12.26.2020
PORK AND CABBAGE POTSTICKERS with HOMEMADE GLUTEN FREE WRAPPERS and DIPPING SAUCE
Made with gluten and lactose-free products.
About 50 wrappers depending on size and shape for pot stickers, dumplings, wontons, perogies, shumai etc.
This recipe might seem to be long and complicated, but it is not. This post has three recipes. Wrappers. Filling. Dipping sauce. By making the wrappers, filling and dipping sauce before you begin to assemble the potstickers, it all goes fast.
We like pot stickers, pirogi, wontons, shumai and dumplings etc. One of our favorite brunch destinations was to go to China Town for a dim sum. Now that we are both gluten intolerant that is a pleasure we can’t have.
It is virtually impossible to get gluten-free wrappers in stores and the online ones are e so expensive! In New York City most gluten free dumplings at restaurant's, when you can find them, are rather doughy.
I have been working on gluten free wrappers on and off. Recently after doing a lot of research about regular wrappers, gluten free wrappers and making gluten free pasta I decided to try gluten free wrappers again.
I discovered gluten-free wrappers are all made with almost the same ingredients, it is the shape, the size the fillings, how they are cooked and the dipping sauces that make them different.
I used my Cuisinart and pasta maker to make things easier on myself. *
As I am short on patience, I bought a ‘pot sticker mold’ to form the dumplings and make them pretty rather than go nuts trying to make pleats. They are available in your local kitchen ware store, Walmart or Target from about $2 to $20.
I portion out the meat mixture into 4 t balls, then form into a torpedo shape, at assembly time, my hands are clean and I have equal amount of filling in each pot sticker.
WRAPPERS:
Prep and clear off your work space, you will need space!
Dough:
Dry stuff:
White rice flour – 210 g
Tapioca flour – 90 g
Kosher salt – ½ t
Xanthan gum – 1 T
Guar gum – ½ t (add ½ t more xanthan)
Wet stuff:
Hot water – 180 g at 120F (needed 2 T more once the dough was kneading in the Cuisinart)
Vegetable oil – 1 T (needed 1 ½ T more once the dough was kneading in the Cuisinart)
For dusting: Tapioca starch
For storing: White rice flour mixed with tapioca or cornstarch mixed ½ and ½
Let’s make dough:
In a bowl whisk all the dry stuff together. Measure out the hot water and oil and set aside.
Make a well in the center of the dry stuff and pour the hot water mix and mix with a fork or chopsticks. When the hot water is incorporated, then add the oil and mix. Now, it is time to knead.
*Knead for 5 to 10 minutes or more until you get a smooth soft dough which is slightly tacky (use a few drops of oil in your hands to help with the kneading). Form into a disk and wrap tightly with cling film and refrigerate from 30 minutes to 24 hours. The longer the dough is in the refrigerator the easier it is to roll out. I went with 24 hours.
While the dough was resting for 24 hours, I made the filling and the dipping sauce.
When it is time to roll out the dough*, sprinkle tapioca flour on your work surface, place the dough on it and sprinkle a little more on top of the dough. Flatten the dough to be about 1” thick with a rolling pin and cut in six. Keep out one piece to make into a snake and cover the rest with the cling film and refrigerate.
Cut the snake into 8 equal pieces, dust with tapioca starch then roll out 1 at a time into a 3 ½” circles, keeping the rest covered. As each piece is rolled out, using a cookie or biscuit cutter, cut into 3½” circles, remove the extra dough, dust the circles with the tapioca/white rice mix and stack them and cover with a dry cloth (or place in a plastic bag) to keep them from drying out.
Do the same with the remaining dough.
As you roll out, gather the extra bits of dough after cutting into circles, squish into balls, very lightly spray with water and cover with cling wrap and place in the refrigerator. Once done with the original sections, make the leftover dough into a ball and roll out and make more wrappers.
If you don’t plan to use the wrappers right away, dust very generously with the rice/tapioca starch mixture, wrap tightly in cling film and refrigerate, for up to 2 days or freeze. Good for 4 to 6 weeks in the freezer, to thaw, place in the refrigerator overnight or longer.
I was able to make 51. 3 ½” round wrappers.
PORK AND CABBAGE FILLING:
Enough for 4/5 t of filling for 22 to 24 pot stickers. *
Prep what you need:
Peanut or other vegetable oil – 1 T
Green cabbage – minced, 1 ½ c
Carrot – minced, ½ c (optional)
Fresh ginger – minced, 4 T
Fresh garlic – minced, 4 T
Scallions – chopped, ½ c
Kosher salt – 1 ½ t
Ground pork – 1 lb. 85% lean if the meat is leaner add 1 T vegetable oil to mix
Tapioca starch – 4 t
Water – 4 T
Soy sauce – 2 T
Sesame oil - 2 t (preferably toasted sesame oil)
Agave – 2 t
Wrappers – 22 to 24
Let’s make the filling:
In a skillet over medium heat sauté the cabbage, garlic, ginger and scallions and ½ t kosher salt, stirring for about 3 minutes. Remove and spread the mixture on a sheet pan and set aside to cool. While the vegetables are cooling, make the dipping sauce, unless you had already made it.
