When I was a kid, our house was always full of yummy food and our freezer was always full of trays of frozen homemade potstickers. You see, every few months my mom would go on a huge potsticker making spree and we would have enough of them to feed an army for months. Growing up it was almost frustrating, there was never any room in the freezer for anything else (like ice cream!), but now, many years later, I really wish that my freezer was always full of these delectable little dumplings. Unfortunately, the only way that is going to happen is if I do it myself. So the other day I called up my sister and had her come over and help me (it's way more fun with someone else!). We used my mom's general recipe (she never does the same thing twice, making it up as she goes along) and cooked them as we went. In fact we were stuffed before we were even finished. Full step-by-step pictures and instructions for Homemade Pork Potstickers after the jump, and here's a video of my sister showing off her mad-potsticker making skills.

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Potstickers
From YumSugar's Mom

Note: You can divide this recipe into thirds.

2-3 Medium Sized Heads of Cabbage
1 1/2 pounds of ground pork
1/4 cup of salt (more for 3 heads of cabbage)
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 cup + 2 tbsp of soy sauce
3 packs of potsticker skins - try to find the circular ones - I like ones that are a bit thicker, the thin ones seem too chewy

soy sauce
ginger
garlic
red chili peppers (fresh or dried)

Note: I used two medium sized cabbage heads, however I think the mixture would have been better with three. You may need more skins, I used two packs and needed three.

Make the potsticker mixture:

1. Rinse and shred cabbage into large mesh strainer - if you don't have a strainer, shred into large bowl.
2. Use a knife to chop any large pieces that did not shred well.
3. Pour salt onto cabbage to draw liquid out. Mix thoroughly into the cabbage.
4. Let set for a while (I'm only patient enough for 10 minutes, I've known people to go at least 30 if not longer). The longer you let it set, the more liquid you will draw out. If you have used a strainer, be sure to set it in a sink or over a large bowl. Once the time has passed, use your hands to squeeze as much liquid out of the cabbage as possible. If you have not used a strainer, you will need to drain the liquid out of the large bowl. Also, if this is the first time you've strained cabbage, you'll be completely surprised by how much liquid there is.
5. Once cabbage is strained, add ground pork and minced garlic. Mix thoroughly.
6. Pour soy sauce over mixture. At this point you may also want to add sesame oil, siracha or any other sauces. Mix thoroughly.

Make the potsticker:

1. Remove a potsticker skin from package, wet the edge of half the skin.
2. Place small spoonful of pork mixture in center of skin.
3. Now here's the tricky part. Essentially you need to seal the dumpling so that the mixture is inside, but it will take practice to make it look right. Even if yours are not perfect, they'll still taste great. To make them like my mom always does, pick up the skin and carefully fold it in half without touching wet side to dry (you'll have a taco like shape in your hand). Starting at one end, carefully pinch and fold the dry side to the wet side, working your way to the other end (be sure to checkout the video how-to at the end of this post).
4. Set aside until you're ready to cook them. Repeat until you run out of skins or mixture.

Cook the potstickers:

1. Use enough oil to coat the pan (I find it easier to use a non-stick pan). Heat on high until oil is shimmering.
2. Place potstickers in pan in a circular pattern. Do not move them again until they're finished cooking.
3. Add 1/4 cup of water, cover and reduce heat to medium. Cook for 4 minutes.
4. Open lid, add additional 1/4 cup of water, cover and cook for 2 minutes.
5. Remove lid and continue to cook until water evaporates.
6. Once water evaporates, continue to cook for another minute. The bottom of the potstickers should be nice and brown and the insides should be fully cooked (it should look a bit like cooked sausage). Remove from pan and serve!I flipped one over to show you what the bottoms should look like.

The Sauce:

1. In a bowl, place several cloves of minced garlic, crushed peppers and a few slices of fresh ginger.
2. Cover with soy sauce and muddle.

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