Chicken Potstickers

I love potstickers and now my daughter has declared them one of her favorite meals as well.  They are a bit time consuming to make, but they cook quickly straight from the freezer.  They'll definitely be a regular in our freezer meal rotation.

Difficulty: Difficult - They aren't difficult to make, but they are time consuming.
Category: Freezer to Pan
Recipe Column: DM

Yields about 50


1 lb ground chicken
16 green onions, sliced
5 oz cabbage, finely chopped
2 tbsp minced ginger
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup water
2 tbsp soy sauce
14 oz pkg round dumpling wrappers, you can find these in the freezer section of an Asian grocery store

1. Combine all the ingredients except the dumpling wrappers.
2. Place a tablespoon of chicken mixture on a dumpling wrapper, brush the edge of the wrapper with water, fold the wrapper in half and pinch around the edge to seal.  Place on a sheet tray lined with parchment and continue with the rest of the wrappers and chicken.
3. You will likely have leftover meat after you've used up all the wrappers.  I formed the leftover meat into little meatballs and cooked them over medium-high heat in a little oil.

To freeze:

Freeze the potstickers on a sheet tray lined with parchment paper.  You can do up to two layers of potstickers divided by a layer of parchment.  Once the potstickers are frozen, transfer them to freezer bags for storage.  I use a vacuum sealer to package my freezer meals.  If you are using a vacuum sealer, hit the seal button after most of the air is removed and as the bag is starting to really contract.  If you let the sealer go until it's ready to seal you will end up with a lot of broken potstickers.

To serve:

Heat a thin layer of oil over medium-high heat in a frying pan that has a tight lid.  Once hot, add the potstickers in a single layer and brown on both sides.  Using the lid to shield yourself from splatters, pour water into the pan until it is about 1/4 inch deep.  Put the lid on the pan immediately.  Allow the potstickers to steam until the water is all gone and they are 160 degrees inside.  Add more water if necessary.  Serve with dipping sauce (below).

Dipping Sauce:

1/4 cup soy sauce

3 tbsp rice vinegar

1 tsp sugar

2 tbsp water

1 tsp sesame oil

a sprinkle of crushed red pepper

Combine all the ingredients.