DIPPING SAUCE:
Mix together in a measuring cup:
Soy – 2 T
Rice vinegar – 2 T
Sesame oil – 2 t, preferably toasted sesame oil
Crushed red pepper flakes – 1/8 t
Whisk together and pour into a small bowl to serve and set aside.
Back to the filling:
In the bowl of your food processor or a large bowl place the ground pork. Add baking soda mixed in water and pulse a couple of times or stir till thoroughly mixed.
Add the tapioca starch and pulse or mix. Add the soy sauce, sesame oil, and agave or sugar to the meat and stir or pulse till thoroughly mixed.
Add the cooled vegetables to the bowl and whir or stir till pasty. Form into 4/5 t ‘torpedoes’, there should be about 22 or 24 torpedoes, if you have more meat mixture or made smaller torpedoes just arrange all on a sheet pan, cover with cling film and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Make as many pot stickers as you have meat torpedoes and freeze what you don’t cook.
When ready to cook the frozen pot stickers, cook as you would when freshly made, just steam for a few minutes more.
ASSEMBLE AND COOK THE POT STICKERS:
You will need space. While the filling is cooling in the refrigerator, clear off space to assemble the pot stickers.
Measure out and set aside:
Oil – 2 T
Broth or water – ¼ to ½ c
Place wrappers in a plastic bag, on your counter, place torpedoes next to the wrappers, fill a small bowl with room temperature water and set next to that. Sprinkle a sheet pan with tapioca starch next to that. Arrange these things in the way it is most comfortable for you.
Place 4 or so wrappers on a small cutting board, place a torpedo in the middle of each wrapper, paint the bottom half of wrapper with a finger dipped in water, fold over the wrapper and seal the edges. You can crimp the edges or pleat. I use a pot sticker mold to seal the edges. All my pot stickers are the same size and look pretty. (I could not use the mold for the whole process as my wrappers were smaller than the mold I had.)
As each pot sticker is made, place them on the prepared sheet pan with the sealed edge on top. The bottoms should be flat to get crispy. Cover with a dry kitchen towel. Now it is time to cook the pretties!
In a 12” skillet over medium heat, pour about 2 T of oil and swirl to cover the bottom. Arrange the dumplings in the pan and fry for about 4 minutes till the bottoms are golden, add a ¼ c of broth or water and cover immediately, turning the heat to medium low. (Use the cover as a shield when pouring the liquid, so you don’t get burnt by the steam). Cook for 15 to 18 minutes or so until the dumplings are soft and translucent. Add a little more broth if your skillet gets dry, remove the cover, raise the heat to medium and cook for 30 seconds or so for any leftover liquid to evaporate and the pot stickers to get crispy on the bottom again.
I made 24 dumplings in one 12” skillet, cook in batches, or use two skillets adjusting the amount of oil and stock/water.
I served the dumplings with the dipping sauce and shredded cabbage dressed with sriracha mayo. It was a delicious meal for two. I felt the time I spent making these were of excellent use. As without making these myself we would not have been able to have these yummy pot stickers. I have a bunch of frozen wrappers for next time when I plan to serve pot stickers with dipping sauce as a side to fried rice.
*Can I use the Cuisinart to make the dough? Yes. After the flour is mixed in a bowl, place it in the Cuisinart to knead. Once you have a smooth, slightly tacky ball of dough that is also soft, make it into a disk, wrap tightly in cling wrap and refrigerate. I had best results in rolling out with the pasta maker when I left the dough in the refrigerator for 24 hours.
*Can I use the pasta maker to roll out the dough? Yes. When you are ready to roll out, cut the disk in 6, flatten each piece into to ¼" thick rectangles using a rolling pin, dust well with tapioca or cornstarch and feed though the widest opening of the pasta maker, fold this piece of dough in thirds or half and run it through until you get straight sides and the sheet of dough is smooth. Be liberal in your use of tapioca starch. Run the dough through about 6 times in the widest setting. Then go to the next position on the pasta maker and run through once, keep doing this until you get the thickness you want. I ran the dough to the next to the last position which is 5 for my Imperia pasta maker. Dust as you need, then cut with a large cutter to about 3 ½” rounds and follow the recipe.
I felt so good when I finished making these pot stickers. They were so delicious. Best I've ever had. Not a lot of dough with a dab of filling, but substantial. They say, time is money, making these pot stickers? This was that!
Enjoy!