Prepare Chicken Mushroom Gyoza

Gyoza, derived from the Chinese dumpling Jiaozi, are a popular Japanese dumpling that's both steamed and pan-fried. This gives these potstickers a crisp golden brown bottom and slick noodle-like top, which is like having both a fried dumpling and steamed dumpling all in one bite!

While traditional Gyoza is made using ground pork, cabbage and garlic chives, it's a very versatile dumpling and can be filled with anything from Banana Cheesecake to Apple Pie Filling. For this lighter version of the porcine classic, I've filled the gyoza with ground chicken, sweet onions and fragrant shiitake mushrooms.

Although the pleated folds along the edge may merely look like a decorative flourish, they actually have a function. The pleats cause the dumpling to curl, which in turn provides a flat bottom and stable base that allows the gyoza to stand upright in the pan so only the bottom gets browned. There are a few gyoza/potsticker presses that are supposed to make this easier, but the pleats they make are more decorative than functional, which is why I'd encourage you to try and fold these by hand. Perhaps I'm just weird, but I actually find something calming and meditative about folding dumplings once I get into the groove. By your fifth dumpling, you should have the pleating down, and by your 10th you'll be cranking out potstickers like a pro!

These Chicken Mushroom Gyoza go great with a sauce made from rice vinegar and soy sauce or even just a bowl of your favorite Asian hot sauce. I used some XO Sauce I picked up the last time I was in Hong Kong, but Sriracha or Sambal Oelek would work great as well.