Making frozen potstickers in air fryer is the simplest fuss-free way to cook them to delicious golden crispiness. They can be made straight from the freezer and turn out crispy on the outside and flavorful, tender and juicy on the inside.
If you are looking for quick air fryer appetizers, this recipe is for you. Just grab frozen potstickers, jiaozi, gyoza, or dumplings whatever you can get your hands on, and follow the simple instructions given in the recipe card to air fry them.
Air fryers are the best at cooking frozen foods. If you do not trust me, try making the frozen garlic bread or the frozen spring rolls in an air fryer. So easy, quick, and delicious that you will love it for sure.
Air fryer frozen dumplings do not taste the same as the ones made in a pan. Conventionally, they are shallow fried in a pan, to get them crispy and caramelized base, and then a splash of water is added to the pan to induce steam. The pan is further covered to allow the dumplings to cook thoroughly in the steam.
So, it is not possible to get steam-cooked flavor using an air fryer. But trust me the ones made in the air fryer are equally good. They have a crispy wrapper covering the moist and flavorful stuffing. Even if you are a dumpling purist, it is worth a try. You won’t regret it.
More air fryer recipes to try:
- Air fryer spring rolls
- Spaghetti squash in an air fryer
- Garlic bread made in air fryer
- How to fry frozen okra in air fryer? Breaded and plain cut okra
Introduction to potstickers
Dumplings vs potstickers?
Well for a layman, dumplings and potstickers seem the same. But to go into a little detail, dumplings are used as more of a generic term. Potstickers are a specific type of dumplings. Let me put the difference in pointers.
- Dumplings can be made by boiling, steaming, frying, or poaching. The dumplings that are made by the first pan-frying the bottoms of the dumplings and then steaming them are called potstickers.
- The potstickers have thinner wrappers than regular dumplings.
- The dumplings have an overall soft exterior, whereas the potstickers have crispy bottoms and soft tops.
- The potstickers are usually pan-fried in shallow oil and then steamed in the same pan. Dumplings are most commonly made by steaming in steam baskets.
How did potstickers get their name?
There is a fun story behind the potstickers. It is rumored that a royal Chinese chef was boiling the dumplings and had to go away for some work and by the time he returned the water has evaporated and the dumplings stuck to the bottom of the wok. He liked how the dumplings tasted and served them to the royals. Everyone enjoyed it and it became part of the Chinese main cuisine over time. A lucky mistake gave jiaozi (potstickers) to Chinese cuisine. They are enjoyed all over the world today.
The Chinese name is jiaozi, Japanese call it gyoza, and potstickers for the rest of the world.
Why should you make frozen dumplings in an air fryer?
These air fryer dumplings are as easy to make as any air fryer recipe can get. Let us see why this pot stickers recipe works.
- We all are super busy with our lives. We all need ways to speed up our cooking. Air fry frozen potstickers are the quickest way to make them.
- There is no need to thaw the frozen dumplings or potstickers. We can put them straight in the air fryer for cooking.
- You do not need to use any oil if you do not want to. Also, they need very little oil as compared to the potstickers that are made conventionally. Hence, an air fryer makes healthier potstickers.
- The air fryer does not take much time to preheat like oven. Also, you do not have to preheat the entire oven, even if you are just making a few pieces of potstickers or dumplings.
- When we make frozen potstickers in an air fryer, we do not have to worry about them being cooked evenly. When making them in a pan, we have to ensure that they are not only browned from the base, but thoroughly cooked with steam to the seams. But the air-fried potstickers always cook evenly on all sides.
- They are crispy and delicious.
- And not to forget that it is a hands-off way of making potstickers. When we make potstickers in a pan, we need to keep a constant eye to ensure they brown from the bottoms, then pour some water and cover to cook the rest in the steam. While making Air fryer potstickers, you do not have to worry about these things. Just pop in the frozen dumplings or potstickers, and the air fryer will do it for you.
Ingredients to make air fryer potstickers?
Frozen dumplings/ frozen potstickers
For making air fried potstickers or dumplings first, you need some frozen dumplings or potstickers. You can find them in different names in the frozen section of the grocery store. Potstickers, dumplings, gyoza, and jiaozi (Asian grocery store). Or you can also use wontons. Use any of these to air fry and obtain similar results.
