up. Remove to a plate and serve immediately.
