Fried Korean Dumplings (Yaki Mandu) – Asian Recipes At Home (2024)

Make fried Korean dumplings (yaki mandu) with this easy recipe. These little crispy pouches of deliciousness are filled with ground pork, vegetables, and a few different seasonings to make it extra delicious. The dumplings are then fried to a golden brown and crispy perfection. Be prepared to make more than you think you need because everyone will devour these!

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“Yaki” means fried in Japanese and “mandu” means dumpling in Korean. These little meat and vegetable-filled Korean dumplings are great as an appetizer. However, our family is known to eat a bunch of these as a meal. Don’t judge us! These Korean dumplings are so good and once you eat one, you’ll understand why it is so easy to eat a bunch of these in one sitting.

Don’t forget to grab our sauce recipe as well! Our dumpling dipping sauce recipe will go great with this yaki mandu recipe, spring rolls, steamed dumplings, or even egg rolls.

Our Korean dumplings (mandu) filling

The filling in our Korean dumplings (yaki mandu) consists of cabbage, carrots, green onions, onions, ground pork, and a few different seasonings. We stir-fry each main ingredient first. Then, we mix the cooked meat and vegetables with the seasonings together at the end. Finally, we put the cooked filling into the store-bought won ton wrappers.

It might seem like a lot of work, but stir-frying each component separately ensures a perfectly cooked filling in the yaki mandu. Why? Because each of the vegetables and the ground pork all have varying cooking times. Since we will be doing most of the cooking upfront by fully cooking the inside ingredients, the deep-frying step is quick and easy. During the deep-frying stage, you will only need to brown and crisp up the outside of the won ton wrappers because the filling is already fully cooked. Having a fully cooked filling, also means there is no guesswork determining whether or not the ground pork is fully done and no longer pink.

Easy dumpling wrappers (store-bought)

We like to use store-bought won ton wrappers for this recipe. Plus, store-bought won-ton wrappers already have that perfect thickness for these Korean dumplings. This way you are sure to get crispy Korean dumplings and not risk having more flour wrapper to filling ratio. Using the thin won ton wrappers also gives these yaki mandu a really nice crunch when fried. The crispiness is one of the best parts of eating these delicious fried Korean dumplings.

How to fill and fold Korean dumplings (yaki mandu)

Filling and folding these Korean dumplings (yaki mandu) should be a family affair. Growing up, I remember us all huddled around the table to help mom fill up all the won ton wrappers with her delicious pre-cooked yaki mandu filling. The more hands that help to fill and fold these yaki mandu, the more you can make at a faster rate. Don’t forget, you can freeze the extras for later. (If there are any!)

We are doing a very simple triangle shape fold for our yaki mandu. No fancy dumpling folding in this recipe, because we want to eat these delicious morsels ASAP! Alright, let’s talk about how to fill these Korean dumplings (mandu).

1. First, take about a teaspoon of the filling mixture and place it in the center of the won ton wrapper.
2. Next, dip your finger into a small bowl of water and lightly put water on one-half of the won ton wrapper’s edge. One side of the won ton wrapper will be completely dry and the other half will have a watered edge. Fold the won ton wrapper in half, from corner to corner, to create a triangle shape, and press down on the edges to create a nice seal.
3. Next, let’s release any air pockets. Cup the finished dumpling in the palm of your hand and lightly press down with your other hand to release any air pockets in the dumpling.
4. Press down on the edges again to ensure a good seal. We like to try and release any air pockets so it doesn’t puff up and explode when frying.

How to freeze extra Korean dumplings (mandu)

These Korean dumplings are freezer-friendly. So, make sure to enlist some helping hands to make a big batch of these and freeze some for later. We recommend taking a baking sheet, placing a layer of parchment paper down, and then placing a single layer of mandu on top. Make sure the dumplings do not touch so they do not end up freezing together. Place the baking sheet into the freezer for about an hour. Now, they’re ready to throw into a freezer bag/container without risking that they’ll stick together.

