My mom’s secret recipe for creating the best pork dumplings. The dumplings are juicy, tender and taste so good even without any dipping sauce!
Dumplings are one of the most important foods in northern Chinese cuisine. Unlike potstickers served in Japan and in the US, dumplings are a staple for us and we enjoy them as a meal instead of appetizer. The other difference is we always cook with freshly made dumpling dough instead of frozen dumpling wrappers. Even when you buy dumpling wrappers at a vegetable market you will certainly find small packs of freshly machine-made dumpling wrappers that come in small plastic bags.
I have been spoiled with great homemade dumplings ever since I was a kid. My grandma was a northern lady who loved cooking and sharing food. And, she was really good at it! Preparing and making dumplings was one of her favorite tasks, and my dad learnt all the secrets from her, passing the the skill to my mom.
My grandma’s secret weapon to making great pork dumplings was fresh shrimp. In traditional pork dumpling recipes, home cooks usually use rehydrated dried shrimps to increase flavor. But my grandma insisted on using fresh shrimp. Not only does it add umami and depth of flavor, the texture of the dumplings will be perfect when you use fresh shrimp, producing some of the best dumplings I’ve ever had.
I remember the first time my cousin tried dumplings at my parents’ place. He was astound how great a pork dumpling can taste. He was still in middle school. Back then it’ was a luxury thing to use expensive fresh shrimp in the dumplings because dumplings are considered a common daily staple, like rice, and should be cheap to make. When he went back home and insisted on using shrimps in the dumplings, my uncle scolded him saying it’s a crazy thing to do. When my mom told me the story, I suddenly realized how special these dumplings are, and I’ve been eating them all the time.
Today I’m sharing this family recipe with you. It is simple, elegant, and fresh. You can use store bought dumpling wrappers as well. But if you’re into Chinese food, I highly recommend you to make the dumpling dough from scratch. To make the task easier, you can make steamed dumpling dough instead of boiled dumpling dough. Either way, these dumplings will turn out juicy, tender, and with great texture.
As I mentioned in my previous post, great dumplings emphasize the freshness of the filling and dough. By using homemade dumpling dough, not only do you create a soupy dumpling filling, you can make bigger dumplings that taste (and are more) satisfying. You’ll see my recipe has a very simple ingredient list. Once you’ve tried fresh dumplings, you’ll be surprised how flavorful they are. You’ll never go back ready made dumplings.
These dumplings are very satisfying and you can serve them as a main dish. You can add a simple appetizer, such as cucumber salad, wood ear mushroom salad, spinach salad, or you can serve the dumplings with millet congee and quick pickles. That’s exactly what we do in China.
For more filling recipes for dumplings, check out my favorite lamb dumpling recipe, vegetarian dumplings, and pork mushroom dumplings.
Cooking video
I recorded a short video to show you how easy it is to cook this dish. Find more videos to learn Chinese cooking on my YouTube channel!
Happy cooking!
Mom’s Best Pork Dumplings with Cabbage
Ingredients
- 1 pound (450 grams) ground pork (at least 20% fat)
- 1/2 pound (250 grams) shrimp (about 16 medium-size shrimp) , peeled and deveined and chopped to small pieces
- 1 tablespoon ginger , freshly grated
- 2 tablespoons light soy sauce (or regular soy sauce)
- 2 tablespoons Shaoxing wine (or dry sherry)
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon white pepper
- 1 pound (450 grams) napa cabbage
- 4 green onions , finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil
- 1 package frozen dumpling wrappers (or homemade steamed dumpling wrappers OR homemade boiled dumpling wrappers)
Instructions
Prepare filling
- Combine ground pork, shrimp, ginger, light soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, salt, and white pepper in a large bowl. Stir with a spatula until the ingredients are well combined and form a sticky paste. Thorough mixing is essential here, so your dumpling filling will stay together when you wrap dumplings. Cover with a plastic wrapper and allow to marinate in fridge until you’re ready to wrap the dumplings.
- Cut 6 to 8 pieces napa cabbage leaves (just enough to line the steamer) and keep for later. Cut the rest of the cabbage into small cubes and set aside.
- Sprinkle 2 pinches of salt onto the cabbage and mix well with your hands. Allow this to sit for 10 to 15 minutes. Use a few layers of cheesecloth or paper towel to squeeze out extra water.
- Just before wrapping dumplings, add the napa cabbage, green onion, and sesame oil into the pork mixture. Stir to mix well.
Wrap
- Work on the dumplings one by one. You can watch this video if you’re using frozen dumpling wrappers. Or watch this video if you’re using homemade dumpling wrappers.
- Scoop about 1 to 2 tablespoons (depends on the size of dumpling wrapper you use) of dumpling filling and place it in the center of the wrapper. If you’re using pre-made dumpling wrappers, dip your finger into a small bowl of water and wet the outer edge of the dumpling wrapper. Fold both sides into a half-moon shape and pinch the middle points together. Hold the dumpling with one hand and start sealing the edges into pleats with the other hand. Once you have sealed the dumpling, firmly press the pleated side with your fingers to make sure the dumpling is well sealed. If you put in too much filling and have trouble sealing the dumpling, remove extra filling and fold the dumpling again.
- If you plan to cook the dumplings immediately, place dumplings onto a well-floured cutting board about a finger width apart.
- If you plan to freeze the dumplings, line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and place dumplings on top.