I am vegetarian, so I opted for vegetable frozen potstickers. Numerous brands sell frozen potstickers, I am using Canyon Farm's vegetable potstickers. You can use whichever you like. I am using the canyon farms vegetable potstickers. Some brands sell them with dipping sauce. The instructions will same for all of them.
Vegetable oil
I used about 2 teaspoons of oil to brush these frozen potstickers before putting them in the air fryer. You can air fry frozen potstickers or dumplings without using any oil also. You can use cooking spray if you want. But those things have nasty chemicals, why not just brush the dumplings with some oil.
The oils with a high smoke point are best for use in an air fryer. Other than vegetable oil you can use Avocado oil, soyabean oil, coconut oil, peanut oil, or ghee. But coconut oil, peanut oil, and ghee do have some characteristic odors that might not taste best with the potstickers. So, use neutral-flavored oils only. Oh yeah, you could use olive oil too in recipes air frying.
How to make frozen potstickers in air fryer?
Step1 Unwrap and brush the potstickers with oil
To make air fryer potstickers, use your favorite brand of frozen potstickers or dumplings. Unwrap them and brush them with oil while they are still in their tray. This way they do not roll over and it is convenient to coat them nicely. First, I oil the sides facing me, then just flip them and coat the other side.
Alternately you can also spray them with cooking oil if that is what you like.
Step 2: Air fry frozen dumplings or potstickers
Preheat the air fryer to 400 0F for 2 minutes before putting the frozen dumplings in its basket.
Now spread the frozen potstickers in the basket of the air fryer in a single layer. There is no need to grease the tray of the basket. Try to space them out to ensure even circulation of air.
Preheating is optional. It does speed the air frying. If you do not want to wait to preheat the air fryer, just put them straight into the air fryer basket and air fry them at 400 0F for 10 minutes.
If you preheated the air fryer to 400 0F you might take 7-8 minutes.
Halfway through the process take out the basket of the air fryer and use tongs to turn them on to the other side to ensure even cooking.
When done, transfer the sir fried potstickers on a plate serve with your favorite sauce. I like sweet and spicy Thai chili sauce with potstickers. Which one is your favorite?
How to cook potstickers without air fryer?
To make potstickers, first, heat a pan with 1-2 tablespoons of oil depending on how many potstickers are you making. Now add the dumplings to the pan. We want to let them cook and brown from the bottoms. The dumplings should become crispy and golden brown at their bottoms. It is important to keep an eye as they can burn very quickly.
When you see the bottoms turning golden brown, add a splash of water and quickly cover the pan with a lid. Let them cook on a low to medium flame. The steam will form inside the pan and cook the potsticker completely. It will take 7-8 minutes depending upon how many you make.
When done, remove them on a plate, and serve with your favorite sauce.
You can even use your instant pot for making potstickers. Use the sauté mode and follow the instructions given above.
Storage and how to reheat dumplings in air fryer
The best way to enjoy them is fresh. But, if you have some air-fried potstickers leftover, just put them in an air-tight container and refrigerate. Alternately you can also wrap them in a foil and then place them in an air-tight bag. You can refrigerate them for a day or two.
To reheat the refrigerated dumplings, you can air fry dumplings at 340 0F for 3-4 minutes by placing them evenly in the air fryer basket. It may take more or less time depending on how many you reheat, and the size of your air fryer basket. So, it is a good idea to check after 2 minutes and go from there.
Pro Tips for air frying
These tips are relevant to most air fryer recipes.
- If you have a small air fryer basket and you want to make a large batch, try splitting it into batches.
- Put the frozen potstickers in the air fryer in a single layer, such that there are gaps for air circulation. Never overcrowd or overlap the food in the basket.
- Do not forget to flip the potstickers halfway through the cooking time. This ensures even cooking on all sides.
- All air fryers are built differently. They come in different sizes and shapes, and temperature settings. So, to get the same results with two different sized or designed air fryers, there will be a differential of a few seconds to a few minutes. Pull out the air fryer basket before the lowest given cook time in a recipe and see for yourself, how much more time do you need. Your potstickers might need lesser than the suggested time. This way you will know the cooking time that works best for you.
