Chinese Dumplings (饺子 Jiaozi) From Scratch — Complete Guide

Prep:75 min

Cook:75 min

Serves:2–4

Difficulty:Medium

Making jiaozi from scratch is one of the most rewarding projects in Chinese cooking — and despite the reputation for difficulty, it's genuinely achievable at home. The dough is just flour and water. The filling is mostly pork and cabbage. The folding takes practice but even imperfect dumplings taste magnificent. In China, making dumplings is a communal activity — families gather around the table, each person specialising in their task.

Dumplings (饺子, jiǎo zi) are central to Chinese New Year celebrations, symbolising wealth and prosperity because they resemble ancient Chinese gold ingots. The tradition of making dumplings as a family on New Year's Eve is one of China's most cherished customs.

Ingredients

• Dough: 300g all-purpose flour, 160ml just-boiled water, pinch of salt
• Filling: 300g ground pork (fatty preferred)
• 200g napa cabbage, finely shredded
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• 1 tbsp Shaoxing wine
• 1 tsp fresh ginger, grated
• 1 tsp sugar
• White pepper to taste
• 2 spring onions, finely chopped
• Dipping sauce: 3 tbsp soy sauce, 1 tbsp Chinkiang vinegar, 1 tsp chili oil, 1 tsp ginger julienned

Instructions

1
Make dough: mix flour and salt in a bowl. Add hot water gradually while mixing — this creates a softer, more pliable dough. Knead for 8 minutes until smooth. Cover with damp cloth and rest 30 minutes.
2
Prepare filling: salt the shredded cabbage with 1 tsp salt and leave 10 minutes. Squeeze out all liquid with your hands. Combine with all other filling ingredients and stir vigorously in one direction until sticky.
3
Divide rested dough into 4 portions. Roll each into a cylinder and cut into roughly equal pieces (about 10-12 pieces per portion = 40 total).
4
Roll each piece into a round wrapper about 8cm diameter, rolling the edges thinner than the centre.
5
Fill each wrapper with a teaspoon of filling. Fold into a half-moon. Starting from one corner, fold small pleats along the top edge, pressing against the flat back to seal — about 5-6 pleats per dumpling.
6
Boiled method: drop dumplings into boiling water. When they float, add a cup of cold water and return to boil. Add cold water twice more. They're done when they float consistently — about 8 minutes total.
7
Potsticker method: heat 2 tbsp oil in a flat-based pan. Place dumplings flat-side down. Fry 2 minutes until golden. Add 100ml water and cover. Steam 6 minutes. Uncover and fry 1-2 more minutes until crispy.

Pro Tips

💡Squeezing the water out of the cabbage is the most important step. Wet filling makes dumplings that burst during cooking.
💡The vigorous one-directional stirring develops protein structure and creates a bouncy, cohesive texture rather than a crumbly one.
💡Roll the wrapper edges thinner than the centre. Uniform thickness gives thick bases and thin pleats.

Frequently Asked Questions

My filling is too wet and the dumplings keep bursting — what went wrong?

Insufficient squeezing of the cabbage. Also make sure ground pork is not too fatty. If filling is wet, add 1 tbsp cornstarch to absorb excess moisture.

Can I freeze uncooked dumplings?

Yes — freeze on a tray in a single layer, then transfer to bags. Cook directly from frozen (add 2 extra minutes).

Why does restaurant dumpling skin taste different from mine?

Professional kitchens often add a small amount of alkaline water to the dough. Also, they rest their dough longer.

Serving Suggestions

Serve immediately with dipping sauce. Boiled dumplings are delicate and silky; potstickers have a crispy base. In northern China, boiled jiaozi are served on Chinese New Year's Eve.