CK's Kitchen: Getting in on an Air Fryer with inside out dumplings

Fry time Somehow I made it through the Instant Pot craze without adding another appliance to my fleet of small, countertop electronics. But I wouldn't be so lucky with the air fryer obsession that has swept the country and enthralled my two vegan roommates (my daughter and my niece). When Costco had this Gourmia 6-quart model on sale for $49.99, I took it home with me. Then I was slightly afraid to use it. The girls made fries and more fries. Finally it was time for Mama to make something real in this baby: inside out dumplings it was. The Asian-inspired meatball was a standout recipe in the Gourmia recipe book and I was intrigued. Pork, ginger, garlic Things I learned making this recipe: My kitchen would not make it in Asia because I needed almost every ingredient to mix up these deconstructed dumplings. The only thing I didn't have to buy was garlic, ginger, egg, pepper and sesame oil. So there's me, one of eight people in Giant Eagle after 8 p.m. Sunday. Since this was after a Browns win, I brushed my tousled hair and I was glad I did because I ran into someone I knew in the meat section. Someone I used to date who was there with a girl but that's a story for another day. Ugh. Anyway, I stayed focused, grabbed all my ingredients, opting for pork instead of beef and grabbing a can of chopped water chestnuts so I would be halfway to the mincing. Then I was on my way. Monday mincing There was much to do about mincing in this recipe — the garlic, ginger, water chestnuts and scallions all have to be finely chopped into uniform pieces. I obliged of course, releasing all the fabulous fragrance as I preheated the air fryer, which has been described as an amped-up convection oven. The top of the unit holds a heating mechanism and a fan. Hot air rushes down and around food placed in a fryer-style basket. The rapid circulation makes the food crisp like deep frying. Once preheated to 400 degrees, I sprayed the fryer basket with nonstick spray. My mixture made 20 meatballs that were probably more than 1.5 inches, but they cooked up well at 12 minutes. Coincidentally, it was my nephew's 12th birthday this night so I had another date I could not miss. That's what made these inside out dumplings so great — they were fast, yummy and relatively easy. I would say I was missing a sauce for these meatballs although I did devour them straight out of the fryer. If you pair them with rice or noodles you may want to add a sweet or spicy sauce. I'm not sure these dumplings were a 10, but I did love using my air fryer. That's a win! Contact Chrissy Kadleck at ckadleck@sbcglobal.net. Inside out dumplings Serves: 4 1 pound ground pork or beef 4 ounces water chestnuts, finely minced 3 tablespoons panko breadcrumbs 1 tablespoon soy sauce 1 teaspoon sesame oil 1 teaspoon ginger, grated or finely minced 1 teaspoon garlic, grated or finely minced 1 large scallion minced 1 egg, lightly beaten ½ teaspoon black pepper Preheat air fryer to 400 degrees. Mix all ingredients together. Form into 1 to 1½-inch balls. Spray air fryer basket and crisper tray with nonstick cooking spray. Cook 10-12 minutes or until cooked through; cooking in batches is necessary. Serve over noodles or rice. SOURCE: Gourmia Air Fryer Recipe Book