Gyoza is Chinese dumplings that ground pork and vegetables wrapped in round (pasta like) flour skins and pan-fried. Isn’t Gyoza Chinese food then? What is it doing in Japanese cooking 101? Yes, gyoza is originally from Chinese fried dumplings, but it is so popular and rooted well in Japanese cooking today. It is crispy outside and juicy inside dipped in tangy sauce….mmm, it’s so good that you would not care where it is actually from.
Gyoza is found at Chinese restaurants in Japan, but also a staple dish at Ramen noodle restaurants. Freshly made gyoza at restaurants is wonderful, but it is not that hard to make gyoza at home as good as restaurants especially if you use pre-made Gyoza skins (wrappers). It is a little work to wrap filling with gyoza skins one by one, but it’s well worth it.
The most difficult part to make Gyoza is how to wrap the meat in the skins. Well, it’s not that hard if you watch our video. We’ll show you a couple of ways to shape it. Or make it however makes you happy, it will still taste good.
Meat used in Gyoza is usually pork in Japan, but it could be chicken if you like. We used cabbage in this recipe because it is easy to get at any supermarket, but you can also use nappa cabbege. If you can find Chinese chives, use it instead of green onions since the smell of the vegetable is crucial for Gyoza. However, green onion is OK , like in this recipe, as long as you use enough garlic which compensates the aroma.
Gyoza Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup cabbage (cooked and minced)
- 1/2 lb ground pork
- 4-5 green onions (chopped finely)
- 2 Tbsp soy sauce
- 1 1/2 Tbsp Sake
- 1 Tbsp sesame oil
- 1-2 cloves garlic (grated)
- 2 Tbsp cornstarch
- 30 gyoza wrappers
- 1-2 Tbsp oil
- 1/3 cup water
Dipping Sauce
- 3 Tbsp soy sauce
- 3 Tbsp Rice Vinegar
- 1 tsp chili oil (Rayu or sesame oil)
Instructions
- Cook cabbage in boiling water in a pot for 1-2 minutes. Cool and mince.
- In a large bowl, add the first 8 ingredients and mix well.
- Take a sheet of gyoza wrapper in your hand and place a tablespoon size of meat mixture in the center of the wrapper. Moisten the edge along the lower half of the wrapper and fold the upper half of the wrapper up to meet the moistened edge. Fold one of the edges in a series of pleats (about 6), leaving the other edge smooth. Press the edges together to seal the gyoza. Another simpler way to fold is to first press the smooth edges together and then fold both edges into pleats. (This can sound a little confusing, but it’s easy after watching the video.) Repeat for the rest of the wrappers.
- Heat a pan at medium high heat and add oil. Place gyoza on a pan and cook until the bottom becomes golden brown.
- Add water and immediately cover with a lid. Cook until water boils away.
- Mix soy sauce, rice vinegar, and chili oil together for dipping sauce.
Video
29 Comments
Thank you for this awesome recipe!! I subscribe to your channel on youtube and I just love all your awesome recipes and how well you show how to do them! I made these gyoza tonight and they were amazing! I put twice as much cabbage (because it’s my favorite) and added shredded carrots and my boyfriend and I thought they were delicious! So thank you very much! 🙂
Hi Kelly, Thank you for trying our recipe! Your gyoza sounds really good and healthy! I’m glad that you enjoyed it.
I would like to try this recipe but was wondering if there is a substitute for the gyoza wrappers since I can’t find any locally available.
I have access to eggroll and wonton wrappers at a local store and was not sure if either would make a suitable substitute.
Any ideas?
I’ve never tried eggroll skins or wonton wrappers, but they might work. I’m not sure. If you try them, let us know how it went!
I finally got around to trying this recipe and substituted wonton wrappers for gyoza wrappers.
The first batch I trimmed the square wrappers into the round shape needed to form the traditional dumpling shape. They seemed to be a wee bit small but tasted fine all the same.
The second batch I tried using the full square but shaped it into something similar to steamed pork buns. While not traditional, I could add more filling and didn’t waste any wrapper.
I will definitely use this recipe again.
Hi Steve,
thanks for the up date with your Gyoza experiment, and congratulations on your success using wonton wrappers. Now I want to try some with them!
I just wanted to say me, my boyfriend, and best friend tried these and they were amazing!!!!! so yummy and filling thank you so much we love your youtube channel and how useful they are <3 thank you so much for showing us these amazing recipies
Hi Brittany,
You are welcome. I’m glad that you enjoyed the gyoza! Thanks for watching our videos 🙂
Just found this recipe and this site: I am so excited to try this out! One question tho: for the frying oil, what oil would you recommend for a truly japanese flavor?
Sara,
vegetable oil such as canola is good.
Hi Ladies, thanks for this wonderful recipe and the video too! I am keen to try it this weekend. One quick question, is the sake you used the same as cooking sake? or is it the drinking sake? I am not really sure if both are just the same….Thanks!!
Henny,
you can use either one.
How much chives should I substitute for the green onions? Thank you and I love your recipes. It’s hard to find traditional japanese recipes online without things being added. Nickson
anne,
the same amount is fine.
Hi,
Im writing from Venezuela. Thanks for this recipe.
My question is, can i use mirin insted of sake for this type of preparation? im going to cook gyozas for the first time!!!
Miguel,
you can omit Sake ( not substituting).
What is the purpose of the cornstarch?
Brandy,
It is to stop the juice from vegetables running out from the dumplings.
If I use chicken or either meat for that matter will it be completely cooked inside just by following these steps? Thank you.
Denise,
Cooking time will depend on the type and amount of meat. You may need to experiment a bit. Good luck!
Hi ! and greets from Germany =)
I just made them 1 Hour ago ! DELICIOUS
I love it this is defenetly one of my favourite dishes.
Did everything like in the Recipe expect i made the Wraps myself.
240g usual Flour
120ml warm water with 1/2 tea spoon salt
slowly add water to the flour and mix it THATS IT ! easy as that ^^
this is for ~30 wraps
Daniel,
glad you liked our recipe! And thanks for the recipe for the wraps, sounds very good!
Hi Noriko,,
I tried this recipe and been hooked with it that I can even eat 10 pcs in one sitting…lol! Anyways, I omitted the sake, instead I put sugar. and still went fine….By the way, if I want something authentic, can I use Shaoxing cooking wine instead of sake? Sake is unavailable that’s why.
Thanks and more power!
Sam,
if you want to make authentic Japanese dumplings, don’t use Shaoxing wine because that’s Chinese. If you don’t have sake, just omit it.
I made this for dinner tonight. I can’t get over how simple and delicious it was! Crispy, tender, flavorful and filling! I love your recipes and how you explain things. Thank you for making it easy to get authentic taste while keeping it homemade and easy on the wallet
Wynn,
glad you liked our Gyoza recipe! If you like Gyoza, you may like Shumai too. Try it!
I have been making these Gyoza for many occasions & everyone who tried loved them – thanks for the recipe! Love it!! However, those times were made on the day of cooking itself. I was wondering, how many days advanced can I make these? Any idea if they store well in freezer (of course will thaw for a couple of hrs before cooking)?
I used this recipe to make gyoza three times, and it always comes out great! I decided to combine ground beef with ground pork and add a little cheese.Thank you for the clear instructions and video. What a delicious treat! 🙂
Hi. is there no salt added to the mixture? Thank you Ãœ