15 BEST CHINESE DUMPLING RECIPES (2024)

FAQs

What is the most popular Chinese dumpling? ›

Jiaozi (pronounced "jow-zee") are perhaps the most common type of Chinese dumpling. Crescent-shaped and formed with an opaque wrapper made from wheat dough, jiaozi are usually filled with ground pork, cabbage, and scallions, and served with a dipping sauce made of soy sauce, vinegar, and sesame oil.

Don't Overwork the Dumpling Dough

First, mix the dumpling ingredients just until the dough comes together. You'll whisk together the dry ingredients, then add melted butter and heavy cream. Stir everything together until the wet and dry ingredients are combined and you don't see any more dry flour.

Baozi: Dumpling On-the-Go

The most popular type of baozi has pork bun filling to which vegetables can be added. There are a variety of options, such as spring onion, cabbage, green beans, mushrooms and leeks, as well as sauces such as soy sauce and oyster sauce. Other types of fillings include beef, chicken and shrimp.

Common dumpling meat fillings include chicken, pork, beef, shrimp, and fish which are usually mixed with chopped vegetables. Popular vegetable fillings include napa cabbage, scallion (spring onions), celery, leek, spinach, mushroom, carrot, garlic chives, and edible black fungus.

Potstickers are always dumplings, but not all dumplings are potstickers. The biggest difference between these two are how they are cooked, but the cooking method has also changed the kinds of ingredients and preparation of both potstickers and dumplings over time. Potstickers are dumplings that are also pan-fried.

For dumplings, 🌾 all-purpose flour 🌾 is typically the best type to use. It has a moderate protein content, which gives the dumplings a tender and soft texture. 🍴 If you want a slightly denser dumpling, you can use 🌾 cake flour 🌾 or 🌾 self-rising flour 🌾, which have lower protein contents.

These dumplings start with all-purpose flour, which creates structure and holds the other ingredients together. Baking powder is a leavening agent, which means it releases gas that makes the dough expand. It's responsible for the dumplings' light and fluffy texture.

What are dumplings made of? The dumpling dough is made of three main ingredients: flour, water and salt.

Unlike dumplings, potstickers are made with a thin wrapper, sometimes referred to as a dumpling skin. This is because they are steam fried to get a crispy golden bottom layer and to ensure that the filling is juicy and delicious.

American dumplings may be of the filled pastry type (which are usually baked), or they may be little pieces of dough added to a savoury or sweet dish, in which case they are usually boiled. Baked sweet dumplings are a popular dessert in American cuisine.

Is it better to steam or pan fry dumplings? ›

The steaming process is what creates the shiny-looking soft exterior! Steaming is the traditional way of preparing dumplings and has never gone out of style. Many people around the world are loyal to this method of cooking and prefer it over pan-fried dumplings.

Prepare dumplings: Mix pork, garlic, egg, chives, soy sauce, sesame oil, and ginger in a large bowl until thoroughly combined. Place a dumpling wrapper on a lightly floured work surface and spoon about 1 tablespoon of the filling in the middle.

“If it's fairly lean meat to start with, the dumpling is going to be quite low in fat in that sense,” Austin said. The same goes for frozen dumplings you buy from the supermarket. As long as they're not pre-deep fried and contain whole, healthy ingredients they are an okay option, according to Austin.

Baozi. These dumplings, the first on this list that may make you wonder about the definition of dumplings, are made from wheat dough like many other dumplings. However, what sets baozi, also known as bao buns, is that the dough is made with yeast. This means that when the buns are steamed they rise into fluffy bread.

Xiaolongbao are often referred to as a kind of "dumpling", but should not be confused with Chinese jiaozi or wonton. In some parts of China and overseas, xiaolongbao may specifically refer to a kind of soup dumpling, the tangbao (Chinese: 汤包) of Jiangnan cuisine, which are strongly associated with Shanghai and Wuxi.

Thin, round, yellow wrapper, thinner than the Shanghai style wrappers that allows for a more delicate texture (3.5” diameter).