Cook
- Line the bamboo steamers with napa cabbage leaves. Place dumplings into the steamer a finger width apart. Add two inches of water into a wok or a large pan that can comfortably fit your steamer. Place the steamer into the wok making sure the water doesn’t touch the dumplings when it begins to boil. Cover the steamer and cook over high heat for 10 minutes.
- You can also check this post for boiled dumplings for this post for cooking potsticker.
- Serve immediately.
Store
- Store the wrapped, uncooked dumplings in the freezer for up to 1 month. To freeze properly, seal the baking sheet tight with plastic wrapper and allow the dumplings to freeze completely. To save freezer space, transfer the frozen dumplings into large containers or a gallon bag. Be careful not break them when you stack the dumplings and do not place other things on top of your dumplings bag.
- To cook the frozen dumplings, steam directly from the freezer without thawing. It takes about 15 to 20 minutes to cook through.
I loved making these! My first time ever trying to make dumplings! How do you stop the wrapper from getting saggy as the contents shrink upon cooking? Other than saggy dumplings, they were delicious.
It’s common for the dumplings to sag a bit because the filling will shrink once cooked.
To make it less saggy, try to pack the filling tight without air bubbles in the middle.
Another method is to lightly salt the cabbage first and squeeze out the liquid. This method is commonly used for dumpling making so you can pack in a bit more cabbage and they won’t shrink a lot. Although I personally prefer to use the cabbage directly so the dumplings will be juicier (they need to be eaten fresh otherwise the juice will be slowly absorbed by the wrapper and the dumpling will become a bit saggy).
Hi Maggie! I’ve made these dumplings a few times now and they’re certainly a crowd pleaser (though I’ll never be able to pleat them as well as my mum!). I was just wondering how far in advance we could make the filling? Could we freeze it?
I think it’s totally fine to make the filling half a day or even a day in advance and store in the fridge but I wouldn’t add the napa cabbage to the filling until last minute. Because the salt will draw water from the cabbage and make the filling watery.
I wouldn’t freeze the filling just because the texture of the napa cabbage will turn weird (cause by the water inside to freeze then release).
If you really want to make the filling way advance, I would do most of the prep and then prepare the napa cabbage when you’re ready to wrap.
Hello, forgive me if this is in the post somewhere. What is the serving size? Please say a million.
The recipe makes 40 dumplings, which is good for 4 to 6 people (or more if you plan to serve it as an appetizer).
Delicious thank you! Loved them 🙂 I used the kitchen aid to roll wrappers 7 was too thin I’ll try 5-6 next
I made this using frozen wrappers, and they were great! When I froze the rest that I didn’t eat uncooked, the wrappers on a lot of them cracked. Is there anything I can do to prevent that in the future?
I’m afraid I don’t have a great solution for freezing the dumplings. The packaged wrappers can be quite fragile. When you thaw and refreeze them, the wrapper will lose moisture which leads to cracking. It would help if you use fresh packaged wrappers. Sometimes you can find them in bigger Asian grocery stores like H mart.
This Pork Dumplings with Cabbage recipe is absolutely delicious! I used Kikkoman Naturally Brewed Tamari Soy Sauce that I bought from Karman Foods. It’s perfect! Best paired with Vitasoy Lychee Flavor Vita Juice Drink.
Question: Do you chop or mince the shrimp? I don’t see any mention of that in the instructions. Thanks!
It should be chopped to small pieces (like the size of a green pea), so it’s easy to fill the dumpling and you can still feel the bites of shrimps.
Good solid recipe, I cook a lot, however, I’ve never made dumplings 🙂
Ironically, they are my favourite food, pan-fried.
This recipe was perfect, the link across to the potsticker cooking method also worked perfectly.
Thanks for posting this recipe!
Hello! Its my first time making pork dumplings and the recipe is simple enough to follow, so I was wondering if you can make them without the shrimp?
Thanks C
Yes you definitely can! Simply replace the shrimp with equal amount of ground pork will work well.
So good! Instructions are perfect!
Can I use book chop instead of Napa cabbage?
Can I use bok choy instead of Napa cabbage?
This really is the best dumpling recipe! I’m about to make them for the third time, and they are soo good fresh of course but I especially love having extra to store in the freezer, such a treat!
Very tasty. After the first few I was able to make respectable dumplings. This recipe makes a lot of dumplings so I suggest you cut by 1/2 the first time you make them, though they can be frozen after they are cooked. Be sure and try several dipping sauces.
I have made these dumplings twice and looooved them each time! I switch out the shrimp with carrots since I rarely have shrimp on hand. The dumplings cook in 10 minutes each batch and are so delicious! I’ve served to both friends and family, and everyone was disappointed when they were gone. 😉
Always fantastic.
Made it last night! It was very good and full of flavor. I boiled them and made the dough from your recipe. Everything turned out just perfect. Thank you so much!
This was my first ever attempt at dumplings and they turned out great! I used my bamboo steamer. I cut the recipe in half and still ended up with 38 dumplings. I froze a small batch to let my Chinese neighbor try them out. I decided to use store bought “Northern Style” dumpling wrappers and they worked fine.
These are delicious! We have tried a few different dumpling recipes over the years and never found one that was to our liking. We made these today and the dumplings were quickly gobbled up. This recipe is a keeper, thanks for sharing!