When you’re ready to take them out of the freezer to cook up in the future, simply fry them up. No need to thaw them before frying. They might just need a few more minutes in the fryer since they’re in the frozen state. These frozen dumplings (mandu) would also be delicious in a soup, or even steamed!

We hope you enjoy our Korean dumplings (yaki mandu) recipe!

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Yield: 4

Prep Time: 35 minutes

Cook Time: 40 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes

These little crispy pouches of deliciousness are filled with ground pork, vegetables, and a few different seasonings to make it extra delicious. The dumplings are then fried to a golden brown and crispy perfection. Don't forget to grab our accompanying sauce recipe!

Ingredients

• 1 cabbage head, minced (about 2 cups)
• 1 large yellow onion, minced (about 1 cup)
• ½ cup carrots, minced
• 5 green onions, minced (about 1 cup)
• 1 lb ground pork
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp Dasida beef flavor soup powder
• ½ tsp ground black pepper
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• ½ tsp soy sauce
• 1 package (12oz) Won Ton Wraps
• 5 tsp avocado oil
• 4 servings of our Dumpling Dipping Sauce (optional)

Instructions

1. First, we’re going to stir-fry the vegetables and ground pork each separately, using the same frying pan for each ingredient (which means fewer dishes to wash). Place a frying pan on medium-high heat and add about a teaspoon of oil. Once the pan is hot, add in the minced cabbage. Stir fry the minced cabbage for about 2 minutes. Remove the cabbage from the frying pan into a medium to a large-sized bowl and set aside for later.
2. Next, add another teaspoon of oil to the same pan you used to cook the cabbage. Add in the minced onions and stir fry for about 3 minutes. Remove the minced onions from the pan and add into the bowl with the stir-fried cabbage.
3. Add another teaspoon of oil to the pan. Add the minced carrots to the pan and stir fry for about 3 minutes. Remove the minced carrots from the pan and add it into the bowl with the cabbage and onions.
4. Again, add another teaspoon of oil to the pan. Add the minced green onions and stir fry for about 1-2 minutes. Remove the minced green onions from the pan and add it into the bowl with the carrots, cabbage and onions.
5. Add a teaspoon of oil again to the same pan. Cook the ground pork on medium-high heat until browned and well-done. This will probably take about 15 minutes to ensure ground pork is completely browned. Once the ground pork is well done, add it into the bowl with the cooked minced vegetables.
6. Next, add the remaining ingredients into the bowl with the meat and vegetable mixture. Mix together really well. We usually like to use our hands (clean hands of course) to really ensure everything is mixed together well.
7. Now it’s time to fill the wonton wrappers. Add about a teaspoon of the mandu meat and vegetable mixture to the center of a wonton wrapper. Dip your finger into a small bowl of water and lightly put water on one-half of the wonton wrappers edge (one-side of the wonton wrapper will be completely dry and the other half will have a watered edge). Fold the wonton wrapper in half to create a triangle shape, and press down on the edges to create a nice seal. Next, let’s release any air pockets. Cup the finished dumpling in the palm of your hand and lightly press down with your other hand to release any air pockets in the dumpling. Press down on the edges again to ensure a good seal. Note: We like to try and release any air pockets so it doesn’t puff up and explode when frying.
8. Add oil to your deep fryer and let it come up to temperature (350°F). Place your dumplings into the hot oil. Remember, everything inside the dumpling is cooked, so you’re just wanting to brown and crisp up the outside of these dumplings. It should only take about 2-3 minutes in the fryer.
9. Place fried dumplings on a plate lined with paper towels to drain away excess oil. Continue frying the dumplings until they’re all fried and crispy.
10. Enjoy the best Korean dumplings (Yaki Mandu)! Don't forget to grab our quick and easy dipping sauce recipe if you would like a dipping sauce to go with these dumplings! However, these dumplings are delicious with no dipping sauce as well!

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