Pan-fried flat dumplings filled with fragrant Chinese chive, soft scrambled eggs and springy vermicelli noodles, Chinese chive pockets are simply irresistible.
Flour-based dishes with meat filling, such as dumplings, buns, stuffed flatbread, etc., were nominated to be our family’s favourite type of food. Last week after we happily tucked into some Chinese chive pockets (韭菜盒子), I realized that we love vegetarian fillings in these dishes too! They taste just as good, if not better.
What are Chinese chives
Chinese chives (aka garlic chives, 韭菜) have long, flat, dark green leaves. Not only do they look different from regular chives, but they also have a much stronger flavour which somehow resembles the taste of garlic.
In Chinese cuisine, they are usually used as a vegetable (rather than a herb) and often paired with meat or eggs. Among many dishes that feature this flavourful vegetable, Chinese chive pocket (韭菜盒子), literally means “Chinese chive box”, is no doubt the most popular one.
What are Chinese chive pockets
Chinese chive pockets are pan fried, semi-circle shaped, flat dumplings filled with Chinese chives and scrambled eggs. Sometimes you can find mung bean vermicelli noodles and/or dried shrimps in the filling. Chinese chive has such a strong and appealing flavour on its own that you don’t need to add too much seasoning to the filling.
You may find Chinese chive pockets complicated at first glance. However, they are actually much easier to make than you would imagine.
How to make the filling
In my recipe, the filling calls for the following ingredients:
- Chinese chives. They are very easy to be chopped small (in comparison with other popular vegetables for dumpling fillings, such as Chinese cabbage, pak choi, etc.)
- Chinese scrambled egg. Please refer to my post on “Tomato and egg stir-fry” for detailed instructions.
- Salt & ground Sichuan pepper. Sometimes I replace Sichuan pepper with Chinese five-spice powder.
- Mung bean vermicelli noodles. They don’t have much of a flavour on their own, but they provide an interesting texture to the filling. You may skip them if not available. In this case, increase the volume of chive and egg accordingly.
How to shape the pockets
You only need two basic ingredients, flour and hot water, to make the dough and there is no special technique required.
You can shape the pockets using the simplest method:
- Place the filling in the middle of the wrapper
- Flip one side of the wrapper towards the other
- Seal the edge by pinching between your thumb and index finger
If you’d like to make them a little prettier, you can use a fork to press the edge or make a more attractive pattern as shown in the images above.
Would like to get more detailed instructions on dumplings making? Please check out the following two posts (with tutorial videos):
- Homemade dumpling wrappers shows you how to effectively roll the dough into nicely shaped wrappers.
- Ten ways to fold dumplings includes the pleats used for Chinese chive pockets.
🛎 TIP: I don’t recommend that you use pre-made, commercial dumpling wrappers to make Chinese chive pockets. They are too small and too thin thus not really suitable for this purpose.
Use wild garlic as an alternative
Chinese chives are widely available in Asian/Chinese shops. In Springtime, I like using Wild garlic(aka Ramsons) as a substitute. Growing in the woodland, it belongs to the Allium family and tastes very similar to Chinese chives.
I’ve found wild garlic in local woods in both Switzerland and England. If you search “where to find wild garlic” on Google, you may find a few locations near you. Good luck!
Chinese chive pockets (韭菜盒子)
Ingredients
For the dough
- 360 g all-purpose flour - 2.5 cups, plus extra for dusting if necessary
- 230 ml hot water - 1 cup
For the filling
- 150 g Chinese chives
- 50 g dried mung bean vermicelli noodles - optional, see note 1
- 4 eggs - lightly beaten
- 3 tablespoon cooking oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground Sichuan pepper - or Chinese five-spice powder
For frying
- 2 tablespoon cooking oil
Instructions
Prepare the dough
- Put the flour into a heatproof bowl. Pour in hot water (soon after being boiled). Stir with a pair of chopsticks or a fork until the flour turns into small lumps.
- Knead into a soft, smooth dough when cool enough to handle (see note 2).
- Cover the bowl with a wet kitchen towel. Leave to rest for 30 mins.
Mix the filling
- Finely chop chives.
- Soak vermicelli noodles in hot water for 5 minutes. Rinse under cold water until pliable. Chop into small pieces.
