This recipe is for traditional, classic Korean dumplings, which everyone loves!
This is my original mandu recipe for pork, beef, and chive dumplings that I posted on May 3, 2008. It shows you how to make dumplings and then fry them or make soup from them. Since then I’ve posted more thorough and better mandu recipes but I’m keeping this classic recipe here for everyone who loves it and loves making it. It may be a little rougher or less clear than my more recent recipes!
Ingredients
Yield: 50 to 60 mandu
- 1 cup of ground pork
- 2 cups of ground beef
- 2 cups of chopped buchu (Asian chives)
- 4-5 soaked Shiitake mushrooms
- half onion
- half package of tofu
- 3 cloves of minced garlic
- kosher salt
- sugar
- toasted sesame oil
- vegetable oil
- fish sauce
- egg
- green onion
- mandu skins (60 discs)
Directions
Make filling
- Place 1 cup of ground pork and 2 cups of ground beef into a big bowl.
- Add 1 ts of kosher salt, 1 tbs of toasted sesame oil, ½ ts of ground pepper and mix it by hand and push the mixture of meat on the side of the bowl.
- Wash some Asian chives (buchu), and dry well with a paper towel or cotton cloth. Chop them into 2 cups’ worth of chives. Add 1 tbs of oil and mix it up. Place it in the big bowl next to the ground meat. (tip: the oil coats the vegetables so they retain their moisture)
- Chop 4-5 soaked shiitake mushrooms and half an onion. Put them into a small bowl.
- Add 1 ts of soy sauce, 1 ts of sugar, and 2 ts of toasted sesame oil to the small bowl. Mix by hand and transfer it to the big bowl.
- Squeeze a half package of tofu with a cotton cloth or paper towel and put it into a small bowl. Add a pinch of salt and 1 ts of toasted sesame oil. Mix it by hand and then put it next to chopped chives.
- In the big bowl, add 3 cloves of minced garlic and mix all ingredients by hand. This is your mandu filling.
Shape mandu
- Put some of the filling mixture into the center of a mandu skin.
- Use your fingertips to apply a little cold water to one edge of the skin. This will act as a sealant when you fold it over.
- Fold skin in half over filling and press edges together to make ripple shape.
Fry mandu
- Place some vegetable oil on heated pan and add the mandu you made.
- Lower the heat to low-medium and put the lid on the pan to cook.
- Turn over each mandu a few minutes later. Add 2-3 tbs of water and put the lid back on the pan. Cook a few minutes more over low heat.
- When the mandu is golden brown, transfer it to a plate.
- Serve hot with a dipping sauce made of equal parts vinegar and soy sauce.
Make mandu soup
- In a pot, place 6 cups of water, 8 dried anchovies, the leftover shiitake mushroom stems, and the leftover onion. Boil it over medium heat for 20-30 minutes. If too much water evaporates, add more.
- When the stock is done, remove the anchovies and onion.
- Add 1 ts of fish sauce, 2 cloves of minced garlic, and some of your mandu. Keep the lid on the pot. You can add some more salt if you want.
- When the mandu has cooked, it will float to the top.
- Add 1 beaten egg, 2 sliced green onions: Done!
- Serve hot with a bowl of kimchi, and ground pepper to taste.
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These were fantastic! I made these with my half-Korean boyfriend tonight for date night and he said it was the best meal he’s ever ate! Thank you for such a great easy to follow recipe :)
IDEAS:
FLAVOR: ADD FLOUR. ADD 2 TABLESPOON OF FLOUR (ALL PURPOSE WHEAT FLOUR) FOR EVERY 1 LB OF MEAT. MUST INCREASE THE QUANTITY OF SALT AND SPICES.
CONVENIENCE: SSAM STYLE. COOK THE MANDU FILLING AND MANDU WRAPPERS SEPARATELY THEN EAT TOGETHER.
CONVENIENCE. KOREAN MEATLOAF, AND IT IS MICROWAVEABLE. MANDU FILLING AND BULGOGI MEATLOAF.
Maangchi, after freezing the mandu, how do you pan-fry it while ensuring that the pork is cooked through all the way? I keep seeing pink inside my mandu and I am unsure on how to properly pan-fry from frozen. Any advice would help!
