Asian Pot Stickers

As the saying goes: if the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach, then this recipe will do the trick. You may want to try cooking some for your valentine.

• 1/4 pound ground pork
• 1/4 pound of uncooked shrimp, shelled, deveined, and finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon minced cilantro leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon minced ginger
• 1/8 teaspoon sesame oil ( in the international food section of you market)
• Dash ground white pepper
• 24 wonton or pot sticker wrappers ( you can find at your market near the bean spouts)
• 3 tablespoons cooking oil
• 2/3 cup chicken broth or water

Dipping Sauce:

• 1 1/2 tablespoons light soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1/2 teaspoon chili sauce (only if you like it spicy)

Directions

1. To make the dipping sauce: In a medium bowl, combine the soy sauce, vinegar, chili sauce and sesame oil. Mix well and reserve.
2. To make the filling: In a large bowl, combine, the pork, shrimp, cilantro, ginger, sugar, salt and sesame oil. Season with a little pepper and mix, stirring rapidly in 1 direction until the mixture is well combined and spongy.
3. To make the pot stickers: Working in batches, lay 4 wonton wrappers on a clean surface.
4. Keep the remaining wrappers covered in plastic wrap to prevent drying. Put a heaping teaspoon of filling in the center of each of the 4 wonton. Brush the edges with water. Fold the wrappers in half over the filling, pinching the edges together to form semi-circles or triangle. Put the pot stickers on a baking sheet seam-side up and cover with a clean towel. Repeat until all the filling has been used.
5. If you bought the small square shape wonton wrapper your pot sticker will look like this.
6. If you brought the round shape wonton wrapper your pot sticker will look semi-circle.
7. To cook the pot stickers: Heat a large skillet over medium. Add about 1 1/2 tablespoons of oil. When the oil is hot add half the pot stickers. Cook the pot stickers until the bottoms are golden and crisp, about 4 minutes. Add 1/3 cup broth. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook until the liquid is absorbed, 5 to 6 minutes. Transfer the cooked pot stickers to a platter. Repeat, cooking the remaining pot stickers.
8. Serve the pot stickers warm accompanied by the dipping sauce.