Turkey Ginger Potstickers

Study Break!

These are especially awesome for being (besides delicious) quick and easy to prepare once you have them all made. They freeze great, and don't need to be defrosted before cooking if you choose to do that.

Yield: feeds 12-15 people, or that many servings for yourself :)

Ingredients

Wonton wrappers, square preferably, round works too. Usually by the tofu at grocery stores.

Vegetable oil 

Filling

1 head napa cabbage, very finely shredded. Can sub in baby bok choy, sliced finely

1/3 lb ground  raw turkey- can sub pork if you like
                              Reconstituted mushrooms for vegetarian potstickers4-5 carrots, peeled and grated
2-3 bunches scallions, sliced thinly, 2 or 3 reserved for sauce
1-2 bunches cilantro, chopped
                         Can omit if you're one of those people that don't like cilantro
3" small knob fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
1/2 head fresh garlic, peeled and finely chopped
1 1/2 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp chili oil
1 1/2-2 tbsp chili paste or sriracha (rooster) sauce, optional
1/2-1 tsp ground white pepper, to taste
1 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 tsp salt, optional
1/3 cup kosher salt, optional (don't worry, this much won't end up in the final product)

Dipping Sauce

1/3 cup Soy sauce
3 tbsp Rice wine vinegar
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp sesame oil
1/4 tsp ground white pepper
optional: 1-2 cloves finely chopped garlic, 1/2 tsp sriracha sauce, 1/2 tsp sesame seeds

Optional Step: This is optional due to the salt content it incorporates. The point of this is to remove the extra water from the cabbage.

In a colander over a bowl or sink, lay down 1 to 2 inches of shredded cabbage, and sprinkle with about a tablespoon of kosher salt. Repeat, continuing until all the cabbage is layered with salt in the colander. Use your body weight to press very firmly on the cabbage in the colander, and then let it sit for 10-20 minutes, more time is better, if you have it. Roughly toss and then press every ten minutes or so within the colander. When you get sick of playing with limp cabbage, press firmly one final time, to try to get as much residual water out as possible.

Now here comes the counter-intuitive part, that removes the salt. RINSE the cabbage under very cold running water, stirring it with your hands to make sure all the salt can be rinsed out. The water you removed with the salt will not be reabsorbed. Again, press firmly with your weight to drain as much of the rinsing water as possible.

 Preparation

Following the optional step, if you chose to do it, combine all ingredients for the filling in a large bowl, and stir (with your hands) to combine thoroughly.

 The folding normally takes some time, so I usually do it sitting at the kitchen table while watching TV or talking with friends. Fill a small bowl with water, and place it next to your work station.

On a dry surface (plate, cutting board, etc), lay a wonton wrapper flat. put about half a teaspoon in the middle of the wrapper. I use two small spoons to make sure the filling stays together while doing this.

Wet one or two fingers, and trace around the outside of the wrapper. I have made you a handy dandy guide to follow. You want to make sure all your edges really are sealed well with water, and pinched/crimped shut. If you want to get fancy, you can make little pleats along the edges.

Once you get the hang of how much filling you should use, you can lay out and fill many at once.
Keep them on a dry surface until they're ready to cook. If you freeze them before cooking, lay them out in a single layer on a baking sheet, and once frozen through they can be put in a plastic bag. When they're freezing, you don't want them to be touching or they'll stick together.

Cooking: Batches
Grab a large cup, and fill it with water. This is for steaming the potstickers.
In a frying pan (the wider the better) that has a fitted lid, heat about a tablespoon oil on the low end of medium-high heat. When hot, carefully place the potstickers one by one into the pan, not letting them touch. If they touch during the first 30 or so seconds, they'll stick together. Which is fine, if you want one big potsticker. Jiggle the pan after about a minute to make sure the potstickers aren't sticking to the bottom.

When the bottom looks dark golden, crispy, and delicious (about 4 minutes), pour in enough water so there's about 1/4" on the bottom of the pan, and immediately put the lid on the pan.
Keep the lid on! Again, jiggle the pan to make sure they're not sticking. The water should not evaporate immediately, if it does, you need to add more now, and next time add more to begin with.

This is normally when I make the sauce, if you haven't already. A shallow bowl is great, stir everything together.

When the water is completely evaporated, the potsticker wrappers should look very slightly translucent, and darker than before they were cooked. If there are parts of the wrapper that are not cooked, add a little more water and cover again until the wrapper looks uniform.

I allow my potstickers to get crispy again by leaving them in the pan for about 30 seconds to a minute after the water has evaporated. Make sure to jiggle the pan so they don't stick to the bottom!

Slide your potstickers off onto your plate, dip them in the sauce, and eat!