When I boil it in soup, it comes out perfect.
I cook the frozen mandu on the pan with some vegetable oil until both sides turn a little brown and crunchy. Then I add a few spoons of water and turn down the heat to low, and cover and cook until the pork is fully cooked and the skins are crunchy.
Hi Maangchi, what soy sauce type and brand are you using for the dipping sauce?
Hi Maangchi, do I use the whole anchovy inside the tea strainer or do I need to remove the head and guts?
Always remove the head and guts! And you can put it in the tea strainer, or boil and take them out with chopsticks.
Thank you Maangchi! I made the dumplings with my daughters and they were delicious.
Maangchi thankyouu, these tasted so delicious – so much more flavourful than the frozen prepackaged dumplings!! I have to confess though, I had no tofu at home so I crumbled up some leftover cooked potato gems and one fish fillet which ended up working out fine. I used your mak-kimchi and the dumpling skin recipe too – everything from scratch, I’m very proud of all my hard work ;)
Again, thanks for all your lovely recipes Maangchi!!!
Hi, Maangchi, I just made the filling, but our dinner plans got moved back one day. Just curious… Do you still recommend freezing the mandu, or can I fill each mandu and keep them in the refrigerator for one day then cook them? I probably won’t have time to fill each ine tomorrow, but will they dry out in the refrigerator?
My cat, learning how to make Mandu.
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Made Mandu last week. Didn´t have Tofu available at my home town, so had to skip it. Also skipped pork. Buchu I had purchased at my last visit to Quito, at Seoul Market.
Decided to stir fry the filling (as I had seen in another Mandu recipe), to be able to preserve it longer. Also had to cope with square Mandu-pi, as no round one was available. Next time I´ll make my own.
Didn´t make the broth, but used the chicken broth I´d made for Dak-kalguksu instead. The result was super tasty. Also fried some Mandu: was so tasty that I didn´t even bother to make the dipping.
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BTW: I used egg white to stick the Mandu-Pi together, in stead of water: sticks much better. A trick I had learned from my chinese college friend Xiao Quing when making Spring Rolls.
Thanks for this recipe Maangchi-ssi! It’s super easy to follow, I am pretty proud of my mandu.
I steamed them and ate them with rice and kimchi.
can i use ground beef instead of pork?
Yes, you can use ground beef.
How many mandu does this recipe make?
I had to check this video to see how many I made! It makes between 50 and 60.
What if I can only find square wonton skins? How can I fold them so pretty both ways with the square ones?
I made your manchu yesterday and it was delicious! Have lots in the freezer too! I am brand new to Korean food and found your blog and love it! Tonight, Gaji-namul with eggplant from the garden! I have a jar of spicy kimchi that I bought a month ago from a specialty market and plan to try it for the first time with the eggplant. Sure it is probably not as good as yours! Thank you for introducing me to Korean food.
Hi Maangchi! I love mandu, but I have yet to try and make them from scratch! I usually get the premade mandu and make 떡만두국! It is one of my favorites when I want savory but not spicy food. Here, I made my leftovers into 도시락! ^__^
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Your manduguk looks great! You added even sliced rice cake! It’s called tteok-manduguk (떡만두국) in Korean.
Hi Maangchi!
I wanted to know if there is any substitute for the tofu. I want to make Mandu but my brother is deathly allergic to soy but still want him to enjoy the Mandu too. Thank you!
You can skip tofu. It will still turn out delicious.
Dear Maangchi,
I only found your website and your cooking book recently, and I am so thankful you make Korean cooking accessible for me. I studied in Korea 20 years ago, and have never stopped missing the wonderful Korean food.
I remember my favorite dish at that time ( favorite, just like each recipe is your favorite :-) ) was the fried mandu in the studens’ cafeteria. Maybe it was the only dish I could order in proper Korean. It was served with a red sauce, only mildly hot and a little sweet. Do you have any idea which sauce this could be?
Thank you!
I’ve been wanting to make homemade dumplings for a long time! Thank you for showing me the way :) Flavor was exactly like I wanted it to be.
