Santa Barbara Pot Stickers

from Pacific Flavors by Hugh Carpenter


When we lived in Minneapolis, I took a class from Hugh Carpenter. One of the recipes I learned to make was these spicy pot stickers. I've served this dish to company a number of times and actually had the guests forming the pot stickers!

Filling:
12 ounces spinach trimmed (or use one box of frozen chopped spinach)
2 green onions
2/3 pound ground pork
2 teaspoons finely minced fresh ginger
1/2 teaspoon finely grated orange peel
1 egg
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
1 teaspoon Chinese chili sauce
1/2 teaspoon salt (you may want to leave this out until you make sure the dish isn't too salty)
24 won ton skins
cornstarch for dusting
2 tablespoons peanut oil

Sauce:
1/2 cup chicken stock
2 tablespoons dry sherry
2 teaspoons oyster sauce
1 teaspoon hoisin sauce
1/2 teaspoon Chinese chili sauce
1/4 teaspoon sugar
2 teaspoon finely grated orange peel

Drop the spinach leaves into 1 quart rapidly boiling water. when leaves wilt (about 10 seconds) drain and rinse under cold water. Squeeze out water (if you are using frozen spinach, squeeze it dry), then mince by hand. Mince green onions. Combine spinach, green onions, pork, ginger, orange peel, egg, soy sauce, chili sauce and salt. Mix thoroughly.

Within 5 hours of cooking, fold filling into dumplings.

To cook: place a 12-inch non-stick skillet over high heat. Add oil and immediately add dumplings. Fry dumplings iunti bottoms become dark golden, about 2 minutes. Pour in orange sauce. Immediately cover pan, reduce heat to medium, and steam dumplings until they are firm to the touch (about 2 minutes).

Remove cover. Over high heat, continue frying dumplings until sauce reduces completely (about 1 minute). While cooking, shake the pan so that the dumplings are glazed all over with the sauce. Tip out onto a heated serving platter.

Serves 6

*These dumplinngs can be frozen. Cook frozen dumplings over medium heat until dark golden (about 3 minutes). Because they take longer to cook, you may have to add a little water to the frying pan during the steaming stage.

Notes on ingredients:

Chinese chili sauce: best brands are Cock Brand Delicious Hot Chili Garlic Sauce and Szechuan Chili Sauce
Hoisin sauce: no oriental condiment varies so much in quality from brand to brand. Buy only Koon Chun Hoisin Sauce
Oyster sauce: Lee Kum Kee Oyster Flavored Sauce (best) or Old Brand Oyster Sauce
Light soy sauce: Superior Soy Sauce (not Soy Superior)