Potstickers

I've been all about Asian cuisine and flavors lately. I don't know enough about them to be really sure what is Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese, etc. so I'm just going to say "Asian." I've been cooking and eating out in this genre often lately. Just had sushi, fried rice, soup and wontons when I went out for dinner with a friend yesterday...and I've made dumplings with dipping sauce twice in two weeks...and crab and cheese wontons. The wontons I've made before, several times...the dumplings were a new venture. I'd never tried to cook anything like that before, but I used to love eating the ones that came in the box in the freezer section. Since I don't like to eat frozen prepared food much anymore, I thought I had to give up on dumplings. But then I saw a Facebook post from a cousin that had just made homeade dumplings! I checked out her recipe, and others online, and combined a few of them to come up with this one.

Vegetarian Pot Stickers

Ingredients
• 1/2 red onion, sliced
• 1 Tbsp. fresh ginger, finely minced
• 1 cup sliced shiitake mushrooms
• 1 cup white cabbage, shredded
• 1 cup carrots, shredded
• 1 cup chopped garlic chives or chives
• 1 tsp. fresh ground pepper
• 1 tsp. sesame oil
• 1 package round dumpling skins, also called gyoza
• Salt to taste
• Olive oil

Directions
In a wok or large saute pan, add a little oil and saute onions and ginger for about 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms and stir. Add the cabbage, carrots and chives, saute for 6-8 minutes, enough to cook them but not make them soggy. Season. Add the sesame oil when mixture is cooled. Fill the gyoza skins, making half moon dumpling shapes, keeping the bottom flat (seal the skins with a dab of water on the edges, if necessary). In a hot non-stick pan, coat with oil and place dumplings. When bottom gets brown, add 1/4 cup of water and immediately cover. This will steam the dumplings. Carefully watch the dumplings and completely evaporate the water so that the bottom gets crispy again and sticks to the pot.

A couple of tips for this recipe...you can find almost everything in this recipe at a local grocery, except for the dumpling skins. A lot of people will tell you that wonton skins are the same thing and just to use them. Don't listen to them!! They are different, and the only place I know of to get the dumpling skins is at an Asian grocery. I got a few packages at one visit and put them in the freezer, they keep well there. Also, this recipe is time consuming, and best tackled in a team. I tried making them myself and it took me at least an hour and a half from start to finish. To save time, you can also use cabbage and carrots that are already shredded by purchasing the pre-packaged coleslaw mix in the produce section, but I don't recommend it. I think the reason this recipe works so well is because of all the fresh flavors that come together when using fresh produce. The last thing you'll need to bring this recipe together is a good dipping sauce. I got this recipe online somewhere but I can't recall where. I've also added an ingredient or two...

Asian Dipping Sauce

• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 2 Tbsp. rice wine vinegar
• 1/2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 1/2 tsp. toasted sesame oil
• 1/2 lemon, zest and juice

Whisk all ingredients together in a small bowl until sugar is dissolved. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Yield: about 1/3 cup