Produced by a company established in 1954 shortly after the end of World War II, following the opening of a department store in front of Nagoya Station in Aichi Prefecture, the hand-wrapped Kotobuki gyoza dumplings are made by steaming instead of grilling. The company first started as a delicatessen selling fried foods such as croquettes, and later in 1958, began production of shumai (Chinese dumpling) and gyoza so that customers can enjoy them easily at home, which now have become the signature products of the company. A total of 3,500 to 5,000 dumplings are being hand-wrapped at the company’s factory and stores every day. Freshly steamed dumplings can be purchased at its stores.
Cooked in a steamer just like shumai dumplings, the condensed umami flavors of the ingredients are the best feature of the Kotobuki gyoza. With flavorful meat filling wrapped in custom-made paper-thin and large skins, Kotobuki gyoza are a perfect satisfying side dish. The filling is made by mixing domestic pork and chicken ground at the company’s own factory with vegetables grown in Japan. It is simple yet extremely meaty with a sweetness of the onion, which somehow reminds you of the taste of home.
Wrapped carefully by hand, each gyoza is filled to the brim with ingredients, which cannot be done by a machine. Weighting 30 grams, the dumpling is quite filling, and can be enjoyed anytime as the use of garlic is kept to a minimum.
Operating in front of Nagoya Station for over 60 years, Kotobukiya—the oldest delicatessen in the area—continues to deliver the traditional taste that has been loved by its customers.