Potstickers Twice, Pork and Vegan

What is it about little bundles of food? The whole world has some type of wrapped up savory morsels that delight. Ravioli, samosas, tamales, knoedel, dumplings, pasties, etc. First up here is an interperetation of traditional pot stickers and then, inspired by Indian appetizers,  a delightful vegan option.
I had the opportunity to visit the Thermador, Bosh, Gaggenau corporate kitchens in California a couple of years ago and the demo chef did a variation of these pot stickers for us. They looked good but may have been a bit under cooked via his method and pork that is not throughly cooked...? Anyway, try these and see if your family likes them as much as my family does. Each of these recipes will serve 4 adults a main dish portion--about 7 potstickers each.

Pork Potstickers
1/2 lbs ground pork sausage (I use my local store's "Country" style bulk sausage)
1/4 cup finely shredded cabbage
1/4 cup finely shredded carrot
1/8 cup finely chopped snow peas
2 tablespoons chopped green onions
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger root
2 tablespoons water
1 package square wonton wrappers
3 tablespoons peanut or coconut oil, divided

Mix the sausage, the veggies, soy sauce, ginger and water together. Taking one wrapper at a time, place a heaping teaspoon of pork filling in the center, wet the edges with water and fold corners together. Seal along the seams and set aside. Continue to pack and seal each potsticker until filling is used up. Heat a 12 to 14" non stick skillet that has a tight fitting lid over medium high heat. Place about 1 tablespoon of oil in pan and then about 10 potstickers, one at a time, swirling the bottom in the hot oil. Prepare to cover the skillet with the lid, then ladle 1/4 to 1/3 cup water into the pan and immediately cover with the lid. Steam about 3 to 4 minutes -- the water may have cooked all the way off. Remove cooked potstickers to a tray and place in a warm oven or warming drawer until all are cooked. Serve with dipping sauce.

Simple Dipping Sauce
1/4 cup each: warm water, lite soy sauce, rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons chopped green onion (or fresh cilantro)
1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
Mix together and pour into individual dishes to serve.

Veggie Potstickers
2/3 cup green peas, blanched fresh or thawed from frozen
1 cup sweet potato chunks (1/2" or smaller), cooked to just tender (microwave or dry pan fried)
3 tablespoons chopped green onions
2 teaspoons soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon grated fresh ginger root
1 package round wonton wrappers
3 tablespoons peanut oil or coconut oil
Stir veggies, ginger and soy sauce together. Place 1 1/2 teaspoons in the center of a wrapper, wet edge with fingers dipped in water, fold in half and seal by pinching edges together and pleating 3 or 4 times. Continue to pack and seal each potsticker until filling is used up. Heat a 12 to 14" non stick skillet that has a tight fitting lid over medium high heat. Place about 1 tablespoon of oil in pan and then about 10 potstickers, one at a time, swirling the bottom in the hot oil. Prepare to cover the skillet with the lid, then ladle 1/4 to 1/3 cup water into the pan and immediately cover. Steam about 3 to 4 minutes -- or until the water has evaporated. Remove cooked potstickers to a tray and place in a warm oven or warming drawer until all are cooked. Serve with dipping sauce if desired.

Hints: Round and square wrappers, both work great. Just about any type of veggies can be used in either variety- I have used celery, water chestnuts, bamboo shoots, bean sprouts, cauliflower, red onion, bell pepper, soy beans, parsnip and more. You can make potstickers with ground turkey or chopped raw shrimp. I have not tried them with beef but maybe? They seem to work out best if there is slightly more veggie than meat by volume. Too much meat and they become more solid and feel like little bites of meatloaf--which may be ok for you- just not what I like. The water helps loosen up the mixture and it is much easier to work with. Sealing the wrapper really well helps the potstickers hold together so be sure and wet all along the edges. They may stick to the pan a bit but can easily be loosened with a flat spatula or small lifting tool. I like to keep them warm when done, in a warming drawer or low temp oven, if they are the main dish. If using as an appetizer, I make them and set out in batches as they get finished. Dipping sauces can be anything from bottled sweet and sour sauce to wasabi/soy sauce mixture. A fresh mint sauce works well with the sweet potato and pea variety.

These little bundles are full of flavor! Always a happy little treat for the tastebuds. They do take a few minutes to prepare but are so worth the effort. So wrangle some help if you can and have a potsticker party soon!