Baked ricotta and smoked salmon dumplings in Gyoza skin

I believe almost every food culture in the world has some form of dumpling. It can be essential comfort food sometimes, but it can also be celebratory food for special occasions. The dumpling I grew up with called ‘mandu’ is a great example. It is one of the most popular comfort food you could find anywhere in Korea but it is also something my grandmother and aunts spent all day preparing for big family holidays. They are commonly boiled and served in the soup or steamed and served with soy sauce based dipping sauce. I was a good girl helping my family of course, but only to stay near the steamer and get my hands on delicious piping hot homemade dumplings before anyone else. I have to admit, making dumplings is not the easiest job in the world. They definitely require steady and delicate hands as well as patience. But when you finally get to put one of those perfectly cooked little parcels in your mouth, you would think it is all worth it. At least for my recipe today, you won’t have to knead and roll the dough thanks to the ready-made gyoza skins 😉

This recipe is a Community Pick at FOOD52.com

• Prep time: 1-1.5hrs
• Cooking time: 10-15mins
• Serves: 2 (12 dumplings)

Ingredients

• 200g. ricotta
• 120g. smoked salmon
• 1 fresh lemon
• ground black pepper to season and garnish
• 24 sheets of gyoza or wonton skin
• 1 -1 1/2 tbsp. olive oil

Cut smoked salmon into small bite size pieces and mix with ricotta. Season it with generous pinch of black pepper. Lay 12 gyoza skins on a flat surface. Spoon the mixture onto the middle of each gyoza skin shaping it round at the same time. 1 -1 1/2 tablespoon of filling should be enough for 1 dumpling. Add fresh lemon zest on top. Leave about 1.5cm space all around each filling.

Use your fingertips to put a little dap of water onto the edge of dumpling. Cover it with 2nd sheet of gyoza skin; pressing the filling gently to make it slightly flatter can make this process easier. With your fingers, tightly seal the edge all around the filling. Pressing down with a fork on the edge also helps, and gives a pretty mark like homemade ravioli by Italian nonna :-).

Evenly rub 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil on a baking tray. Carefully place the dumplings on a tray, and brush the top with rest of the olive oil (around the filling and the edge).

Bake them in 180C pre-heated oven for 10 minutes. If you want crispier skin, bake for another 2-3 minutes, but keep an eye on them to make sure they don’t burn. Top them with final garnish of black pepper and serve with fresh lemon wedges.