Gluten & Dairy Free Pork Potstickers with sesame honey dipping sauce.
This recipe is EXCEPTIONALLY good! By and far the best potstickers I have ever had!! SO worth the time and effort it take to prepare them. Best of all- if you take an afternoon to make a big batch you can freeze a bunch of them to eat for the next few weeks! The flavor of the filling, the delicious dipping sauce and the perfectly chewy steamed dumpling dough!! (using my new incredible wonton dough!)
I went with pork sausage for the filling as I think it tastes best! But- feel free to use any ground meat- even a vegan if that’s your preference!
Best of all there’s a lot of flexibility around how thick you roll out the dough! If you want a thicker chewier dumplings them you don’t need to go too thin with your roll out process. If you prefer a more delicate lighter dumpling then roll the dough almost paper thin!
As for shaping- I am not going to pretend to be an expert. I was very awkwardly learning as I was going! So I didn’t feel confident to be the one to teach you how to fold them up. For this time I’m going to direct you to the simple YouTube video that I watched to learn! :) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J8THxE9Gk1o
If you want to just speed through and not worry about giving them the fancy pleated look you can just put a little egg wash or water around the edges of the circular wonton dough then place filling into the center of a circle of dough- seal it shut by folding over once and pressing the edges together. This will give you a dumpling that looks like a peirogi or ravioli! Less snazzy looking of course but they will taste exactly the same and you’ll whip through making them much quicker :).
IMPORTANT TIPS For working with this wonton dough:
Always make sure to knead it until it is completely smooth and well combined! It will be a bit sticky when you do this and that is how its supposed to be. Don’t question it and start adding more starch or flour :) Follow the gram measurements exactly! I left the dough a bit sticky so that you can use a generous amount of starch when rolling it out. Sometimes you’ll need to gather the bits and rolls them out a number of times and each time more starch will be incorporated into the dough. The dough will allow for that and whatever you are making will turn out fabulous. BUT You can always add a little water if it gets too dry while working with it! Sometimes when I regather scraps of dough and knead them back together I wet my hands a little first! When it gets super dry- it gets harder to roll out!
DO NOT let the dough dry out in the fridge!! You can make it several days in advance or even make it and freeze it. It is essential to store it in wrapped tightly in plastic with no air exposure or in a well sealed Tupperware container!
If you are rolling out the dough fresh you will likely only need a tiny bit of egg wash or water to seal it around the inside edges when shaping it into various dumplings, egg rolls or rangoons. However- IF you have pre-rolled and cut the dough into wonton squares or circles ( I recommend storing them with a bit of starch in between them wrapped up well in the fridge). then you may need to brush the whole surface of the (INSIDE) of the dough where the filling goes with egg wash or water as I have in my step by step photos so that it seals up nicely!
When rolling it out- I like to pick it up gently & swirl it around on the parchment often and or flip it to make sure that its not sticking! I often keep adding starch to my parchment/work surface as I go.
I recommend using this dough first for boiled/steamed applications like dumplings/postickers or wonton soup first! Its much easier and extremely forgiving. Working with ultra thin dough for frying requires more finesse and practice.
Dumplings, potstickers, egg rolls, wontons for soup, or Rangoons can all be assembled and then frozen before you cook them!! Lay them out flat on a starch covered baking sheet/pan and freeze them. Then once they are frozen they can be stacked in a freezer safe container! Add just a bit more time to cooking when cooking them from frozen!
TO MAKE IT EGG FREE please use “Just Egg” Egg replacer. Its possible that aquafaba would be a basic substitute as well but I have not tested that out to know for sure. IF you experiment please leave a comment and share how it goes!
Ingredients (Some of these are affiliate links that earn me a few cents if you shop using them! :)
Better Batter Gluten Free Orginal Blend
This flour blend continues to amaze me. It can do so many things better than most other blends that I have tried. As a result its extremely popular. Around the holidays it tends to sell out everywhere. Usually its available on Amazon and at Walmart. Lately I have been ordering it from the Better Batter website directly. When they sell out- they tend to restock pretty quickly. Check back within a day or two if they are sold out when you look. I buy it in bulk now (Up to 40 lbs at a time) as I cant risk running out. I use it in too many recipes that we love.
What if you cant get your hands on it? This may be the case if you live outside the US. My friend Nichole from Gluten Free on a Shoestring has figured out a mock recipe for better batter. Her version should work great in this recipe! The owner (Naomi) of better batter has confirmed that the mix is similar to the official version.
