Serves 6
- 1/2pound scallops (any kind)
- 1pinch white pepper
- 2pinches salt
- 4ounces regular tofu
- 2green onions, sliced thinly
- 1garlic clove, finely minced
- 1large handful fresh greens (pea sprouts
- or spinach are great), chopped
- 2slices fresh ginger, very finely minced
- 1teaspoon oyster sauce
- 1teaspoon soy sauce
- 2shiitake mushrooms, chopped
- 8water chestnuts (canned is fine), diced
- 1handful frozen peas
- 1package round potsticker wrappers
- 4-6tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1/2teaspoon vinegar (I use apple cider or rice wine, but any type is fine)
- 1cup water
Cut scallops into chunks that are about the size of a peanut. Sprinkle salt and pepper on the scallops.
- Drain some liquid from the tofu. This can be done by squishing the tofu through your fingers and putting it into a fine mesh strainer or colander. Put a bowl on top and let the liquid drain off while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
- Saute green onions, ginger, greens and garlic in a skillet over medium heat just until you smell the garlic and greens are wilted. Don’t let garlic brown.
- Put tofu, greens, oyster sauce, soy sauce, mushrooms, and water chestnuts together and stir until tofu has soaked up the sauces. Taste and add salt or soy sauce if necessary.
- Add scallops and peas to tofu and stir to blend all ingredients well.
- To wrap potstickers: Put some water in a small bowl. Place about a tablespoon of filling in the middle of a wrapper. Dip your finger into the water and run it half way around the far edge of the wrapper. Fold the wrapper over to make a half circle shape. Pinch the edges to seal. If your wrappers are tearing, use less filling. To be fancy, you can introduce a two or more folds before or after you pinch the edges and seal with your wet fingers.
- To fry potstickers. Add vinegar to 1 cup water. Heat a nonstick skillet (that has a cover) and add oil. When the oil is hot, add the first batch of potstickers to the pan. Space them so that they aren’t touching. Add ¼ cup of the vinegar/water mixture to the pan and cover. Cook for 2-3 minutes…the scallops cook pretty fast so you shouldn’t need much more time than this. The potsticker skin will become transclucent during the time with the cover on. If it isn’t, add a little more water and cover. If it is, continue to fry until the water is gone and the bottoms are crispy. Remove to serving platter and fry up the next batch in the same way.
- Serve potstickers with soy sauce and hot chili sauce. Try adding a few drops of vinegar and some minced ginger to your soy sauce for a quick dipping sauce.
Notes: save yourself some aggravation and use a nonstick pan. If you don’t, you’ll need to use more oil and a really good metal spatula/turner to help you get the potstickers off the pot. They ain’t called potstickers for nothing! The filling is also great for wontons and can be cooked in boiling water as well. You can add more assertive vegetables like cilantro or chives if you like.
By: monkeymom
Author Notes: This dumpling recipe is for two of my great friends who don’t eat meat but do eat seafood…and they absolutely love dim sum. With all the pork dishes served at dim sum it can be a real challenge not to eat meat. In this version of a dim sum standard, I used scallops because I love their clean sweet flavor, though shrimp could easily be substituted or added. Some vegetables help keep the dumplings light and fresh. Finally, the tofu binds the filling together and absorbs the flavors of the green onions, garlic, and ginger. These are a lot of fun to make with others, so don’t be shy about recruiting helpers, including kids. And don’t worry, even ugly dumplings taste good. – monkeymom—monkeymom
**Grabbed from: http://food52.com/recipes/4083-scallop-potstickers