However, the leftover balls rolled in flour turned out pretty bad. They are though and too salty but I used oil for frying and not butter so I don’t know why.
For the soup I used the left over broth from blanching the 막갈비찜 and that’s all it tasted. I’m starting to think the anchovies I got were no good. They never add anything to my soups :( I put a lot of soy sauce in the soup but it’s not as good as I expected.
Hi Maangchi! Thank you for making Korean cooking so fun and easy. :). I made Mandu the other day but ran out of wrappers. The mixed filling is in my fridge. How long is it good for? I’m hoping to get more wrappers today. Thank you!!
It will be ok up to 24 hours in the fridge. Good luck!
Hi Maangchi! I love your recipe! I just made your kimchi recipe yesterday and it was a great success :D I never knew making kimchi can be so tiring, but it’s really fun! I have another reason now to respect Korean Women ;) Btw, I looooove mandu but as I am living alone, I can’t finish this alone….. so is it okay if I saved some of it in the fridge? If it’s okay, would it better for me to save the uncooked ones or should I cook it first then put it on the fridge?
Thank you
Jane :)
Hi Jane!
I’m very happy to hear that you made good kimchi! From now on, you can make kimchi anytime you need it. Kimchi making day is tiring day but the more you make kimchi, the easier it gets.
You can freeze mandu for later use. What I do is that I put freshly made mandu on a large plate, layered with plastic wrap, to prevent them from sticking to each other. If I have more mandu, I cover the plate with another layer of plastic wrap, and put the mandu on top of the first layer.
Lastly, I cover the top with plastic wrap, and freeze. 1 day later, take it out, and put the frozen mandu into a plastic bag. Seal it and put them back into the freezer.
Good luck with your Korean cooking!
Hi Maangchi, I am new to your website and love your mandu recipe. I am going to try to make them this weekend for my brother’s birthday. My mom’s Korean and father is white, but she made one dish periodically — Mandu. My dad added sour cream and red wine vinegar to the beef broth which apparently is how the Russians eat this kind of soup. It is my favorite way to eat mandu soup. Anyway, I lost my mom last year and was looking for a mandu recipe to make so that I can remember her meals and honor her. Your recipe is the one I chose. One question that I have — is the Tofu soft or firm? Thank you very much. Larry.
Larry,
It’s medium firm tofu. Thank you for sharing the story about your mom. You miss her and the food she used to make for you, so you’ll be thinking of your mom while making mandu. It makes me feel touched. Good luck with your Korean cooking!
Thank you so much for your prompt reply! wow! I will take a picture and share it with your fans. Also, I am preordering your cookbook now. Best, Larry.
So, I had to use some substitutions…but it still turned out great! I used ground lamb for the pork, soy sauce for fish sauce, used extra green onions in place of the buchu (only about 1 cup), and substituted cooked rice for the tofu. I fried and salted them, trying to recreate the memory of the mandu the little Ajumma in Anjeong-ri would sell.
It was…somewhat successful in that endeavor. Of course nothing can replace the memory of the grease-soaked paper bag full of that fried food heaven, but something else happened with my substitutions. I think it was the lamb that did it, but there was a hint of something from the British Isles in there – as if my mandu had dreamt of being cornish pasties. It was awesome.
Thank you for the recipe and you definitely have a new fan!
The street food I ate when stationed at Camp Humphreys 12 years ago will be in my mind forever. Fried food, chicken on a stick, and Miss Chois steak sandwiches. Mr Lee’s stand was my favorite.
Hi Maangchi,
I am so happy making your mandu receipe, My sisters, husband, son and neigbhours all love it!. They all said the mandu tasted so nice! :-)
Hi Maangchi,Can I Put some fish into the Mandu?
Dear Maangchi
I have one question when you say half a packet of tofu…how many grams is this? Many thanks!
Alison
Hi Alison,
Check out the photo of tofu here: https://www.maangchi.com/ingredient/tofu
It shows that the whole packet weighs 14 ounces (396 grams), so half a packet should be 198 grams? : )
Thank you so much for replying!!
