Commonly called
potstickers in
America and
gyoza in
Japan, these
dumplings are often described as "
Chinese ravioli," for some bizarre reason. Jiaozi are made with circular pieces of thin
dough, filling put in the middle and then the dough pinched over, usually making a sort of
crescent shape. Jiaozi fillings are normally
meat and
vegetables, but there are some sweet varieties with
peanuts,
coconut, etc. These are relatively unusual.
Jiaozi may be cooked by steaming or frying; a preference for one or the other is usually regional. Jiaozi are fairly common in overseas
Chinese restaurants and
frozen in the
grocery store. They're fun to make at home, though; a band of friends or family can make several hundred in a session. Those not eaten can be saved as leftovers and divided up to put in home
freezers. (Jiaozi are good as cold
leftovers, too, though that may be
culinary heresy.) A dipping sauce is sometimes served. The recipe varies but a basic example is
soy sauce,
hot chili oil, and
scallions. Jiaozi are highly recommended! Mmm.
In contrast to
baozi, the jiaozi dough is very thin. In fact, the word is
jiaozi pi, where pi means "
skin." (This is the source of the title of the story "
Skin of the Heart," from
Nishi Keiko's "
Love Story.") These wrappers may be purchased
ready-made at most
supermarkets in the
USA.
Basic recipes for jiaozi may be found at
SOAR under "Chinese," or at http://dinnercoop.cs.cmu.edu/dinnercoop/Recipes/cookbook/part1.html