Do you cook pot-stickers?

[Paper Roses]

I love them. At our local Chinese restaurants, they are called Peking Ravioli. Available around here in grocery stores as pot stickers.

I enjoy them but do not like them steamed and cooking then in a skillet is messy. Can I cook them in the oven with --perhaps a little oil, and come out with the same product? I don't have them often but whenever my son-in-law brings me a big bag from Costco, I am compelled to do something. I have a bag now and want to take a gamble at baking them. Nothing on the package about it. Do you think it would work?

[NJCher]

1. as long as you use a lot of oil

and keep basting them to prevent them from drying out.

Do you have an electric skillet? That's how I do them. It cuts way down on the mess. I also make sure I allow plenty of time to do them, as that is the key to not having oil splattering all over.


Cher

[Warpy]

2. My favorite way is to use a cast iron frypan

with a thin coat of oil. Pop in the (frozen) pot stickers, pour in a third of a small can of chicken stock, wait for it to boil, pour in the second third, wait for it to boil, pour in the third and reduce the heat, allowing the liquid to reduce to nearly nothing. Then use a spatula to ease the stuck pot stickers out (the glue will be gummy while they're in the pan) and put them stuck side up on a plate. The flavor is particularly intense with the reduced chicken stock.

All the frypan needs is some water put in while it's still hot so the stuff in the bottom dissolves. Then it's just a matter of swishing out the pan and drying it on the stove as usual.

While you might be able to do them in oil in the oven, you'd most likely end up with dried out dough on the top and little caramelization on the bottom and a mess in the pan, but you're certainly welcome to try it out. Deep frying them might be more successful.

Pot stickers are something that is so good that the mess is worth it, IMO. I usually boil them and serve them with a couple of dipping sauces, one sour and one hot. However, the stuck ones are a special treat.

[pscot]

4. what warpy said

[Tab]

3. My concern about the oven with lots of oil is fire

Cooking with oil in a skillet can be messy, but you can get one of those splatter screens to put on top of your skillet.



That's also how I do bacon, 'cause splattering oil makes a mess.

I'd be careful using oil within the oven; if it sets off a fire, you got a problem. However, if you insist, and you do get a fire, reach for the baking soda, not water.

It took me the longest time to realize they were called Peking Ravioli. I'd always asked for steamed dumplings (which is how I prefer them) but never found them on the menu. One day, I forget how, I realized what they were called in the chinese restaurants. Apparently when they were introduced to the states, the places started calling them Peking Ravioli to convey to Americans something similar. I would have ordered them many more times but "ravioli" conjured up some kind of sauced, maybe cheesy thing.

[pinto]

5. I do them this way -

If frozen, I defrost in the fridge. Let dry a bit on paper towels. In a wok pour enough chicken stock to cover where the pot stickers will sit. Doesn't take much. (At this point I add a round rack above the stock to steam them).

Bring stock to a boil, add the pot stickers, flat side down, bring down heat to a steady hard simmer. Whether on a rack or directly in the stock, cover tightly with a domed lid that will sit tight inside the wok but above the dumplings. If directly in the stock give the wok a quick shake to prevent sticking. Steam / simmer till rice flour dumpling is solid and the filling is firm. It's pretty quick.

Remove and set aside. Dump out the stock, wipe down the wok and cover the bottom with oil that can take some quick heat without smoking. (Here's where you can add some hot oil for a bite). Bring up to medium high heat, add the dumplings and swirl, swirl, swirl the wok till you get a good brown on the base and nothing sticks. It's quick.

Remove, drain a bit and set aside on a warm plate. Serve with whatever dipping sauces you like. Sounds like a lot of steps but in the kitchen it's pretty straight forward. Have fun!

Serve hot.

[pinto]

6. (aside) I've heard that the shape echoes the hats worn by Mandarin emperors and the Mandarin elite.

[azurnoir]

7. cast iron skillet that you can cover and peanut oil

defrost frozen ones first add about 1/4 inch peanut oil to skillet and cover it for about 5 minutes-check after about 3 to make sure they're not getting too brown

for from scratch steam first can be with steamer or in skillet about 1/2 inch of water cover and steam for 5-7 minutes and then remove wipe any excess water from skillet and proceed as above, you can fry first then steam by adding water after they're browned but they may have an oily coating on them