Vegetarian Gyoza with Dipping Sauce
Gyoza are by far my favorite Japanese dish. There is nothing better than a bowl of ramen with crispy and juicy gyoza. So, during the third lockdown 🙁 I decided to go ahead and make some myself. I chose to replace the meat with tofu to make them suitable for everyone and added leek to spice up the taste, the carrots add sweetness.
Just to be clear, if this is the first time you are going to make gyoza, do it on a day when you don’t have much to do, because it takes time… a lot of time. But the result is incredible and worth the hours of making. They are not difficult to make but you have to be patient.
What are gyoza?
Gyoza are Japanese dumplings made with a variety of different fillings. There are as ubiquitous as ramen in Japan. Traditionally in Japan gyoza are filled with a mix of finely minced pork, mushrooms and cabbage, which creates a delicious mix of flavours and textures. However, my recipe is vegan. There are four styles of gyoza served in Japan, the ones we are going to make are Yaki-Gyoza: they are placed in a pan and fried for a short time, water is then added to the pan and a lid placed on top, to steam the dumplings.
ENJOY 🙂
Vegetarian Gyoza with Dipping Sauce
Ingredients
Gyoza Wrappers
- 2 cups Flour
- 1/2 tsp Kosher salt
- 1/2 cup Boiling water
- Cornstarch
Gyoza Fillings
- 400 gr Tofu
- 1-2 Leek Depending on the size
- 3-4 Carrots Depending on the size
- 1 cup Mushrooms
- 1 clove Garlic
- 1-2 tsp Sesame oil According to your taste
- 1-2 tsp Soy sauce According to your taste
- 1-2 tsp Rice vinegar According to your taste
- 1/4 tsp Salt
- 1/8 tsp Ground pepper
Dipping Sauce
- 1 tbsp Soy sauce
- 1 tbsp Rice vinegar
- 1 tsp Sriracha Optional
Instructions
Gyoza Wrappers
- Put the flour in a bowl and boil the water
- Once the water is boiling, add the kosher salt and stir until the salt dissolves
- Add the salted water to the flour little by little and mix with a spatula
- Transfer the dough to the table and knead it for 10 minutes until it is soft and no longer sticky
- Cut the dough in half with a knife
- Shape each half into a long log
- Wrap each log with plastic wrap and let it sit for 30 minutes
- After 30 minutes, unwrap the dough and cut it into 12 pieces and cover them with a damp cloth so that they do not dry out
- Put cornstarch on the table and using a rolling pin, flatten each piece of dough and put them back under the damp cloth
Gyoza Fillings
- Heat olive oil in a large non-stick frying pan over medium heat and add the sliced leek, grated carrots, and mushrooms cut into small pieces then let cook for 7 minutes
- Add the scrambled tofu, salt and pepper, let cook until ready
- Let the filling cool
- Pour the filling into a bowl and add soy sauce, rice vinegar and sesame oil and mix all together
Gyoza Assembly
- Take a wrapper and place it in the palm of your hand
- Use a spoon to take a small amount of filling and put it in the center of the wrapper
- Dip one finger in a bowl of water and draw a circle around the wrapper
- Fold the wrapper in half over the filling and pinch it in the center with your fingers
- Using your thumb and index finger, start making a pleat on the top part of the wrapper from the center toward the right side, making 3-4 pleats.
- Continue with the left side of the gyoza
- Repeat with the other wrappers
Cooking the Gyoza
- Heat vegetable oil in a large non-stick frying pan over medium heat
- When the pan is hot, place the gyoza in a single layer, flat side down in a circular shape
- Cook until the bottom of the gyoza turns golden brown, about 3 minutes
- Add 1/4 cup of water to the pan. Immediately cover with a lid and steam the gyoza for about 3 minutes or until most of the water evaporates
- Remove the lid to evaporate any remaining water. Add 1 tsp sesame oil around the frying pan
- Cook uncovered until the gyoza is nice and crisp on the bottom
- Transfer to a plate and serve with dipping sauce
- For the dipping sauce, combine the sauce ingredients in a small plate and mix all together