My little boys and I just made your mandu and ate 만두국 and 깍두기 for lunch. Sooooo good! I have to tell you, I am so grateful for you. I live in Seoul, but neither my sisters-in-law nor my mother-in-law have wanted to teach me how to cook Korean food.They tell me, “너무 복잡해서 하지 마.” I really thought real Korean cooking (beyond ramen and 김치 찌개) was too difficult and that, with my busy work schedule and family, I’d never have time to cool real, substantial Korean meals.Then I found your site, your wonderful videos and you–you’re like the sister-in-law I’ve always wanted. You make it seem so simple and basic, even when it’s not. Most importantly you’ve made me realize I can do it (definitely with your help). You are an angel–thank you! Now, I can go into a grocery store in my Seoul neighborhood with confidence and I am making yummy, healthy food every time I get a chance. Next up: 떡국 (with some of that mandu tossed in^^)~새해 복 많이 받으세요!
Sorry about the late reply!
Thank you for sharing the story about your Korean cooking. I’m sure your Korean cooking skill has improved a lot since you posted this comment.
Good luck with your Korean cooking!
I usually just buy mandu frozen, but I tried this recipe for a cooking competition at the office. Basically, they were a hit! Many people told me that they were very flavorful and delicious, even if they got soggy from being reheated in a heating oven. I served them with some soy sauce mixed with rice vinegar, sesame seeds, and green onion. Thanks for the recipe!
It sounds like you made perfect mandu! Congratulations!
Hi Maangchi!
I’m not sure if il be able to find asian chives. Would there be a substitute for this? Thank you.
oh, replace Asian chives with sliced and chopped green onions (scallions). It will turn out very delicious!
I’m so sad … was looking forward to eating my mandu which my 8 year old helped me make several weeks ago. I froze many of the mandu but when I unfroze them, they were stuck together. The skin was sticky and torn. What did I do wrong?
A trick that I learned from my mom is. Before you make the mandu take a tray or cookie sheets that will fit in your freezer. Cover it with plastic wrap. As you make your mandu place the mandu in a single row, with them not touching or on top of each there. One it is done place in the freezer until they are frozen. Once they are done you can place them in a freezer bag. In addition you don’t have to defrost before cooking. For quick defrost for deep frying take a plate cover it with paper towels and microwave 1-2 minute. Have oil ready. I hope this helps.
Is there a way to make the soup stock vegetarian? What would one use in place of anchovies?
When I was pregnant I craved rice cake soup, which I hadn’t had since I lived with my mom at the time it had been over ten years. Because of my religious I don’t eat conventional meat anymore, so I did some research for a vegetarian stock.
Vegetarian stock
1 daikon peeled and cut into medium chunks
1 large yellow onion cut into chunks
2-3 medium carrots peeled and cut into medium chunks
Put all of the vegetables into a stock pot with 10-12 cups of water bring to a boil and continue boiling for 45 minutes adding water as needed. When 45 minutes are up water will have reduced about 1/3-1/2 of original volum. Remove vegetables with a slotted spoon and place them in a clean cloth or a cheese cloth and squeeze the water out of the vegetables into the stock. To this add 2-4 cloves of garlic, 2-3 chopped fine green onion, sesame seed oil about 1-2 tablespoons (your taste), 2-3 tablespoons soy ( preferable Korean; and defenatly not kikomman), salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for 10-15 minutes and then finish your soup.
I hope this helps. Most will be to your taste.
I tried using wonton wrappers before and I found them to be too thin and delicate. They tore during cooking, especially for the soup version. I prefer using gyoza wrappers because they are a little thicker and hold up better during cooking. I make my mandu with 1/2 pork and 1/2 shrimp, by the way. I had no idea about putting oil on the chives. I’m going to try that next time!
Wonton wrappers are meant for wontons. What you want are mandu skins (which you might find in Asian supermarkets under the name “jiaozi” in Chinese, or “gyoza” in Japanese).
Hi Maangchi! We had mandu last evening at a Korean restaurant and they were delicious. They were served with some soy sauce and a slice of lemon I think. Are there any other sauces you might serve with mandu?
No, the soy-vinegar sauce is the standard. As a life-long eater and lover of Korean food, I’ve never heard of any other sauce being served with it traditionally. But you can make up your own sauce. Maybe cut down on the soy sauce and add some Sriracha?