5 New Dumpling Recipes for Lunar New Year 2026

Today is Dumpling Week, our annual homage to one of everyone’s favorite foods, full of recipes that will get you excited and meandering.

No matter what shape they take, the meatballs, one after the other, make you want to inhale as much as you can, pausing only to swipe on more sauce or inhale dragon steam. Eating them feels like tearing open gifts, only better. The packaging is as wonderful as the contents, and biting into it evokes the satisfaction of tasting something new.

For some, dumplings symbolize wealth for the coming Year of the Horse. For everyone, these are the best party food for any season (and make any regular meal feel like a party). Not to mention, these are what we all want during late winter and the Lunar New Year renewal on Tuesday.

In our second annual Dumpling Week, a celebration of the tastiest snacks, we continue to honor dumpling traditions by embracing the creativity inspired by the form with recipes and accompanying videos. After all, they have traveled the world and flourished in the hands of cooks for over 1,500 years. We continue our journey with these bites.

Each of the meatballs below was created by longtime New York Times Cooking recipe developers, built on classic foundations and layered with seasonings and techniques adopted for years of tasting, pinching, and folding meatballs with family and friends. We drew from experiences beyond our own homes and cultural traditions to stuff, seal and sauce original meatballs that reflect our embrace of flavors from around the world.

Read on to learn more about each and watch how-to videos to walk you through creating five different shapes at home. These are just as fun to make as they are to eat, and there’s no better time to start than now.

Inspired? Here’s How to Host a Memorable Dumpling Party.

This is Sue Li’s version of the traditional stir-fried dumpling that she buys from a stand at the foot of Elephant Mountain, a popular destination in Taipei, Taiwan, after early morning hikes. The simple ground pork filling is flavorful and juicy thanks to garlic chives, a large, flat variety with a strong garlic flavor and leek-like texture.

Recipe: Pork and Garlic-Chive Potstickers

Called “king” or “wang” in Korean, these sweet, fluffy buns feature a delicious filling in the middle, befitting their size and not any royal status. The beef, mushrooms, and onions in this version from Eric Kim’s aren’t traditional, but together they taste familiar, like a good burger. A quick, salty-sweet soy sauce marinade of red onion and jalapeno makes a vibrant dipping sauce.

Recipe: Wang Mandu (King Dumplings)

Eaten in Türkiye, Armenia, and Central Asia, manti are dumplings usually filled with meat, which can be boiled, steamed, or baked. Hetty Lui McKinnon’s vegetarian ravioli is inspired by the Turkish version, here stuffed with herbed mushrooms and served with tangy, garlicky yoghurt and spicy tomato sauce. Although traditional wontons are small and made from a dough of flour, eggs, and olive oil, this recipe makes a more traditional-sized dumpling by using a shortcut on store-bought wonton wrappers.

Recipe: Mushroom Ravioli with Garlic Yogurt and Tomato Sauce

Kay Chun’s mother’s cabbage-potato soup and other similar dishes such as pierogi and knishes inspired these meatballs. The delicious filling combines creamy mashed potatoes and caramelized kale, flavored with tangy sauerkraut, fragrant cumin, Parmesan and fresh dill. These dumplings are equally delicious boiled and tender or pan-fried and crispy. Leftovers can be cooked in broth with vegetables for a quick and satisfying soup.

Recipe: Meatballs with Dill Cabbage, Potatoes and Cheese

Trade between China and Thailand began centuries ago, and with it the mixing of people, culture and cuisines. Here, in Genevieve Ko’s recipe, Thai food’s signature hot, sour, salty, and sweet flavor profiles take the form of super-flavorful dumplings with chile sauce. Formed into small round dumplings, these resemble pan-fried dim sum dumplings stuffed with garlic chives.

Recipe: Thai Basil Chicken Meatballs in Rice Paper Wrapper

See and Save All Our Ravioli Week Recipes

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