By David Tanis
- Total Time
- 1 hour, plus at least 30 minutes chilling
- Rating
- 5(251)
- Notes
- Read community notes
A steaming bowl of won tons is welcome in any season, and making them at home is a fairly easy process. Purchase a package of high-quality won ton skins, which are available everywhere, and then it’s just a matter of filling and folding them. Once they hit boiling water they cook for just 2 minutes. The filling — usually a simple mixture of well-seasoned minced meat — may be prepared hours ahead and chilled. This somewhat spicy pork and shrimp filling is particularly delicious, with plenty of ginger and Chinese garlic chives.
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Ingredients
Yield:About 30 wontons
- ½pound ground pork, not too lean
- ½pound fresh shrimp, peeled, deveined and roughly chopped in ¼-inch pieces
- Salt and pepper
- 1tablespoon sweet rice wine, such as Shaoxing rice wine (or use sherry)
- 1tablespoon soy sauce
- 1tablespoon sugar
- 1tablespoon finely grated ginger
- 2cloves garlic, minced
- 1teaspoon spicy Chinese bean paste, also called chili bean sauce (or use chile paste)
- 2serrano chiles, finely chopped
- 1½cups chopped Chinese garlic chives (or use ¾ cup chopped scallions, green and white parts)
- 36wonton skins, about 3 by 3 inches, available at Asian markets and many grocery stores
- 1small egg, beaten
- Cornstarch for dusting
- 8ounces baby spinach leaves
- ½cup chopped cilantro
- 8cups good chicken broth, hot, salted to taste
- Red pepper oil (optional), see note
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (30 servings)
170 calories; 3 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 1 gram monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 26 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 2 grams sugars; 9 grams protein; 362 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
Step
1
Put pork and shrimp in a chilled mixing bowl. Season with salt and pepper and mix briefly with chopsticks, wet hands or wooden spoons. Add rice wine, soy sauce, sugar, ginger, garlic, bean paste, serrano chiles and garlic chives. Mix well to incorporate. Pan-fry a small flat patty in a small amount of oil to check seasoning; taste and adjust. Transfer mixture to a small container, cover and chill at least 30 minutes, or longer if you have time, up to 24 hours.
Step
2
To prepare wontons, remove a few wonton skins from package and lay them on dry work surface. Put 1 teaspoon filling in the center of each square skin. Paint edges of square lightly with egg. Gently fold one side over the other, pinching edges together. You should a have a folded rectangle. Now pull the lower corners in toward each other and pinch together to make the traditional curved wonton shape. Place wontons 1 inch apart on a baking sheet or platter. Dust lightly with cornstarch and refrigerate, uncovered, until ready to cook.
Step
3
Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil. Meanwhile, put a small handful of spinach leaves and about 2 tablespoons cilantro in each person’s deep wide soup bowl. When water is boiling, drop about 10 wontons into pot and cook for 2 minutes. Remove with wire bamboo spider (or a large fine-meshed sieve with a handle) and divide among bowls. Repeat with remaining wontons. Pour about 1½ cups hot broth over each serving. Drizzle with red pepper oil if desired.
- To make red pepper oil, heat ½ cup vegetable oil in a saucepan until quite warm. Turn off heat and add 4 red Chinese chiles, ½ teaspoon cayenne, ½ teaspoon hot paprika and 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil. Let cool. Store at cool room temperature.
Ratings
5
out of 5
251
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Cooking Notes
Thomas Sherman
I tried something different: I made a double-batch, using one half to make won tons, which freeze well for a future dinner, and used the remaining half to make four burgers. Grilled and served with an avocado aioli, they were fabulous.
Emily Weinstein
It's fiddly and time-consuming to fold this many wontons; next time I'll try to recruit someone to help me do it. But it's absolutely worth the effort. I froze the extras and cooked them straight from the freezer.
Joanne Heidkamp
I love wontons but have never made them at home. Found this recipe in my "try it someday" file, and decided it was time.
I followed the directions exactly, except used all pork. To fill the wontons, I gathered the ingredients, pulled up a comfortable chair, and took my time. I lightly pan fried the wontons before adding boiling water to the pan. So delicious. So worth it. With the meat mixture and egg left over, I made a mini sausage omelet for a late night treat.
Jen
My husband is allergic to shellfish and my daughter is a vegetarian, but I have found a way to make these that suits both. I mix together the seasonings, chiles and chives, then split it into two bowls. Pork gets added to one bowl, and crumbled extra-firm tofu gets added to the other. Then I proceed with the recipe, keeping the two types separate. Both are delicious and the shrimp is not missed. A very satisfying dish.
