Dumplings

From the time I was a child, dumpling making has been a fun activity. Because we often made these in large quantities, the whole family got involved. We took turns rolling out the wraps from dough and wrapping the meat filling. We'd start in the late afternoon and go into the late evening. When enough dumplings were made, we'd cook and eat them. We'd continue to make the dumplings in between bowls of rice and dumplings.

Wraps:
You can make your own wraps or just buy gyoza wraps from your local supermarket.

Filling:
1 lb. ground pork (or chicken)
1 small head napa cabbage
1 Tbs. soy sauce
1 Tbs. peeled and grated ginger
2 green onions thinly sliced
1 tsp. sesame oil
1 1/2 tsp. corn starch
1 tsp. salt (as desired)

Dipping sauce:
1 Tbs. soy sauce
1/2 tsp. sesame oil
1/2 tsp. white vinegar (or rice wine vinegar)

Use a food processor to finely chop the washed cabbage leaves. In a medium mixing bowl, mix all the filling ingredients together. Place about 1 tsp. filling in each wrap, moisten half of the outer edge of wrap and fold over to seal. Place in a baking pan and cover with damp dishcloth. Repeat until filling or wraps are used up. Heat 1 -2 Tbs. oil in skillet over medium-high heat. Place dumplings in skillet being careful that dumplings don't touch. You will need to cook the dumplings in batches as they won't all fit in the skillet. Cook until bottoms of dumplings are slightly golden brown. Pour 1 cup water into skillet and cover. Steam for 10 minutes. Serve with rice and dipping sauce.

This makes about 48 dumplings so you can cook up enough for one meal and freeze the rest! To freeze dumplings, place them in a baking sheet and put in the freezer for 2 hours. Transfer frozen dumplings into freezer bags.

(Note: You can vary the amounts of any of the ingredients as desired.)