Steamed Wontons In Chili Broth

Steamed Wontons In Chili Broth
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This recipe is courtesy of Essential Chinese Cooking by Jeremy Pang.“When it comes to learning about Chinese dumplings, wontons are the best starting point. The dough comes ready-made, either fresh or frozen in most Asian grocery stores, and is very much like an egg pasta — made from egg, a medium- to high-gluten wheat flour (similar to all-purpose flour), hot water, and oil. The method of folding below creates a shape much like a gold ingot (pre-twentieth century Chinese currency) and it is said that if you can fold your wontons in such a shape, you are giving your friends and family plenty of good wealth for years to come!” — Jeremy PangIf you like dumpling you might also like this recipe for Pork and Chive Dumplings
Servings
4
servings
Ingredients
  • 1 garlic clove
  • 1 scallion
  • a large handful of cilantro, plus extra to garnish
  • 10 to 15 chinese chives
  • 3 dried shiitake mushrooms, drained and soaked
  • 2 leaves of napa cabbage
  • 5 1/4 ounce raw tiger shrimp (optional), peeled and deveined
  • 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
  • 1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar
  • 2 teaspoon sesame oil
  • 20 wonton pastries
  • 7/8 cup chicken broth
  • 1/2 cup oyster sauce
  • 2 teaspoon chiu chow chili oil
Directions
  1. Mince the garlic, scallion, cilantro, Chinese chives, soaked shiitake mushrooms, and napa leaves and place in a mixing bowl.
  2. Finely dice the shrimp (if using) and add to the mixing bowl along with the soy sauce, sugar, and sesame oil.
  3. Mix everything together.
  4. Wrapping:
  5. Place 1 teaspoon of filling in the center of each dough. Using the tip of your finger, wet all sides of the dough with cold water.
  6. Fold the bottom corner over the filling to the top corner and press the dumpling down to seal all sides (to form a triangle).
  7. Holding the base of the filling with your thumbs, pull the 2 corners of the triangle toward each other (in the school, we like to call this the “Dark Knight Rising” as it looks roughly like a Batman shape).
  8. Overlap the ends and press together to form a “gold ingot / trough” shape. Set aside and fold the rest of the wontons the same way.
  9. Cooking:
  10. Place all the wontons in a large, deep bowl.
  11. Bring the chicken broth to a simmer in a saucepan, then stir in the oyster sauce and chili oil.
  12. Pour the broth ingredients over the wontons.
  13. Set the wok up with a steamer stand and fill with boiling water to a third of the way up the sides.
  14. Put the wonton bowl into the wok, cover with a lid, and steam for 6 to 8 minutes until the wontons have shriveled slightly and are cooked through.
  15. Remove from the wok and serve garnished with a little chopped cilantro.
  16. Notes:
  17. Dumplings like these can be kept in the freezer once made. They must be cooked from frozen for 2 minutes longer than the recommended cooking time when cooking fresh, rather than allowing them to thaw out and lose their shape.
  18. Recipes adapted with permission from Essential Chinese Cooking by Jeremy Pang (Quadrille, September 2016, RRP $24.95 hardcover).
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