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Pizza Gyoza (Simple)

Crispy shallow-fried gyoza with a simple molten cheese and tomato filling — like a mozzarella stick crossed with a pizza, wrapped in a dumpling.

Details
Cuisine Japanese-Italian Fusion
Servings 4 (24 gyoza)
Frying Temp 175°C (350°F)

Ingredients

Ingredient Imperial Metric
Gyoza wrappers 24 24
Pizza cheese, shredded 4¼ oz 120g
Tomato paste 2 tbsp 30g
Powdered parmesan 1 tbsp 15g
Garlic cloves, minced 2 2
Dried oregano 1 tsp 1 tsp
Dried basil 1 tsp 1 tsp
Chili flakes ¼ tsp ¼ tsp
Salt and pepper pinch pinch
Egg, beaten (for sealing) 1 1
Oil for shallow frying 2 cups 500ml

Instructions

  1. Make the filling: Combine the pizza cheese, tomato paste, parmesan, garlic, oregano, basil, chili flakes, salt, and pepper in a bowl. Mix until evenly combined. Taste and adjust seasoning.
  2. Rest the filling: Cover and refrigerate for 15 minutes. This is especially important without a binder — cold filling is much easier to work with.
  3. Fill and seal: Place a gyoza wrapper in your palm. Add a small amount of filling (less than 1 teaspoon) to the center. Brush the edges with beaten egg, fold in half, and pinch very firmly to seal. Double-pinch the edges — there is no binder to hold things together so a good seal is critical. Work quickly with the filling cold.
  4. Heat the oil: Pour the oil into a frying pan to about ½–¾ inch (1–2cm) depth. Heat to 175°C (350°F). Keep a thermometer handy if you have one — the temperature will drop when you add gyoza so let it recover between batches.
  5. Shallow fry: Fry in batches of 4–6, turning every minute or so to get even color on all sides. Fry for 2–3 minutes total until deep golden brown all over. Remove and drain on paper towels.
  6. Serve: Rest for a minute before eating — the cheese inside will be extremely hot. Serve with marinara or a simple tomato dipping sauce on the side.

Notes

  • No binder in this filling so keep everything cold — mix and refrigerate, then work fast with cold filling straight from the fridge.
  • Use less filling per wrapper than you think you need.
  • The result inside is a stringy melted cheese pull rather than a creamy filling — think mozzarella stick inside a crispy wrapper.
  • Seal very firmly — the oil will find any gap.