If you have visited a Japanese restaurant or eaten Japanese style street food, you may have noticed a popular dish called 'Gyoza' on the menu. These delicious treats are Japanese dumplings, made with a variety of different fillings.
There are usually three types of gyoza that are found and enjoyed in Japan. That is yaki gyoza, age gyoza, and sui gyoza. The traditional method of steaming isn't so often seen in Japan unless dining in a Chinese food establishment.
Gyozas are Japanese dumplings that are typically made with a pork and vegetable filling. They are pan-fried or steamed, and are often served with a dipping sauce. Dumplings, on the other hand, can be found in many different cuisines.
In Japan, the main type of gyoza you'll come across is called yaki-gyoza, which means that the dumplings are pan-fried before water is added, giving them a wonderful crisp and tender texture. Other varieties are the deep-fried age-gyoza or dumplings boiled in soup called sui-gyoza.
Typically gyoza is made from a thinly rolled dough filled with ground meat and vegetables, which can then be boiled, steamed or fried, and served hot with a dash of black vinegar and sesame oil or in a soup.
Also known as pot stickers, gyoza originated in China (where they are called jiaozi), but have become a very popular dish in Japan.
Chinese dumplings (jiaozi) may be divided into various types depending on how they are cooked: Boiled dumplings (simplified Chinese: 水饺; traditional Chinese: 水餃; pinyin: shuǐjiǎo; lit. 'water dumpling') Steamed dumplings (simplified Chinese: 蒸饺; traditional Chinese: 蒸餃; pinyin: zhēngjiǎo; lit. 'steam dumpling')
Takoyaki, gooey ball-shaped dumplings filled with octopus, are one of the most popular street foods in Japan.
Japanese Dumplings Vs.
Chinese potstickers tend to be doughier and have a thicker wrapper, while gyoza have a very thin wrapper that's better suited to frying up on Japanese teppan griddles. Pierogi dumplings, a traditional peasant food from Poland, may look similar in shape to gyoza but taste quite different.
Dim sims, or “dimmies,” are a variant of the traditional Chinese dumpling. Served in a variety of ways, including steamed and fried, they first gained popularity in the 1940s and have since become an iconic dish in Melbourne and beyond. So who invented them?
The Japanese gyoza is a close cousin of the Chinese dimsum- but there are subtle differences in the flavor, texture, and cooking techniques of both. Now that you know how to identify and address the dumplings that you actually like, go ahead and stuff your stomach with these one-of-a-kind delicacies!
Jiaozi (pronounced "jow-zee") are perhaps the most common type of Chinese dumpling. Crescent-shaped and formed with an opaque wrapper made from wheat dough, jiaozi are usually filled with ground pork, cabbage, and scallions, and served with a dipping sauce made of soy sauce, vinegar, and sesame oil.
Cha Siu Bao – China
Cha Siu Bao are steamed pork buns that are a type of dim sum. It is the barbecued pork filling, and bao is the fluffy and chewy bun. Pork buns can also be baked, and are then referred to as cha shao can bao. A version is also found in Hawaii, called manapua.
Dumplings are either boiled, steamed, or fried, but there's a couple of different ways to further differentiate these techniques: Boiled dumplings can be cooked in water or directly in the soup or stew in which they will be served.
The famous Japanese gyoza are crescent-shaped dumplings that have originated from the traditional Chinese jiaozi dumplings. The recipe was slightly altered to accommodate the Japanese taste, and gyoza soon became one of the favorite Japanese meals.
Takoyaki (たこ焼き) is a Japanese snack in the shape of little round balls containing pieces of octopus. Tako-yaki literally translates to “octopus-grilled/fried” and some people may call it “Grilled Octopus Balls” or “Octopus Dumplings”.
Takoyaki (たこ焼き or 蛸焼) is a ball-shaped Japanese snack made of a wheat flour-based batter and cooked in a special molded pan.
Okonomiyaki (お好み焼き) is a popular pan-fried dish that consists of batter and cabbage. Selected toppings and ingredients are added which can vary greatly (anything from meat and seafood to wasabi and cheese). This variability is reflected in the dish's name; "okonomi" literally means "to one's liking".
Mandu (Korean: 만두; Hanja: 饅頭), or mandoo, are dumplings in Korean cuisine. Mandu can be steamed, boiled, pan-fried, or deep-fried. The styles also vary across regions in the Korean Peninsula.
Jiaozi and gyoza are both dumplings, but jiaozi is the Chinese version (jiaozi is the Mandarin word for dumpling) while gyoza is the term for the Japanese dumpling.
Gnocchi – Small pasta-like dough dumplings. Gnudi – Pasta dish. Gondi dumpling – Persian Jewish dish. Gong'a Momo – Tibetan fried dumpling. Gujia – Indian sweet dish.
Chinese bao, Turkish or Uzbeki manti, fried Japanese gyoza, are all called mandu in Korea. This recipe is a classic Korean version with thin wheat wrappers and a filling of ground pork, tofu, garlic, garlic chives, and onions, ginger, soy sauce, and sesame oil.
China has been enjoying filled dumplings called jiaozi for over 1,800 years. And today, people from all around the world get to enjoy unique variations of dumpling types too!