Family Cooking Fun: Make Your Own Wontons
Recently, my son brought home a book called Dumpling Soup from the library, and of course asked if we could make the dumplings that the Asian American family prepared in the story. Why not? Chinese New Year takes place this month, and it would be a fun way to celebrate and learn about a different culture.
There are a number of different dumplings in Chinese cuisine, and we chose to make wontons, those little filled noodle pouches that can be fried, boiled, or served in soup. We ended up making so many we prepared some in each way!
These chicken wontons are really easy and fun to make and they’re deliciously kid-friendly. You can find all the ingredients at your local grocery store.
Ingredients
- 1-1/4 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs, cut into large pieces
- 1 package square wonton wrappers (find them in the refrigerator in your store’s produce section)
- 2–3 green onions, chopped
- 1/2-inch piece of fresh root ginger, peeled and coarsely chopped
- 3/4 cup water
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon white sugar
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- Additional water for cooking and for sealing wontons
Put the scallions, ginger, and water into a food processor and blend until combined. Pour into a bowl and set aside. Put the chicken, salt, and sugar into the food processor and pulse to grind and mix together. Add the reserved water/scallion/ginger mixture slowly until combined. Put the filling into a bowl and add pepper, sesame oil, and the cornstarch. Stir to combine.
Now you’re ready to start assembling the wontons, so call the kids. Each helper gets a cutting board, plate, or other work surface, a stack of wonton wrappers, and a little bowl of water.
First, position your wrapper on the plate so it looks like a diamond. Put a teaspoon of filling (not too much!) in the center, then dip your finger in the water and “paint” two of the wrapper edges with water. Fold the wonton over and you’ll have a little neat triangular package. Now take two corners and fold them inward, and you’ll get something that looks a little like a hat. Repeat until all the wrappers are gone.
To boil the wontons, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and gently drop them in. Let them cook for 5 minutes or until the wontons all float to the surface.
You can also fry them by heating some oil and cooking the wontons in batches until they are golden brown, puffy, and crispy. Drain on a rack placed over a baking sheet and let cool a few minutes, and then eat with the dipping sauce of your choice. It’s probably best to have a grownup cook them this way, though.
If you have too many wontons, that’s OK. They freeze well, and can go right from your freezer to boiling water. Do not, however, try to deep fry frozen wontons—you’ll end up with a dangerous greasy mess.
If you decide to serve wontons in a soup, don’t cook them in the soup—boil them first and add them to the soup when serving. Cooking them in the soup will turn it cloudy, especially if some wonton filling leaks out.
Happy wonton making—and eating!
