Chinese Pork Chive Dumplings. Delicious savoury morsels of heaven packed with ground pork and chives made from scratch (yes even the wrapper)! Great as a meal, side dish or snack. You can also easily make these with store bought dumpling wrappers.
What are Pork Chive Dumplings?
Pork Chive Dumplings are made of a wheat flour dough wrapper and filled with a ground pork mixture with chives, aromatics and seasonings. They are either pan fried, steamed or boiled and usually enjoyed with a soy vinegar dipping sauce. You can find pork chive dumplings or a variation of it at most Chinese restaurants. In Chinese culture, these are usually cooked on the Lunar New Year because the dumplings have a similar crescent shape to the moon. Dumplings also symbolize best wishes for a wealthy year. These are often enjoyed as a meal, side dish or as a snack with a dip.
Dumplings are probably my most favorite food in Chinese cuisine. My grandma taught my mother and I how to make dumplings from scratch whenever she visited Toronto. So my mom and I would spend some weekend evenings together the dumpling wrappers and the filling together.
We would rarely buy them from the store as those typically contained additives and they just didn't taste the same. The best ones were the ones we fried right after a laborious dumpling making session! We would freeze the rest so we could simply pan fry or boil them in a matter of minutes. Though these dumplings take some time to make, it's definitely worthwhile because you can make so many at a fraction of the cost. Plus the thick chewy wrappers pairs deliciously with the soft ground meat filling and it's not easy to find thicker wrappers.
Ingredients
- Neutral oil: for steam frying
- Water: for steam frying
Pork Chive Dumpling Filling:
- Ground pork: or sub with ground chicken, ground turkey or ground beef
- Garlic chives: not the same as regular chives as these are wider and very long
- Regular soy sauce: or substitute with low sodium soy sauce or light soy sauce.Β If youβre gluten-free, substitute with tamari sauce, coconut aminos or a gluten-free soy sauce of your choice.Β
- Sugar
- Cornstarch: or sub with potato starch
- Fresh ginger
- Garlic
- Chicken Bouillon Powder
- Sesame oil
- Water
Dumpling Wrapper:
- All-purpose flour
- Hot boiling water
- Salt
- More flour for working surface
Pork and chive dumpling dipping sauce:
- Soy sauce
- Black Vinegar Vinegar
- Sesame oil
These dumplings are best served with my easy 3 ingredient dumpling dip or my Chinese chili oil.
How to make Pork Chive Dumplings
Prepare Filling
In a large mixing bowl, mix the Filling ingredients as listed in one direction with chopsticks or a fork. Mix very well until the meat is broken down and pasty.
Create Dough for Dumpling Wrappers
In a separate large mixing bowl, whisk flour and salt together. Pour hot boiling water into the dry ingredients. Then mix together until it forms a clumpy ball. If the dough is too sticky to work with, sprinkle a few more tablespoons of flour over top and knead it into a ball until it's no longer sticky. There's no need to proof the dough.
Shape Dough Into Two Logs
Flour your working surface. Then pierce a hole into the middle of the dough ball. Then shape it into a very loose circular "hoop". The hoop should be 1.5 inches thick. Cut the hoop in half to form two long logs.
Slice Logs into Pieces
Next slice the logs into 1 inch wide pieces or until you have 50 equal sized pieces.
Roll into Balls
Roll each piece into a ball. Place the balls back into the mixing bowl and cover them with a moist clean towel so they do not dry out.
Roll into a Thin Wrapper
Re-flour your surface and roll out one ball at a time with a rolling pin until thin. The wrappers should be about 3 inches wide in diameter.
Fill Dumpling Wrapper
Place 1 levelled off tablespoon of the filling in the center of the wrapper. Do not over fill.
Seal the Edges
Dab a little bit of water on the edges of the wrapper. Then fold one side over and pinch edges together to seal it.
Pinch & Fold Dumpling
Then fold & pinch the edge to create a classic looking dumpling.
For Pan Fried Dumplings
Heat vegetable oil in a large pan on medium heat. Place dumplings flat bottom side down. Careful not to over crowd the pan, about 12-14 pieces per batch. Pour just enough cold water to cover the base of the pan. Cover with a lid.
Let this cook for 12-13 minutes. In the last minute, remove the lid and let any excess water evaporate so the bottoms of the dumplings can crisp up until golden brown.
