Crispy Cheeseburger Dumplings

5 from 1 vote

Crispy Cheeseburger Dumplings

If you love cheeseburgers and you love dumplings, you'll LOVE these super juicy cheeseburger dumplings. They're everything you love about a cheeseburger, in a very fun little parcel. Perfect for a crowd-pleasing party bite, or a fun weekend project.

Plus, they freeze beautifully and you can cook them straight from frozen, so they're brilliant for prepping ahead of time.

Prep Time30

Cook Time15

Total Time45

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Keyword: burger dumplings

Servings: dumplings

Calories: 414kcal

Author: Kate Phillips

Ingredients

For the cheeseburger dumplings -

1 lb ground beef (500g)
½ cup caramelized onions finely chopped (or use caramelized onion relish)
½ cup pickles finely chopped
1 cup cheddar cheese finely diced or grated
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon fish sauce
1 teaspoon salt
Black pepper
Dumpling wrappers
Flour for dusting

For the burger dipping sauce -

½ cup garlic aioli or regular mayo
1 tablespoon Dijon or American mustard
1 tablespoon tomato ketchup
1 garlic clove crushed (or 1 teaspoon garlic powder)
3 pickle slices finely chopped
1 teaspoon pickle juice or white wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoons smoked paprika

To serve -

⅓ cup cheddar cheese grated
Handful of chives finely chopped
1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds

Instructions

Make your filling.
Add your ground beef, ½ cup of chopped caramelized onions (or relish), ½ cup of chopped pickles, 1 cup of diced or grated cheese, 1 tablespoon of Dijon mustard, 1 teaspoon fish sauce, 1 teaspoon of salt and a very good grind of black pepper to a large bowl.
Mix to combine well - you want to ensure the seasoning is evenly distributed throughout the beef.

PRO TIP: I always pan-fry a little bit of the filling to test it for seasoning - that way you can add a little more salt or mustard if you like.

Prepare your dumplings.
Lightly flour a clean, flat surface. Keep your dumpling wrappers covered with a slightly damp dish towel to prevent them from drying out while you fill all the dumplings.
Spoon roughly a tablespoon of the filling into the middle of your wrapper. If you’re using store-bought wrappers, use your finger to brush a little water around the edges to help them stick together when you shape them (store-bought wrappers are dusted with cornstarch to stop them from sticking together in the packet).
Fold your dumplings.
There are multiple ways you can do this. The simplest way is to bring the edges together and form the dumpling into a half-moon shape. You can scrunch the top a little if you like, to create little pleats. Set the formed dumplings aside on a lined tray or plate, then continue with the rest of your filling.

I have a helpful guide that shares three easy ways you can shape dumplings, which I recommend having a quick look at - the photos will help, and you can also refer to the photos further up this page that show how I like to fold these dumplings.

Make your burger dipping sauce.
In a small bowl, mix ½ cup aioli or mayo with 1 tablespoon of mustard, 1 tablespoon of tomato ketchup, the chopped pickles, crushed garlic, 2 teaspoons of smoked paprika and 1 teaspoon of pickle juice until combined into a light orange, creamy sauce.
Cook the dumplings.
Set a non-stick frying pan or skillet you have a lid for over medium heat, then drizzle with the olive oil. Arrange the dumplings in the pan, leaving an inch or so in between each. Pan fry for about 3 minutes, until the bottoms are very lightly golden (you can pick one up to check).
Then pour in enough water so that it comes roughly one-third of the way up the dumplings, and pop the lid on. Lower the heat, then leave to steam for 10 minutes.
Crisp up the dumplings.
After 10 minutes, remove the lid from the pan and continue to cook the dumplings until all the water has evaporated and the bottoms are gorgeously golden and crispy.

OPTIONAL: When you remove the lid, you can scatter about ½ a cup of grated cheese into the pan to form a crispy cheese crust on the dumplings. Depending on your cheese, this can get a little messy and oily. It's worth it for the taste, but just be careful of any oil splatters if you try this!

Garnish and serve.
Carefully remove the dumplings from the pan, then arrange them on a serving platter. Scatter over the grated cheese, chives and sesame seeds, then serve with the burger sauce on the side for dipping.

Notes

HOW TO STEAM THE DUMPLINGS: Instead of pan-frying these dumplings, you can use a bamboo steamer (or regular steamer) to steam them.

Line the base of your steamer with a piece of parchment paper.
Make about six slices through the paper with a knife to help with the steaming.
Arrange the dumplings in your steamer, leaving about an inch between each.
Bring a pot of water to a boil, then place the steamer on top (or in the water - but if you do this make sure the water isn't touching the layer of the steamer where your dumplings sit).
Pop the lid on, then steam for 12 minutes.

HOW TO CARAMELIZE ONIONS: I highly recommend making a big batch of caramelized onions to have on hand in the fridge (and they freeze well too!) They take time, but it's worth it. Or if you have an Instant Pot or electric pressure cooker, save time by making a quick batch of Instant Pot caramelized onions.

Add a couple of tablespoons of olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat, then add thinly sliced onions (I like to do about six at a time - it will look like a lot at first but they'll reduce massively as they cook).
Cook for a few minutes until they start to soften, then add a little salt and (optional) 1 tablespoon or so of balsamic vinegar.
Stir through the onions, then reduce the heat right down and cook for about an hour, stirring every couple of minutes so the onions don't stick to the pan, until they're deeply golden brown and sticky.
If they're really stuck, add a splash of water, which should release them from the bottom of the pan.

FREEZING INSTRUCTIONS: The best way to prep the dumplings ahead of time is to shape them and then freeze them. Freeze the shaped dumplings on a parchment paper lined tray or plate until solid, then transfer to ziplock bags to store. You can cook them straight from frozen.

NOTE ON QUANTITY: The amount of dumplings you get out of this mixture will vary slightly, depending on how large or small you make them, and how you fold them. You should get enough for at least six servings from this mixture (around 36 dumplings), but it's definitely not an exact science.

Nutrition