These vegan potstickers are fun to make and even more fun to eat! Bursting with veggies and spices, crispy on the bottom, soft and sticky on top, they make a delicious appetizer that will be a hit at your next gathering.

For most of my life potstickers have been one of those foods that's reserved for restaurants or takeout. They're too fancy and fussy to make myself, right?
Actually, no. Homemade potstickers are pretty easy to make. There are a few steps involved, but the process is petty simple, and fun!
Let's talk about what makes a potsticker! It's an Asian style dumpling. I've shared a recipe for tofu dumplings on this site in the past, and they're pretty similar to potstickers. But potstickers are cooked in a specific way: they're pan-fried in a bit of oil, then steamed. This gives them amazing texture! The bottoms are crispy and golden brown, thanks to the frying step, while the tops are tender and soft from the steam. They've really got the best of everything going on.
These particular vegan potstickers are stuffed with a veggie filling that's seasoned with garlic, ginger, and Chinese five spicy. Each one is a little flavor-bomb on it's own, but even more so when dipped in my sesame soy dipping sauce.
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Ingredients You'll Need
- Peanut oil. You can substitute another neutral high-heat oil if you'd like. Canola oil, corn oil and vegetable oil will all work.
- Shiitake mushrooms.
- Scallions. Also known as green onions.
- Garlic.
- Ginger.
- Cabbage. I'm using green cabbage, but red should work just fine as well.
- Carrots.
- Water chestnuts. These are typically sold in cans and can be found in the international aisle of most supermarkets.
- Soy sauce. Tamari or liquid aminos will also work.
- Brown sugar. Use organic sugar to keep the recipe vegan.
- Sriracha sauce. This adds the tiniest bit of heat to the filling. It can be omitted if preferred. I used Kitchen Garden brand sriracha, which is vegan.
- Toasted sesame oil. Look for this in the international aisle at the store.
- Cornstarch.
- Chinese five spice.
- Dumpling wrappers. We're using Shanghai-style wrappers, which are the round kind. Check the ingredients to ensure that your wrappers are vegan. I used Twin Marquis brand.
- Sesame seeds.
- Rice vinegar. This is for making the dipping sauce, so you can cross it off you're list if you're planning to use a premade sauce.
How They're Made
The following is a detailed photo tutorial on how to make this dish. Scroll all the way down if you'd like to skip right to the recipe!
- There's a good deal of prep work, so make sure to get it all out of the way before you begin cooking: chop the veggies and measure out the seasonings for your filling.
- Cook the mushrooms. Lightly oil the bottom of a medium skillet and place it over medium heat. Add finely chopped shiitake mushroom caps and cook them for a few minutes, until they start to brown. Flip them once or twice to get them browned all over.
- Take the mushrooms out of the skillet and transfer them to a plate.
- Heat up a bit more oil in the skillet and add your aromatics: chopped scallions (white parts only — we'll use the greens later), minced garlic, and grated ginger.
- Cook everything briefly until the mixture becomes very fragrant. Watch it carefully and stir it frequently to prevent burning.
- Raise the heat a bit and add finely chopped cabbage, carrots and water chestnuts.
- Cook the vegetables for a few minutes, stirring constantly, until they start to soften.
- Return the mushrooms to the skillet and add the green parts of your scallions along with the soy sauce, brown sugar, sriracha, sesame oil, cornstarch, and five spice.
- Use your spatula to flip everything rapidly and mix up the ingredients. After about a minute more of cooking you can take the skillet off of the burner.
- Taste-test the filling and season it with salt to taste. Keep in mind that the dipping sauce is salty, so you may not need to add any salt to the filling.
- Fill a small bowl with water and place one of your dumpling wrappers on a work surface.
- Use a finger to wet the edges of the wrapper, then place a heaping teaspoon of filling in the center.
- Fold the wrapper in half over the filling and pinch the edges of the wrapper together at the center when they meet. Make little pleats along the left and right of the pinched area as you close the wrapper, but just on the side of the dumpling facing you. This video tutorial is really helpful if you need more guidance on folding your potstickers.
- Repeat the process until all of your filling is used.
- Coat the bottom of a nonstick skillet with some oil and place it over medium heat. You'll need a skillet that you can cover, but not too tightly, as some water needs to escape. A lid is ideal, but foil will do in a pinch.
