Lazy Girl Dumplings (One-Pan Recipe)

The viral "lazy girl dumplings" for a quick weeknight dinner but make it Khao Soi style

Happy Sunday from Costa Rica! 🇨🇷 I’ve been enjoying my time in the country of Pura Vida over the past few days, but I’ll be back home on Tuesday to share more recipes.

highlights from our hike at El Tigre Waterfalls in Monteverde. We bought the package where a meal is served after the hike in their restaurant, and the view was incredible! Here's my plate of Casados de Pescado Frito

For today’s recipe, I finally caved and tried the viral “Lazy Girl Dumplings” making the rounds on TikTok, but you already know I had to put my own spin on it. Instead of the usual broth or sauce, I made mine khao soi style. It’s a creamy, coconut curry sauce with all the toppings. This recipe couldn’t be more straightforward: toss everything into one pan, lay the dumplings right into the sauce, and let the oven do the work.

The sauce is rich and flavorful, the dumplings steam and bake at the same time, and all you need are the classic toppings to finish it off. You get crunch from fried noodles, a little bite from the pickled mustard greens, and it’s honestly one of the easiest comfort meals you can throw together.

Link to original video

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Time Breakdown

• Prep Time: 10 minutes

• Cook Time: 25–35 minutes (depending on dumpling type)

• Total Time: 35–45 minutes

Ingredients (serves 4)

Curry Sauce:

• 16 oz can of coconut milk

• 4 tbsp red curry paste

• ¼ cup chicken stock

• 2 tbsp fish sauce

• 1 tbsp palm sugar or brown sugar

• 1 tbsp ginger paste

• 1 tbsp garlic paste

• 1 stick lemongrass, bruised to release flavor

Dumplings:

• 32 frozen or fresh dumplings of your choice

Toppings:

• 1/4 cup pickled mustard greens, chopped (can usually be found at your local Asian grocery store)

• Handful of chopped cilantro

• 1 shallot, diced

• 4 stems of green onion, sliced

• 2 tbsp of chili crunch oil (optional but encouraged)

• 4 oz Fried egg noodles

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Substitutions & Ingredient Swaps

• Dumplings: You can use any frozen dumplings — pork, chicken, shrimp, or veggie all work here. If you want to go homemade, use your favorite dumpling recipe and add them fresh.

• Curry Paste: Red curry gives that classic khao soi flavor, but green curry or panang curry paste work great too if that’s what you have.

• Palm Sugar: Brown sugar is an easy substitute if you don’t have palm sugar.

• Lemongrass: If you can’t find fresh lemongrass, you can skip it. The curry paste still brings plenty of flavor.

• Egg Noodles: Don’t want to fry noodles? You can skip them entirely or use crunchy chow mein noodles from the store for a shortcut.

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Directions:

Step 1: Build the Curry Sauce

1. In an oven-safe pan or baking dish, whisk together:

• 16 oz coconut milk

• 4 tbsp red curry paste

• ¼ cup chicken stock

• 2 tbsp fish sauce

• 1 tbsp palm sugar or brown sugar

• 1 tbsp ginger paste

• 1 tbsp garlic paste

2. Lightly bruise 1 stick of lemongrass with the back of your knife to release the flavor, then toss it into the sauce.

3. Give everything a good stir to combine.

4. Lay your fresh or frozen dumplings directly into the curry sauce.

Tip: If using frozen dumplings, bake on the longer end of the time range to ensure they cook through.

5. Bake at 385°F for 25–35 minutes, depending on whether your dumplings are fresh or frozen. The sauce will bubble, thicken, and coat the dumplings beautifully.

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Optional Topping (but worth it): Fry the Egg Noodles

1. While the dumplings bake, bring a pot of water to a boil and cook flat-style egg noodles according to the package instructions.

2. Rinse with cold water and pat dry with paper towels.

3. In a pot of hot oil, fry the noodles for 3–4 minutes until golden and crispy. They’ll naturally clump together, which is what you want for that signature khao soi crunch on top.

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Assemble & Serve

Once the dumplings are baked, top everything with:

• Chopped pickled mustard greens

• Chopped cilantro

• Diced shallots

• Sliced green onion

• A spoonful of chili crunch oil (optional)

• Fried egg noodles for crunch

You can serve them straight from the pan and enjoy, or plate them pretty like I did, but either way, there’s no extra pots, no complicated steps, just cozy, flavor-packed dumplings with minimal effort.

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Storage & Reheating Tips

Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.

To reheat, spoon the dumplings and sauce into a pan over medium-low heat until warmed through. You can also microwave them in 30-second intervals, stirring between each interval.

Note: The fried noodles will lose their crunch after being stored more than 24 hours, so if you want that crispy topping the next day, fry a fresh batch or use store-bought crunchy noodles right before serving.

If you recreate this recipe at home, I would love to hear your feedback! 🫶🏼

instagram: @hennasharee

tiktok: @hennashareee