For Boiled Dumplings
Bring a pot of water to boil and carefully lower dumplings. Boil until they float, about 5-7 minutes. Strain out the dumplings with a slotted spoon and serve.
Create Dipping Sauce & Enjoy!
In a small bowl, combine the dipping sauce ingredients and enjoy with your dumplings!
Storage & Reheating
Freeze leftover dumplings in a freezer friendly bag set on a tray to keep dumplings apart from each other as they will stick together. Remove tray once dumplings are fully frozen. Β Dumplings can keep for 4-6 months or until freezer burn begins to form.
To reheat, pan fry the same way but cook for 13-14 minutes until cooked through.Β
Expert Tips
- Make sure to mix it one direction until the ground meat becomes pasty. Mixing in one direction extends the protein strands making the filling taste more tender. It also makes the filling stick better.
- The dough should be sticky but not too sticky. Almost flakey around the sides. If it's too tacky to work with, add a bit more flour.
- Kneading the dough is important before rolling out the individual wrappers.
- Knead out the dough on a floured surface so it doesn't stick
- Roll out the wrappers on a floured surface to prevent tearing or sticking.
- Use a damp clean towel to keep your dough and mini dough balls moist.
- Do not over fill the dumpling wrappers.
FAQ
Can I substitute the ground pork with another protein?
Yes, ground chicken, turkey or beef would work.
Can I substitute the garlic chives with another vegetable?
Yes, nappa cabbage will work and if you choose to make that check out my Pork Cabbage Dumplings recipe below.
Other dumpling recipes you may like!
π Recipe
Homemade Chinese Pork Chive Dumplings
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil or any neutral oil
- cold water for cooking dumplings
Meat Filling:
- 1 lb ground pork
- 2 cup garlic chives finely chopped
- 3 tablespoon regular soy sauce
- 4 tablespoon water
- 2 tablespoon cornstarch
- 2 tablespoon sesame oil
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- Β½ tbsp white granulated sugar
- Β½ teaspoon chicken bouillon powder
- 1 tsp ginger peeled and grated
Homemade Dumpling Wrapper (or sub with 50 pc store-bought ones)
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 1 Β½ cup hot boiling water
- Β½ teaspoon salt
Dipping sauce for one:
- 2 tablespoon regular soy sauce
- 2 tablespoon Chinese black vinegar
- Β½ teaspoon sesame oil
Instructions
- Make Filling:In a large mixing bowl, mix the Filling ingredients as listed in one direction with chopsticks or a fork. Mix very well until the meat is broken down and pasty.
- Make Dough:In a separate large mixing bowl, whisk flour and salt together. Pour hot boiling water into the dry ingredients. Then mix together until it forms a clumpy ball. If the dough is too sticky to work with, sprinkle a few more tablespoons of flour over top and knead it into a ball until it's no longer sticky. There's no need to proof the dough.
- Make Homemade Wrappers (or sub with 50 store-bought wrappers): Flour your working surface. Then pierce a hole into the middle of the dough ball. Then shape it into a very loose circular "hoop". The hoop should be 1.5 inches thick. Cut the hoop in half to form two long logs.Next slice the logs into 1 inch wide pieces or until you have 50 equal sized pieces.Roll each piece into a ball. Place the balls back into the mixing bowl and cover them with a moist clean towel so they do not dry out.Re-flour your surface and roll out one ball at a time with a rolling pin until thin. The wrappers should be about 3 inches wide in diameter.
- Wrap Dumplings: Place 1 levelled off tablespoon of the filling in the center of the wrapper. Do not over fill. Dab a little bit of water on the edges of the wrapper. Then fold one side over and pinch edges together to seal it. Then fold & pinch the edge to create a classic looking dumpling.
- For Pan-fried Dumplings:Heat vegetable oil in a large pan on medium heat. Place dumplings flat bottom side down. Careful not to over crowd the pan, about 12-14 pieces per batch. Pour just enough cold water to cover the base of the pan. Cover with a lid. Let this cook for 12-13 minutes. In the last minute, remove the lid and let any excess water evaporate so the bottoms of the dumplings can crisp up until golden brown.For Boiled dumplings: Bring a pot of water to boil and carefully lower dumplings. Boil until they float, about 5-7 minutes. Strain out the dumplings with a slotted spoon and serve.