- Add your potstickers to the skillet, placing the flat (non-pleated) sides down. Pan-fry the vegan potstickers until they're golden brown on the bottoms.
- Add some water to the skillet, cover it and let them steam for a few minutes, until all of the water has evaporated. Be super careful here, as the water can sputter when it hits the hot cooking surface.
Tip: Avoid crowding the skillet. Even though they're called "potstickers" I find their tendency is more to stick to each other. You'll probably need to cook them in batches.
- Sprinkle your vegetable potstickers with sesame seeds and serve them with dipping sauce.
Leftovers & Storage
Leftover potstickers will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for about 3 days, or in the freezer for about 3 months.
More Vegan Asian-Inspired Appetizers
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Vegan Vegetable Potstickers
These vegan potstickers are fun to make and even more fun to eat! Bursting with veggies and spices, crispy on the bottom, soft and sticky on top, they make a delicious appetizer that will be a hit at your next gathering.
Ingredients
For the Potstickers
- 5 tablespoons peanut oil, divided, plus more as needed
- 4 ounces shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and discarded, caps finely chopped (about 1 cup)
- 2 scallions, white and green parts separated and chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
- 1 cup finely chopped green cabbage
- ½ cup finely diced carrots (about 2 medium carrots)
- ½ cup finely chopped water chestnuts
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon organic brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon sriracha sauce (optional)
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon Chinese five spice
- 30 Shanghai-style dumpling wrappers, or more if needed (Note 1)
- Toasted sesame seeds, for serving
For the Dipping Sauce
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons organic brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
Instructions
-
Coat the bottom of a medium skillet with 1 tablespoon of oil. Give the oil a minute to heat up, then add the chopped mushrooms in an even layer.
-
Cook the mushrooms for about 5 minutes, flipping them once or twice, until they're lightly browned. Remove them from the skillet and transfer them to a plate.
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Add another tablespoon of oil to the skillet. Give it a minute to heat up, then add the white parts of your scallions, garlic and ginger. Cook everything for about 1 minute, stirring frequently, until very fragrant.
-
Raise the heat to medium high and add the cabbage, carrots, and water chestnuts. Cook the mixture, stirring frequently, for about 4 minutes, until the vegetables begin to soften.
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Return the mushrooms to the skillet. Add the green parts of the scallions, soy sauce, brown sugar, sriracha, sesame oil, cornstarch, and five spice.
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Flip the ingredients a few times with a spatula to mix everything up and cook the mixture for about 1 minute more. Remove the skillet from heat.
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Taste-test the filling and season it with salt to taste. (Note 2) Adjust any other seasonings to your liking.
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Fill a small bowl with water. Set a dumpling wrapper on a work surface and moisten the edges with water. Drop a heaping teaspoonful of the filling in the center of the dumpling.
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Fold the wrapper in half over the filing, pinching the wrapper together at the midpoint of the round edge. Seal one side at a time, forming small pleats in the half of the wrapper facing you.
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Continue filling and folding the dumplings until all of the filing is used.
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Coat the bottom of a medium to large nonstick skillet with oil and place it over medium heat. (Note 3)
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Cook the dumplings in batches. Add as many as you can fit in the skillet without crowding, placing them flat (non-pleated) sides down.
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Pan-fry the dumplings for about 4 minutes, until golden brown and crispy on the bottoms, then add ¼ to ⅓ cup of water (Note 4) and loosely cover the skillet (Note 5). Be careful when adding the water, as it may sputter when it hits the hot surface.
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Steam the dumplings for 3 to 4 minutes, until all of the water has evaporated.
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Remove the dumplings from the skillet and continue cooking them in batches in the same manner.
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Stir the dipping sauce ingredients together in a small bowl. Make sure to fully dissolve the brown sugar.
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Sprinkle the dumplings with sesame seeds and serve them with dipping sauce on the side.
Recipe Notes
- Check the ingredients to ensure that your wrappers are vegan. Twin Marquis brand dumpling wrappers are.
- Keep in mind that the dipping sauce is salty when seasoning the filling. You may not need any additional salt.
- For a medium skillet, use about a tablespoon of oil. Use a tablespoon and a half for a large skillet.
- If you're using a medium sized skillet (fits about 10 dumplings), add ¼ cup of water. For a large skillet (fits about 15 dumplings), add ⅓ cup of water).
- Foil can be used to cover the skillet if you don't have a lid.
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