Frequently asked questions
It takes about 9-10 minutes to cook 10-12 air fryer frozen potstickers if you preheat. If you did not preheat, it will take11-12 minutes to cook frozen potstickers in an air fryer.
If the potstickers are made fresh and not the frozen ones, it takes 7-8 minutes to air fry them.
Well, the exact time will vary from the air fryer to fryer and how many potstickers you are making.
Yes, there is no need to thaw frozen potstickers before putting them in an air fryer.
They cook better and are crispy when cooked straight from frozen.
To make the frozen potstickers crispy, the easiest, quickest and healthiest way is to air fry them. Find more details in the recipe card for the air fryer potstickers.
Well, the air-fried potstickers are different than the traditional potstickers in terms of their texture. But for someone like me, who likes texture on their foods, they are delicious. They are crispy throughout, not just the base. Also, they are not at all greasy like the traditional ones. A much healthier, easy, and fuss-free way to make potstickers.
Gyoza and potstickers are the same things. The Japanese translation for “stuck to the wok” dumplings is Gyoza. Japanese adopted the Chinese jiaozi and called them gyoza. It is believed that the Japanese soldiers tried the jiaozi during World War II when they were in the region of northern China. On returning home, they recreated the Chinese potsticker dumplings. These became popular and were known as Gyoza.
Yes, I have seen a lot of people microwave the frozen dumplings. They do become a little chewy. The steamed dumplings usually have a chewy texture anyway.so, if you like that kind of dumplings, just go for it. Microwave is a quick and easy way to cook dumplings just like an air fryer.
I hope you enjoy making the frozen potstickers in air fryer and it becomes your go-to method to cook frozen food. Share it with friends if you find it helpful.
Till then,
Make it quick and delicious!
Recipe card for making frozen potstickers in an air fryer
Frozen Potstickers in air fryer
Equipment
- air fryer
Ingredients
- 1 pack frozen potstickers or dumplings
- 2 teaspoon vegetable oil Cooking spray
Instructions
Step 1: Unwrap the frozen potstickers or dumplings and brush them with some vegetable oil
- Unwrap the frozen potstickers and brush them with oil on the sides facing you, while they are still in the tray. Then flip them and coat the other side. Alternately you can use cooking spray.
Step2 : Air fry frozen potstickers
- Preheat the air fryer to 400 0F for 2 minutes before putting the potstickers in the basket. Now spread the frozen potstickers in the basket of the air fryer in a single layer. There is no need to grease the air fryer basket. Try to space them out to ensure even circulation of air.
- Air fry for 7-8 minutes depending upon how crispy you like your potstickers.
- Halfway through the process take out the basket of the air fryer and use tongs to carefully turn them on to the other side to ensure even cooking.
- When the potstickers turn golden, take them out on a plate and serve with your favorite dipping sauce.
Notes
- This recipe will work as such for making frozen dumplings, frozen potstickers, gyoza, or Jiaozi.
- If you have a small air fryer basket and you want to make a large batch, try splitting it into batches.
- Put the frozen potstickers in the air fryer in a single layer, such that there are gaps for air circulation. Never overcrowd or overlap the food in the basket.
- Do not forget to flip the potstickers halfway through the cooking time. This ensures even cooking on all sides.
- All air fryers are built differently. They come in different sizes and shapes, and temperature settings. So, to get the same results with two different sized or designed air fryers, there could be a differential of a few seconds to a few minutes. Pull out the air fryer basket before the lowest given cook time in a recipe and see for yourself, how much more time do you need. Your spring rolls might need lesser than the suggested time. This way you will know the cooking time that works best for you.
Suchitra Murthy
Dumplings came out great. Enjoyed them with the sweet and spicy thai chili sauce...just yum!!
May
I am somebody who enjoys steamed and poached dumplings only. The potstickers never felt legit to me and the frozen ones, never! But last week my husband brought a huge pack of frozen potstickers from the asian market. I tried your air fryer method, and I must say that I am pleasantly surprised by the texture of these air fried potstickers. They are different but enjoyable. I will make them again. Thanks.
Will
I skipped preheating, and air-fried straight for 10 minutes. They were great.
Andrew
They turned out perfect. I made two packs at a time. Thanks to the large air fryer basket.