Pot Stickers

Step 1Place the shredded cabbage into a fine mesh strainer or colander set in a bowl. Toss the cabbage with the salt and let it stand at room temperature for 20 minutes. Using your hands, squeeze the excess moisture from the cabbage and place the cabbage in a large bowl. Discard the liquid.

Step 2In the bowl with the cabbage, stir together 5 sliced green onions, garlic, 2 tablespoons of soy sauce, ginger, 1 tablespoon of hoisin sauce, and sesame oil. Using a fork, stir in the ground pork. Continue stirring until well-combined; do not over-mix or the filling will be tough. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate the filling until well-chilled, at least 30 minutes.

Step 3Working with one dumpling wrapper at a time, scoop about 1 tablespoon of filling into the center of the wrapper. (Keep the remaining dumpling wrappers covered with plastic wrap to prevent them from drying out.)

Step 4For the regular folded dumplings: Moisten the edges of the wrapper with water and fold the dumpling into a half-moon shape, pressing to seal. Transfer the potsticker to a baking sheet, flat-side down, and repeat with the remaining dumpling wrappers and filling.

Step 5For the pleated dumplings: Moisten the edges of the wrapper with water. Hold the dumpling in the palm of your hand like a taco, pinch one bottom corner closed, and begin to pleat one edge of the wrapper, working your way to the other end, pressing the pleated edge into the other side of the wrapper as you go. (If needed, add water to the pleats so they stick.) Transfer the potsticker to a baking sheet, flat-side down, and repeat with the remaining dumpling wrappers and filling.

Step 6To a large nonstick skillet, add 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil. Arrange the desired amount of pot stickers, flat-side down, in the pan and turn the heat to medium. Cook, without moving the pot stickers, until they are golden on the bottom, 2 to 3 minutes. Immediately add ⅓ cup water and cover. Let simmer, covered, for 3 minutes (or 5 minutes if the pot stickers are frozen). Uncover the pot stickers and continue cooking until the water evaporates and the potstickers form a deeply golden crust, about 2 minutes more. Remove the pot stickers to a serving plate and repeat the process with more potstickers, if you like.

Step 7Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the rice vinegar, the remaining ¼ cup soy sauce, the remaining 1 sliced green onion, and the remaining 1 teaspoon hoisin sauce.

Step 8Serve the pot stickers hot with the dipping sauce and chili oil, if you like.

Step 9Freezing instructions: The uncooked pot stickers can be tightly wrapped with plastic wrap and refrigerated for up to 1 day. They can also be frozen on a sheet tray for 1 hour and transferred to a zip-top bag for up to 1 month. There is no need to thaw the dumplings; add 2 to 4 minutes to the cook time.