The Perfect Bowl of Wonton
Yields wontons
Soups
Wonton filling
- 1 pound fresh ground island pork
- 1 pound shrimp, shelled, deveined and coarsely chopped
- 1/2 cup chopped water chestnuts, about half of an 8 ounce can
- 1/3 cup minced green onion, about 3 medium
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons finely minced ginger
- 2 tablespoons corn starch
- 3 tablespoons water
Wonton wrapper
- Wonton wrappers
Garnish
- Fresh raw spinach leaves, washed, the broth will cook the spinach
- Fresh bok choy, kai choy, watercress or carrots, sliced and blanched briefly in boiling water
- Slices of char siu
- Chopped green onion
- Fresh cilantro leaves
- Cooked soy beans
- Slices of fresh island grown mushrooms like alii, maitake, hon shimeiji or pepeiau, Briefly cook the mushrooms by immersing them in your broth and remove them with a strainer.
- Bamboo shoots, cut into julienne strips or slices
- Whole cooked shrimp
Condiments
- Hot Chinese mustard, soy sauce, chili sauce (like Sriracha or Sambal), pickled ginger
Wonton filling
- Place all ingredients in a mixing bowl and mix together well.
Making the wontons
- For the filling recipe, you will need about 60 won ton wrappers. To shape the won ton, hold the wrapper like a diamond instead of a square. Moisten two adjoining edges of the diamond with water or a beaten egg. Place about 1 tablespoon of filling on one half of the diamond. Fold the other half of the diamond over and seal the edges.
- You'll now have a triangle; moisten one of the two points on the long side of the triangle. Bring the two points together and press firmly to join.
- Place the won tons on a baking sheet; cover and refrigerate until ready to cook.
- To freeze won tons, place them on a baking sheet and into the freezer. When they are frozen, about 30 to 45 minutes later, transfer them to a plastic bag, seal and return to the freezer. When you are ready to cook the won tons, remove them from the freezer and thaw slightly or cook frozen in boiling water.
- To cook won ton, bring a large, wide pot of water to a boil. When the water is boiling add the won ton. Cook them in batches, depending on the size of your pot. They will sink to the bottom; give them a gentle stir so they do not stick to the bottom of the pot. As the won ton cooks, they will float to the surface of the water. Once they reach the surface, let them cook another minute or so before removing them from the cooking liquid with a slotted spoon or strainer.
Serving the wontons
- Serve won ton in a good broth. A good chicken stock will do or a stock made from pork or ham bones. The stock should be flavorful and well seasoned with salt; embellish it with slices of fresh ginger, a few green onions and a drizzle of sesame oil.
- Garnish your bowl of won ton (see garnishes above) and serve with must-have condiments
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- All shrimp is frozen unless you are buying Hawaii-grown shrimp from a shrimp farm. Your supermarket may have trays of shrimp of unfrozen shrimp – they've just thawed them for you.
- When you're making won ton, the size of the shrimp doesn't matter since you're going to chop it. Small shrimp are fine though they may require a little more time to prepare than larger shrimp. Larger shrimp tend to be costlier; use them when you're going to prepare them whole. To save time, buy shrimp that are already peeled and de-veined.
- An 8-ounce can of water chestnuts is the equivalent of about 1 cup chopped.
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