Thomas Sherman
A favorite of my little girls and wife. I make a double-batch and freeze the extras on a cookie sheet and store in a freezer bag: a wonderful nearly instant meal.
Suzanne
There's not that much in the wonton that would require to cook in boiling liquid for longer than 2 minutes.
Also, it's chicken that you have to be scared about not being cooked all the way. Pork is similar to beef in that you can not fully cook it and it's still safe.
I've made wontons and dumplings before, and 2 minutes may not seem like a long time, but if you actually time it, it's enough.
J B
I didn’t swoon over these. Also, I had about half of the meat leftover after making 30 wontons, so I’m not sure what happened there. IF I were to make them again, I would use thin wonton wrappers. I’d also need to up my broth game (and wouldn’t bother with the spinach or bok choy in the broth).
patticakes in Darien
Wow. These were amazing. So much character and as my husband said ‘very authentic’. Fabulous recipe with just the right amount of spicy!
Helen Kelly
Thanks NYT. The meat mixture is fabulous. Had wonton in a fine restaurant in China and this has the taste. I used a full pound of pork, four garlic cloves, 12 large wild-caught shrimp I shelled/deveined (try to avoid any other). Next time I’d double the chili paste, use six garlic cloves. Added chopped shallot, chopped garlic and cubed tofu to chicken stock; added the leftover egg to the boiling stock before serving. Make sure to use a good handful of raw spinach as it wilts to nothing.
Nicole
I found 1tbsp of sugar to be overpowering and sweet.
BLC
This is a good recipe to make when you feel like spending hours in the kitchen, and it's so worth it. Prepped the filling on day 1, which involved hours of chopping and mincing. Doubled the ginger. Wrapped and cooked the wontons on day 2, then served. Skipped the sprinkling of corn starch. Opted to steam the wontons instead of boil them. Added lemon juice to the broth just before serving. Delicious and an enjoyable experience.
Jessica Sanders
We don’t like things spicy and we didn’t have a chili sauce or the hot peppers. I did add a splash of fish sauce, as well as a splash of toasted sesame oil. The filling was excellent! We made wontons for our son for half of the batch and then just rolled the mixture up into small little meatballs, fried them and added them to our soup since we are trying to reduce carbs. A keeper. Maybe will add the chili sauce next time as written.
BeverlyCY
I don’t eat pork, would ground turkey work?
Emily
Made without chiles and bean paste (Allie friendly) and were still very tasty. Made about 50+ wontons per this recipe
Sue
I wonder if I could have done all pork. I think my serranos were unusually hot. When I got done with the wontons, I posted a pic to Facebook and wondered what I was thinking to take it on. But, omg are they good. I am sure it took me an hour. Recruit help or expect to spend time. I needed lunch for the week, so I cooked them all; frig in an airtight container on parchment and covered with wet paper towel. Reheated great, which was my only alternative. Keeper, despite my complaining!
Janet
Do you freeze them cooked or uncooked?
Mel
uncooked
meinmunich
Cooked. As the store frozen dumplings mostly are. Just make sure that you cool them completely and don't stick together when you put them in the freezer. Otherwise, you may end up with a ball of frozen dumplings.
Shari
What are all of you using for the broth? Do you also serve them with just a dipping sauce?
Chris
I add a tiny bit of sesame oil, salt, and some white pepper to a hot chicken stock. Put a handful of baby spinach leaves on the bottom of a bowl before putting the wontons and broth. Just had it for dinner tonight and it was worth the effort.
Chris
My family of three could only eat half of the dumplings in our soup, so the rest will be eaten tomorrow dipped in a soy sauce mixed with vinegar. You might also add chili oil to the dipping sauce. These wontons look just like the ones from my favorite Shanghainese restaurant. Love the recipe!
John Neill
What great recipe! Chinese New Year & gastronomically I’ve made no provision for my Malaysian Chinese husband !No time to make the dumplings so used ‘H Mart” frozen Mandu XLge pork’n’veg dumplings.Followed earlier contributor’s idea to pan-fry -did direct from freezer .. you need to steam at the end of frying : good dash boiling water + lid on .. softens pastry & more than delicious - quite stunning.Red pepper oil salsa adapted frm necessity: 3 Thai chilies/deleted c/powder-excellent!
Tracy Meyer
Okay -- if I take out the spicy bean sauce & those serranos, still tasty? (or a waste of time?)
Lorraine
Maybe my won ton wrappers are thicker. Three minutes boiling is better than two. Otherwise delicious. Left out the Chinese bean/chile sauce. Better than the wonton soup at our favourite Vietnamese restaurant. Get a spouse/friend to help wrap as it is fiddle and time consuming.
Lorraine
Maybe my wonton wrappers are thicker. Three minutes is better than two. Grandson pronounced them great.
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