Are you a Gyoza grabber? I love them so much I usually take way more than my fair share, in fact my basic chopstick technique is focussed around being able to seize a whole gyoza first time, every time.
While others are floundering around, unable to get a decent grip or dropping them like bombs into the dipping sauce, I’m one down the throat already and swooping back for more.
I even make them myself, not very elegantly although I do a pretty good job, but it is a fiddly and time consuming task. So these packs of Itsu Gyoza are rather good news. You can buy them in Tesco or, if you’re posh, in Waitrose.
They’re 50p cheaper in Tesco for a few weeks, just £3.00 a bag. That’s pretty good value for what you get. They come in three styles, Vegetable Fusion, King Prawn and Sesame Tuna and there are enough in a pack for two to three people, or just me.
And as they’re frozen they’re a great standby to have in the house. If you simmer or nuke them they take three or so minutes. I prefer them as’pot stickers’, fried in scant oil until brown on the bottom.
That takes about six minutes. All three flavours seem to me to be rather delicious and they even come with sachets of a decent dipping sauce in the pack.
And you can also use them as part of a main meal, not just as tasty treats. Itsu have put together some good recipes to prove this, see below:
Ramen packed with crisp vegetables and steamed itsu Vegetable Fusion Gyoza*
*this can be swapped for your favourite itsu gyoza flavour
Ingredients
400ml of vegetable stock
10g of grated ginger
2 cloves of crushed garlic
A tbsp of soy sauce
A tbsp of rice vinegar
A splash of sunflower oil
6 itsu Vegetable Fusion Gyoza dinner dumplings
100g of pre-cooked rice noodles
A small carrot (ribboned using a peeler)
A handful of bean sprouts
A handful of mange tout
A tbsp of finely chopped chives
Step by step…
In a medium saucepan gently heat the sunflower oil, addthe ginger and garlic and cook for 2-3 minutes.
Then add 400ml of vegetable stock, the soy sauce & rice vinegar & simmer for 10 minutes.
Strain the ramen stock through a fine sieve, discard the ginger & garlic & pour back into the saucepan.
Bring the ramen back to a gentle simmer, add the gyoza and simmer for 3 minutes.
Lift the gyoza out of the ramen into a serving bowl.
Add the pre-cooked noodles, carrot ribbons, bean sprouts and mange tout to the ramen broth & cook for a further 2 minutes.
Ladle the ramen broth & vegetables over the gyoza and sprinkle with chives.
Ginger miso soup with itsu King Prawn Gyoza and pak choi
Ingredients
8 itsu King Prawn Gyoza dinner dumplings
A 25g sachet of itsu miso soup
10g of ginger (cut into matchstick sized pieces)
2 baby pak choi (cut into quarters)
A handful of finely chopped coriander
Tip! For a more filling meal why not add some
rice noodles?
Step by step…
Empty the miso paste into a small pan.
Add the ginger and coriander stems.
Pour over 400ml of boiling water.
Bring to a gentle simmer & cook for 2 minutes to infuse the flavours.
Add the king prawn gyoza and pak choi, steam for a further 3 minutes, ladle into a deep bowl and top with the coriander leaves.
Brown rice Buddha bowl topped with crispy itsu Sesame Tuna Gyoza and rainbow vegetables
Ingredients
5 itsu Sesame Tuna Gyoza dinner dumplings
125g of cooked brown rice
Half an avocado
A quarter cucumber (cut into thin rounds)
2 thinly sliced radishes
A small carrot (cut into matchsticks sized pieces)
The zest and juice of half a lime
A handful of coriander leaves
A tbsp of pickling liquid from pickled ginger (often found in sushi, available in most supermarkets)
A tbsp of toasted pumpkin seeds (optional)
Step by step…
Mix a tbsp of the ginger pickling with lime zest and apinch of salt in a small dish.
Coat the thinly-sliced cucumber and radish with the pickle and lime zest and leave for 5 minutes to preserve.
Pan-cook the gyoza as per the packet instructions.
Arrange the cooked rice, avocado, carrot, coriander and pumpkin seeds in a bowl.
Drain the pickled cucumber & radish & put the juices to the side.
Add the cucumber & radish into the bowl and spoon over the pickled juices.
Top with the crispy itsu Sesame Tuna gyoza dinner dumplings to finish.
itsu Vegetable Fusion Gyoza served with tenderstem broccoli, garlic and spring onions
in a rich soy dressing
Ingredients
10 Vegetable Fusion Gyoza dinner dumplings
2 large cloves of garlic (thinly sliced)
2 tbsp of sesame oil
5 tbsp of soy sauce
2 tbsp of mirin or rice wine vinegar
A tbsp of corn flour
200g of tenderstem broccoli
5 spring onions (cut into 3cm slices)
A handful of cashew nuts
Half a red chilli (deseeded and thinly sliced)
Brown rice or rice noodles to serve (optional)
Step by step…
Toast the cashew nuts over a medium heat until brown. Empty into a small bowl and place to the side.
In a dish, mix the soy sauce, mirin [or rice wine vinegar] and corn flour with 6 tbsp of water & stir. Place to the side.
Add sesame oil to a pan & once hot, add the garlic. Cook the garlic and add the the broccoli. Cook for 2 minutes.
Pour in a splash of water & when the broccoli starts to wilt, add in the spring onions.
Pour the soy,mirin sauce over the vegetables and leave to
thicken for a couple of minutes.
Place the ten itsu Vegetable Fusion gyoza dinner dumplings on a plate & microwave as per packet instructions.
Divide the stir fry between serving plates & top with the gyoza, crispy cashews and sliced red chilli.
Tip! Serve alongside brown rice or rice noodles for
a more filling, nutritious dinner.
King Prawn Gyoza with a crunchy Asian salad and peanut dressing
Ingredients
A large carrot cut into matchstick using a julienne peeler
2 handfuls Chinese cabbage finally shredded
1/2 cucumber halved, seeds removed and sliced into 1/2 moons
10 itsu King Prawn Gyoza dinner dumplings
2 sprigs of mint
A tbsp of toasted sesame seeds
For the peanut dressing:
2 tbsp of crunchy peanut butter
1/2 lime juice & zest
A tsp of fish sauce
A tsp of itsu hot-su potsu or chilli sauce
Or for the coconut and lime dressing:
2 tbsp of coconut cream
A handful of coriander
Juice & zest 1/2 lime
A spring onion
Step by step…
Combine the carrot, Chinese cabbage and cucumber in a large bowl & divide between serving dishes.
Mix the dressing ingredients together until smooth & add a splash of water to loosen.
Pan-cook the gyoza as per packet instructions and arrange on top of the salad.
Drizzle the dressing over the salad & gyoza.
Finally sprinkle over the sesame seeds for some added crunch and top with the sprigs of mint.
For a different twist, why not try a coconut and lime dressing instead? Just add the ingredients to a
mini blender, blitz until smooth & season to taste.