Better Batter so kindly offered me a 30% off promo code to share with all of you! This can be used as often as you would like for every single purchase made directly on BetterBatter.com Use the code: BakingAngell30
Expandex
This bread is truly only possible because of the magic of expandex. It is a modified form of tapioca starch that was formulated to improve gluten free baking. The word Modified tends to worry people- so let me explain further. Essentially they studied tapioca and removed portions of it leaving only the parts that would allow for it to cause amazing elasticity (aka its name) in gluten free recipes. This flour allows me to get an incredible rise with everything I use it in. It traps the air bubbles in the dough just like regular flour with gluten does! Its honestly incredible. If you eat any processed or store bought foods you have eaten many forms of modified starch. Its nothing new- its just semi new to the home baker. Its non gmo and I typically get it from the brand Judee’s on amazon. Under no conditions can you sub it out for another regular starch. For my wonton dough it is what is giving it the incredible stretch and versatility that it has!!
Outside of the US there is a product called Ultratex 3 I have not worked with it but from what I understand its comparable! I would use that in the exact same quantity as the expandex amount that I call for.
Tapioca Starch:
(Or corn starch is the second best option) Is fantastic for rolling out this dough!! It takes away all stickiness and aids in creating an awesome chewy or crispy texture when steamed or fried. Using better batter for rolling out does not work as well as it tends to dry the dough out since its highly absorbent. Tapioca starch/flour can be found in most grocery stores and on amazon. I typically buy the brand Bobs Red Mill.
My favorite tools for working with wonton dough:
Anytime I want to cut the dough into a round shape I like to use this set of cookie/biscuit cutters. The circular shape is ideal for potstickers and dumplings!
Over the years I have had a lot of rolling pins. Once I got a simple French style one I got rid of the rest of them. You really don’t need anything clunky or heavy! This style allows for the best control of pressure to get a thin dough that doesn't rip! This is the one that I use.
While not essential using an Italian pasta crank machine is definitely really helpful! Its one of those kitchen tools that you don’t NEED but they are handy to have and making homemade pasta and in this case wonton dough is always fun. It will allow you to get ultra thin long rolls of dough that are quick to cut into squares for rangoons and egg rolls. Just make sure to use enough starch between each pass to get the dough thinner so it doesn’t stick to the machine.
Parchment Paper: Any brand will do! While I could roll dough directly out on the counter I prefer using a big sheet of parchment- it just makes it easier to avoid sticking issues.
Gluten & Dairy Free Potstickers
Ingredients
- 1 batch of gluten free Wonton Dough. Rolled out thin cut into 3 1/2 inch wide circles.
- 1 Lb UNCOOKED Ground Pork (Chicken, turkey or vegan ground meat can also be used!) but pork is my preference.
- 1 Tbsp Fresh Grated Ginger
- 1 Tbsp Sesame Oil
- 1 1/2 Tsp Salt
- 6 green onions finely chopped
- 1/2 Tsp Black Pepper
- 1 Tbsp Sriracha
- 1 Large egg or Just Egg Replacer
- 3 Tbsp Honey
- 1 Tsp Sriracha
- 1/4 cup of Gluten Free Soy Sauce
- 1 Tsp sesame oil
Instructions
- Make and prepare your gluten free wonton dough. Roll out thin- you will know its perfect when the dough starts to wrinkle and wave (It doesn't need to be paper thin.) Cut into 3 1/2 inch wide circles and store them in a sealed container (layered with tapioca to prevent sticking) so that they don't dry out.
- Mix the filling ingredients together in a bowl - stir well and set aside.
- Assemble: Use your finger to do a rim of egg wash or water around the edges of the circle Place 1 1/2 Tsp of filling into the center. Fold up the dough making sure to seal it well! Set aside on a tapioca dusted baking tray and repeat with all the remaining potstickers.
- Cook: Its important to first steam your potstickers THEN sear them to get a little crispiness (the searing step is optional). Using a good nonstick pot is important for this otherwise you may run into issues with sticking. Heat up a dry skillet for 5 minutes over medium high heat. Drizzle 1-2 tbsp of oil over the surface and add 6-10 potstickers depending on the size of the pan. Pour in 1/2 cup of water which should cause steam due to the pan being hot. Cover immediately and set timer for 6 minutes. It will need to steam for 6-8 minutes- keep an eye on your water if you run out before this time you can add a bit more.
- After the water evaporates remove the lid and allow the bottoms of the potstickers to crisp up in the pan. The amount of time that this takes will depend on how hot your pan is. After they are crisp to your preference remove them from the pan and repeat with more potstickers. I recommend making just as many as you wish to eat and freeze the rest of the uncooked potstickers for another day. (To freeze:place the baking sheet with tapioca and the potstickers into the freezer- spacing them apart so they don't stick. Once they are frozen they can be layered and stacked in an air tight freezer safe container. Use the same exact process to cook them from frozen.)
- Make the dipping sauce: add the ingredients to a small bowl and microwave for 15-30 seconds. Whisk with a fork so the honey mixes well with the other ingredients and then serve with cooked potstickers.