- In a small bowl, combine the dipping sauce ingredients and enjoy with your dumplings!
Letscurry
Christie
Worth spending all your time with mother and grandmother. Great memories. I think food is one of the great connections that establishes bonding. Those dumplings look so well made.Another amazing recipe.
Happy Easter.
christieathome
Absolutely! I totally agree. I love that about food. Thanks so much and I hope you had a great Easter too!
Tasia ~ two sugar bugs
We love dumplings at my house, but I've never made them from scratch! It's time to change that!!! You made it so approachable with all the process photos. Thank you Christie!
christieathome
Thanks Tasia! They are really easy to make at home. They do require some time but totally worth it as you can freeze the ones you don't eat.
Taylia
Made these dumplings the other day and they were so delicious! I almost ate the whole batch!
christieathome
Thanks so much Katherine!! I think you'd like these ones. They do take time to make but totally worth it as you can freeze the ones you don't eat.
Rosemary Squires
I ABSOLUTELY love that you added the pictures inside the recipe! Sometimes I am reading a recipe and I can't figure it out! This is going to come in handy when I make... rainbow dumplings!!
christieathome
Haha thanks so much! Glad I could share these how-to pictures! Oh I can't wait to see your rainbow dumplings!
Heidi | The Frugal Girls
I agree, these really are morsels of heaven. So delicious!! Plus, your instruction photos made the recipe so easy to follow. Thank you so much for sharing this yummy recipe!
John
These were very good. I made tonight. Great instructions on making the wrappers. I will modify the recipe next time for the filling in increase the veggie to pork ratio and make some fennel pork dumplings.
christieathome
Thanks for making my recipe and glad you enjoyed them!
Nana
These are so yummy and easy to make
christieathome
Thank you so much Nana! I am happy to hear you enjoyed my recipe.
Joy
Thank you for sharing your recipe
christieathome
The pleasure is all mine! I hope you enjoyed it π Thank you for your kind comment!
Jasmine
I made these a couple of days ago and I loved them! I do have to ask, is the nutrition value for a single dumpling?
christieathome
Hi Jasmine! I'm so glad you that you enjoyed them! Thank you for making my recipe! Yes the nutritional value is for a single dumpling.
Rhea
Your dumplings look incredible! Canβt wait to try the recipe! May I ask about the garnish ingredients in your photos? Looks to be green onions and a chili oil of some sort? And is there some sort of crushed pepper? Love to know the specifics if you wouldnβt mind sharing? They really make the dish visually complete!
christieathome
Thank you so much Rhea! It's just green onions and a homemade chili oil recipe which I've shared here. Hope this helps and hope you enjoy my recipe!
Mac
I am very much a beginner in the kitchen - I followed this recipe exactly, and the dumplings turned out great! Thank you for making it easier with pictures and video.
christieathome
Thanks so much for making my recipe, Mac! I'm so glad you enjoyed it π
Lauren
What would you suggest to have with these for dinner? They look amazing and I would love to try.
christieathome
Thank you so much! I actually love having them on their own as a meal but you can also pair them with soup noodles π
C
Dear Christie, thank you so much for this easy to follow recipe. I made it for the first this evening, and it was my very first handmade dumpling dough as well. The dough was very sticky initially but I powered through. It is so much softer and delicate than wonton and pot sticker wrappers found in the grocery stores. Regardless, it pan fried very nicely and was crisp and lovely! Freezing the rest for later.
I made a huge mess in the kitchen but it was worth it π
christieathome
Thank you so much C for making my recipe! I'm so glad it was easy enough to follow and you enjoyed my recipe! Haha, so glad it was worth the mess too! - Christie
Shannan
BEST. DUMPLINGS. EVER. I made these with my 13 year old son and they turned out better than we could have hoped for! The recipe was so easy to follow and I had all the ingredients already! We will be making these again for sure, and more recipes from your site!
christieathome
Woo hoo! So happy to read this and glad you and your son enjoyed my dumplings recipe! This is truly music to my ears and I hope you enjoy my other recipes π
Judy
Instead of the granulated sugar, I can substitute for 1 tsp chicken boullion powder.
Thank you for sharing!!!
Christie Lai
You're welcome and hope you enjoy my recipe, Judy! Yes, feel free to make that substitution for this recipe.