- Heat up oil in a wok then fry eggs (see note 3). Coarsely chop the egg.
- Put chive, noodles and egg into a mixing bowl. Stir in salt and ground Sichuan pepper/Chinese five-spice powder.
Assemble the pockets
- Divide the dough into 12 equal portions.
- Roll each piece into a round wrapper (about 15cm / 6inch in diameter).
- Place filling in the middle then seal the wrapper into a semi-circle flat pocket (see note 4).
Fry the pockets
- Heat up oil in a frying pan over medium heat.
- Place the pockets in then cover with a lid. Flip over when the first side becomes golden brown.
- Fry the second side uncovered until it turns golden brown (see note 5).
NOTES
- A: Simply seal the edge of the wrapper by pinching between your thumb and index finger.
- B: After step A, pressing the edge with a fork.
- C: After step A, use your thumb and index finger to pinch and fold the edge towards the centre of the pocket. Repeat all the way around the edge (as shown in the images in the post).
NUTRITION
NUTRITION DISCLOSURE: Nutritional information on this website is provided as a courtesy to readers. It should be considered estimates. Please use your own brand nutritional values or your preferred nutrition calculator to double check against our estimates.
Are there best surveys hot, cold, or room temp?
It’s best to enjoy them while warm.
hi what dipping sauce would you pair with this?
My favourite is a simple combination of black rice vinegar and homemade chilli oil. Otherwise, have a look at my post on Dumpling Sauces.
thank you for the recipe, they are really delicious😋 one question though, I bought a pack of Chinese chives to try different recipes, but I do not cook every day Chinese, so do you think I can freeze it? (cutting before of course..) since they sell it in a huge amount and won’t use it all in once.
Hi Simo! Happy to know you’ve enjoyed these pockets. You could freeze Chinese chives but they won’t be good for stir-fry dishes in which you clearly see each ingredient (defrosted chives don’t look great). That said, it’s perfectly fine to chop them small and freeze in small portions for making fillings later on. Hope this helps.
Hi Wei,
Just a quick question: can the dough be made in advance and kept in the refrigerator overnight in a ziploc bag? Or does it need to be made the same day it is stuffed?
You could do that Shatara. Make sure you bring the dough back to room temperature before working on it.
What is the alternative to frying? Can it be baked, as well? If so, what temperature do you reckon and for how long?
Rob
These pockets won’t come out very nice when baked as the dough is not leavened. If you like the filling and wish to bake, have a look at my post “Baked Bao Bun with Lamb“. You can replace the filling with this egg & Chinese chive combination.
Hi Wei!
I made this recipe tonight and I was delighted, as well as my boyfriend even though he is not quite acquainted to authentic Chinese cuisine. I was so happy he liked it, because I will surely make some again.
🙂
I can’t wait to venture further on your site and try some of your other delicious recipes.
xiè xie and zài jiàn
Nathalie
You are welcome Nathalie! Very happy to know you enjoyed it! Stay safe & cook more delicious food!
What is teh protein content of the flour used? The all purpose flour in the United States has a different protein content than that sold in Europe and I wouldn’t want the dumplings to be tough.
Hi Mel! Flour with medium gluten level works well, 10-11g protein per 100g flour. Hope this helps.
Wei, I just tried your recipe for chives pocket and it was good and easy to follow. Your pictures and explanations were helpful. It was successful. Will try your other recipes. Thank you and God bless.
You are welcome Tina. Very happy to know you enjoy using my recipe. Happy cooking!
Correction: How would THEY handle being frozen?
Hi!
I’ve used this recipe before and added fresh shrimp and it turned out great. I was wondering if I wanted to add pork and shrimp, do you think the results would still taste good? I enjoy the vegetarian version but my boyfriend really likes meat haha, thanks for your time!
It’s perfectly fine to mix Chinese chives with pork and shrimp (that’s a classic combination). Happy cooking!
These look fabulous. How would the handle being frozen?
Thank you for popping by! You can surely freeze uncooked pockets. Fry them without defrosting. Just make sure to add about 1/2 cup of water then cover with a lid when you fry the first side. The steam will help to cook through. Have a great time in your kitchen!