These pork & leek dumpling noodles were inspired by a craving for Chinese pork dumplings and an empty dumpling shelf in my freezer (yes, I have a frozen dumpling shelf!) We’ve been stocking up on dumplings at the Korean grocery store, H-Mart, but we ran out. I did have some Asian-style fresh wheat noodles and a bunch of cabbage. So I decided to recreate all of the flavors of a Chinese dumping in a quick stir-fry.
It worked! All of the flavors of a Chinese dumpling are there and the chewy noodles work to mimic a dumpling wrapper. Most of the ingredients are pretty basic pantry ingredients if you ever do any Asian cooking (and, if you don’t, you should start!)
♥ Related: Gochujang Noodles
The noodles are key here. There are very many styles of Asian noodles (which Serious Eats does a good job explaining, here.) I used Yaka Mien, but any moderately thick noodle (thicker than angel hair, but thinner than udon) with a chewy texture would work well. Lo Mien noodles are a great option and likely the easiest to find in any supermarket. It’s worth it to find an Asian-style noodle. I just don’t think a box of spaghetti would be quite as good.
Also, I recommend doubling or tripling the dumpling sauce recipe below and keeping it on hand for dumplings and noodles of all kinds. I love the contrast between the spicy chili oil and acidic vinegar. We keep a mason jar of this in our cabinet for all of our dumpling needs.
♥ Related: Red Curry Kabocha Squash Soup with Shrimp & Noodles
Pork & Leek Dumpling Noodles
Ingredients
Pork & Leek Dumpling Noodles
- 1 lb Chinese-style wheat noodles
- ½ cup leeks white and light green parts quartered and cut into 1/4 inch slices
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tbsp fresh ginger grated
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- ½ tsp sesame oil
- ½ tsp ground white pepper
- 1 lb ground pork
- 1 tbsp neutral oil peanut, vegetable, canola, etc.
- 4-6 cups cabbage chopped into bite sized pieces
- 2 scallions sliced
- toasted sesame seeds
Dumpling Sauce
- 1 tsp chili oil
- ½ tsp sesame oil
- 1 tbsp Chinkiang vinegar
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, stir together leeks, garlic, ginger, soy sauce, sesame oil, and white pepper. Add the pork and mix until just combined without overworking. I like to use my hands for this because it's quicker, but a wooden spoon or spatula will also work. Let the pork marinate for about 20 minutes while you prep the rest of the ingredients.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the noodles and cook until just tender with some chew/bounce in texture. Drain and set aside.
- In a small bowl, combine the chili oil, sesame oil, vinegar, and soy sauce. Whisk to combine and set aside.
- Place a wok or high-sided skillet over high heat. Once the wok or pan is hot, add the oil. Then add the marinated pork. Stir-fry until the pork starts to brown a bit and is mostly cooked through.
- Add the cabbage to the wok and stir fry until the cabbage has wilted, cooked through, and all of the liquid has evaporated from the pan.
- Add the cooked noodles and toss with the pork and cabbage.
- Serve noodles with a sprinkle of scallions and toasted sesame seeds. Drizzle with dumpling sauce.
Notes
- Use a moderately thick, chewy Asian-style wheat noodle here. Lo mien noodles are probably the easiest to find in any grocery store.
- We have a large recipe of Adam Liaw’s chili oil on hand for the dumpling sauce, but if you don’t want to make your own (though, it’s very worth it to have on hand for all sorts of dishes), choose a chili oil that contains flakes of chili like this one.
- I bought a bottle of Chinkiang vinegar because it seemed to be important for dumpling sauce and other Chinese recipes. In my research, it seems like you *could* substitute balsamic vinegar here, but I think it’s worth trying to be authentic and vinegar lasts forever.
- A note about cabbage: I used a variety called Taiwan cabbage I found at my local produce market. I really like this variety because it’s a little lighter, crisper, and more tender than a generic head of green cabbage. I think savoy or Napa cabbage would be similar in texture if you can’t find Taiwan cabbage. But honestly, any green cabbage will likely do the trick. (Dad, I think bok choy would work great here!)
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Spaghetti Sauce
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This was fantastic. Used udon and topped it with toasted peanuts because that is what I had, along with matchstick carrots, cilantro and the scallions. The dipping sauce makes it. We quadrupled it. So good.
Ohhh. I love the idea of udon here! Thanks for the idea and I’m so glad you liked this. The dipping sauce really is a star!