Natalie Portman has been vegan since she was 30. The Star Wars alum has created an Instagram Live series called “Natalie’s Table,” during which she hosts guest chefs who teach her delicious vegan recipes over video call. She then shares the interview on her Instagram page, complete with the recipe and instructions. This show takes a page from Jennifer Garner’s “Pretend Cooking Show,” the key difference between that all of Portman’s recipes are vegan.
In an episode of “Natalie’s Table” from Nov. 21, 2020, the actress was joined by cook WoonHeng, who specializes in vegan Asian dishes. And Portman got to learn how to make homemade vegan potstickers from WoonHeng, the recipe for which we break down here.
Natalie Portman loves dumplings
The Thor star wrote in her caption, “Dumplings are my favorite food.” Dumplings and potstickers are pretty similar, except for how they’re made. Where dumplings have a soft exterior, potstickers are crispy. And the fun part about this recipe is WoonHeng explained how to make the potsticker wrapper from scratch.
Here’s everything you’ll need to make WoonHeng’s vegan potstickers.
Wrapper Ingredients
- 240 gram all-purpose (plain) flour
- 125 ml ( ½ cup) hot water
Filling Ingredients
- 14 oz (397g) firm tofu drained and pressed
- ¾ cups (75g) shredded cabbage
- 1 small carrot finely chopped
- 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
- A few shakes of white pepper
- A couple handfuls of chopped spring onion and grated fresh ginger
How to make WoonHeng’s vegan potstickers
Start your potsticker journey off by making the wrapper. First, place the flour in a bowl and form a well in the center. Next, slowly pour in the hot water. According to WoonHeng, the water needs to be hot so it can break down the gluten, which makes it so the wrapper can be rolled out thin and be smooth and soft in texture.
Once your hot water is added, use a spatula or a pair of chopsticks to stir and mix the flour until it’s lumpy. If there are dry spots leftover in the bowl, add more water 1 tablespoon a time until the spots are gone.
Next, transfer the flour onto a clean surface and knead it to form a rough dough. Cover the dough with a damp towel, and let it be for about 5 minutes. Once that time is up, knead the dough again until the top is smooth. This should take about 10 to 12 minutes. And then, let the dough rest for 30 minutes.
Now, on to the filling. Bring a pot of water to a boil, adding 1/2 teaspoon of salt and a drizzle of oil. Blanch the cabbage for 45 seconds, and remove from the pot. Quickly rinse the cabbage with cold water, and then squeeze out the liquid. Roughly chop the cabbage.
Next, you’ll want to wring the liquid out of your tofu. And then, place the tofu and cabbage in a mixing bowl with the scallions and carrots, and season with the toasted sesame oil, white pepper, salt, and ginger. Divide the mixture into 24 portions and mold them into balls.
Once your dough is done resting, dust a clean surface with flour and roll the dough into a log. Divide the dough into 20 to 24 rounds. Next, take one piece of dough and flatten it with your palm. Using your roller, roll the dough into a disk to form your wrapper, and then add the filling and pleat the dough to seal.
Last but not least, it’s time to cook the potstickers. Preheat a non-stick pan with 3 tablespoons of oil (give or take, depending on the size of the pan). Place the potstickers in the hot oil, slightly spread out in one layer, and cook over medium heat until the bottom is a golden brown. You can dip the potstickers in chili sauce, soy sauce, douse it in Sriracha. Whatever you want! And just like that, you’ve made your own potstickers from scratch.
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