Title: Golden Mandu Korean Dumplings
Categories: Korean, Dumplings, Tofu, Beef, Dips
Yield: 17 servings
Mandu filling:
10 oz Firm tofu
8 oz Kimchi; minced
12 oz Extra lean ground beef
2 Green onions; minced
2 cl Garlic; minced
1 tb Corn starch
1 tb Toasted sesame seeds
2 ts Sesame oil
1 Egg white; lightly beaten
1 ts Salt
1/2 ts Black pepper
Mandu wrappers:
1 pk Round egg roll wrappers
- (gyoza)
Vegetable oil
Water
Dipping sauce (Chojang):
3 tb Soy sauce
2 tb Rice vinegar
1/2 ts Sesame oil
1 ts Garlic; minced
1/2 ts Red pepper flakes
Mandu, Korean dumplings, can be boiled in water then served in
soups. Or serve them like potstickers by frying them on one side
then steaming them until done. Serve fried mandu with a
soy-vinegar dipping sauce. If you prefer, you can make the
stuffing without tofu (tubu in Korean), substituting ground beef
or pork, or even ground turkey instead.
Make the mandu filling:
Wrap the tofu in cheesecloth or a clean kitchen towel. Squeeze out
the excess water. Crumble the tofu into a mixing bowl. Place the
kimchi in a fine-mesh sieve or cheesecloth and press or squeeze to
remove excess moisture. Add the kimchi to the bowl. Add the
remaining mandu filling ingredients to the bowl and mix thoroughly.
At this point, the mandu mixture may be covered and refrigerated
until ready to fill the dumplings. (It will keep as long as one
day.)
Stuff and cook the mandu:
For best results, line 2 baking sheets with waxed paper, then dust
a layer of corn starch on the waxed paper to keep the mandu from
sticking. Set out a small dish of water. Place several dumpling
wrappers on a cutting board. Fill each with about 1 teaspoon of
filling. Dip your finger in the water and run it over the edge of
the dumpling skin. Fold the top over and press to seal, removing as
much air as possible. Set the mandu on the prepared baking sheets
while you stuff the remaining dumpling skins.
Note:
Koreans traditionally curve the mandu into a ring shape, so the
ends meet and are sealed with water. This type of shape is ideal
for soups, but for fried mandu, I prefer the flatter, half-moon
shapes as described above. If you have one of the potsticker
gadgets that folds and seals the dumplings in one motion, you'll
find the process goes much quicker. You can also freeze the stuffed
mandu on a corn starch dusted baking sheet to keep them from
sticking together, then transfer to an air-tight container and
freeze until ready to use.
Heat a skillet with just enough vegetable oil to coat the bottom
surface. (To speed up the cooking process, use two skillets.) When
the oil is very hot, gently place a layer of stuffed mandu in the
skillet, being careful not to overlap them. When the mandu are
golden brown on the bottom, flip them over. Quickly add 2
tablespoons water to the pan, cover and steam the mandu until
cooked through, about 2 minutes. Uncover the pan and place the
mandu on a serving dish (you can keep them warm in a low oven
while you cook the remaining mandu. Serve the mandu with dipping
sauce.
Make the dipping sauce:
Combine all ingredients. Serve the dipping sauce in one communal
bowl, or set out one small bowl and plate per person.
