Potato Noodles & Potato Dumplings

Welcome to this delicious potato noodles & dumplings recipe that is infused with the bold flavor of the homemade garlic chili oil and peanut butter sauce.

With this recipe, you can make both mushroom-like potato dumplings and thick al dente potato noodles. Made from a combination of potato and potato starch, these noodles and dumplings have a unique texture that is both chewy, slippery, and satisfying.

It’s worth noting that both potato noodles and potato dumplings are suitable for a vegan diet and are also gluten-free.

Potato noodles & potato dumplings Q&A

1. Do I have to use russet potatoes?

Russet potatoes have a starchy texture, which makes them ideal for mashing. Yellow potatoes have a waxy texture, which makes them ideal for boiling, roasting, and making potato salads.

Boiling the potatoes until they are soft and tender is the first step in making potato noodles and dumplings. After boiling, the potatoes should be mashed until they are as smooth and fine as possible. It’s important to ensure there are no lumps or chunks in the dough, as this can cause the potato noodles or dumplings to break apart while shaping.

2. Can I substitute the potato starch with corn starch or flour?

You can use potato starch and sweet potato starch for making chewy and slippery potato noodles and dumplings. However, you can not substitute the potato starch with corn starch or all purpose flour.

Potato starch produces a softer and more pliable dough than corn starch. Potato starch dough is also easier to handle and roll out, and it tends to hold its shape better than corn starch dough.

Dough made from potato starch is also gluten-free, making it a good option for people with gluten sensitivities or allergies. Corn starch, on the other hand, contains some gluten and may not be suitable for those with gluten sensitivities or celiac disease.

Potato starch-based noodles and dumplings are known for their unique chewy and slippery texture. However, if you replace the potato starch with all purpose flour in the dough for potato dumplings, they may end up with a doughy and mushy taste.

3. Why did my potato noodles fall apart?

Here are some of the most common reasons why homemade potato noodles may fall apart:

– Dough consistency

If the dough is too dry or too wet, it can cause the noodles to fall apart.

As the water content of each boiled potato may differ, it’s important to be flexible with the amount of water added to the dough in this recipe. For example, when mixing 2 cups of potato starch with 1 large boiled potato (weighing 300g after being peeled), I initially added 1/2 cup of water to the dough, but it felt too dry. To achieve a smooth texture, I gradually added an additional 1/4 cup of water until it reached the desired consistency. It’s important to adjust the amount of water added to the dough to achieve a pliable and easy-to-work-with texture, without making it too sticky or dry.

– Lumpy or chunky potatoes

If you didn’t boil the potatoes for long enough or mash the potato fine enough, there might be small chunks or lumps in the mashes potatoes, which can result in the noodles or dumplings falling apart during shaping.

Therefore, it’s important to mash the potatoes thoroughly until they are completely smooth and free of lumps. You can use a potato masher, a food processor, or a garlic press to achieve a smooth consistency.

– Rolling too thin

Rolling potato noodles too thin can result in them being fragile and easily breaking apart. Chinese spicy potato noodles are renowned for their chewy texture and thick shape, so there is no need to roll them too thinly. When rolled to a finger-size thickness, these potato noodles will have the ideal chewy texture and will be able to coat the sauce evenly.

– Cooking gently: To avoid having to bend the potato noodles while they are still raw, it’s recommended to cook them in a large pot. When cooking the noodles, it’s important to handle them gently and ensure that they do not touch each other in the pot. To prevent the noodles from breaking apart, start by boiling water in the pot and then simmer the noodles over medium-low heat until they are fully cooked.

– Lack of gluten

Since these potato noodles are gluten-free, it may be more difficult to get them to hold together since gluten is what gives traditional wheat-based noodles their structure.

Potato dumplings are more stable and less likely to fall apart than potato noodles. However, if you want to ensure that your potato noodles don’t fall apart, I have a helpful trick to share with you:

Take a small portion of the dough (about 25%) and boil it for 10 minutes until it’s fully cooked. Then, knead the cooked dough and raw dough together.

As the small piece of dough is cooked, the starch granules in the flour absorb the liquid and swell, causing them to rupture and release the starch molecules, a process known as “gelatinization.” The starch molecules then combine with the liquid and start to make the dough sticky. When we mix this cooked dough with the rest of the raw dough, the cooked dough will function like a gel, bonding all the molecules together and making the dough more robust and elastic.

EQUIPMENT you will need:

• A medium pot for cooking potatoes. A large pot for cooking noodles.
• Potato masher
• Water bottle (Ideally use a glass beer bottle. A regular plastic screw-on water bottle can also work.)

INGREDIENTS List:

– Potato noodles/dumplings dough

• 1 russet potato (Large)
• 2 cups of potato starch (About 340g; Can NOT use corn starch or flour here.
• ¾ cup water

– Sauce

• 2 tbsp minced garlic
• 2 tbsp sesame seeds (optional)
• 3 tbsp chopped green onions (optional)
• 3 tbsp chopped cilantros (optional)
• 2 tbsp chili powder (skip if you can’t handle spicy food)
• 1 tbsp peanut butter (Can also use sesame paste)
• 1 tbsp granulated sugar
• ½ tsp salt
• ¼ cup vegetable oil
• ½ tsp chicken bouillon (optional)
• 3 tbsp soy sauce
• 3 tbsp black vinegar

Step-by-step INSTRUCTIONS 

1. Place a washed potato in a pot and add enough cold water to cover the potato by at least an inch. Use high heat to bring the water to a boil. Once the water is boiling, reduce the heat to medium-low and let the potato simmer for about 40 minutes until the potato is soft. Remove the potato from the pot, soak or rinse it under cold water before handling.

2. Peel the potato. (The potato should weigh about 300g at this moment after it’s cooked and peeled.) Use a potato masher (I didn’t have one at home, so I used a garlic press) to mash the potato until it’s smooth and creamy.

3. Use clean hands to mix 2 cups of potato starch and ¾ cup of cold water into the mashed potato until it forms a smooth dough. If the dough feels too dry, gradually add 1 to 3 tablespoons of cold water until the desired consistency is reached.

4. You can use half of the dough for making potato dumplings: take a portion of dough (approximately 30g) and shape it into a ball (the size of a ping-pong ball). Next, halfway press down on the center of the dough with the top of a water bottle, creating a mushroom shape potato dumpling.

5. You can use the rest half of the dough for making potato noodles. Take approximately ¼ of the total amount of dough intended for making potato noodles and boil it for 10 minutes or until it floats. Knead the cooked and uncooked dough portions together until they are thoroughly combined. Next, take a portion of the dough (around 50g) and roll it into a ½”-thick long noodle. Repeat this process with the remaining dough until it is all rolled into potato noodles.

6. Use high heat to bring a large pot of water to a boil. Gently add potato dumplings or potato noodles to the pot. Once the water is boiling again, reduce the heat to medium-low and let the potato dumplings simmer for about 15 minutes (the potato noodles simmer for about 10 minutes) until fully cooked. Drain and transfer to serving plates.

7. To make the sauce, add minced garlic, sesame seeds, chopped green onions, chopped cilantros, chili powder, peanut butter, granulated sugar, and salt to a heat-resistant bowl. Heat up ¼ cup of vegetable oil in a small saucepan over high heat until it starts to smoke. Carefully pour the hot oil over the sauce ingredients.

8. Use a spoon stir the sauce ingredients and oil together. Add chicken bouillon, soy sauce, and black vinegar to the sauce mixture. Stir until all the ingredients are well combined.

9. Add the sauce to cooked potato noodles or dumplings, stir until well combined. Serve the dish hot and enjoy.

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