Wonton Soup
Wonton soup is my version of chicken soup for the soul! I love it. You can make the wonton in advance and freeze if you want to make later. You could also make some noodles and add to your soup if you need a more filling meal. I find the wonton soup is a perfect lunch, and if you have made the wonton in advance only takes minutes to put together.
Ingredients
- 1 bunch bok choy washed
- 250 g pork mince I like it with some fat, so don't go the lean mince
- 2 tbsp sesame oil plus extra for the stock
- 1 pinch white pepper
- 1 tbsp light soy sauce
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 ½ tbsp shaoxing wine
- 6 cups chicken stock Make your own, use a stock powder or a carton
- 1 spring onion finely sliced
- crunchy chilli oil optional but highly recommended
- 1 packet wonton wrappers egg wrappers of shanghai wrappers are fine
SEE BELOW FOR LINKS TO PRODUCTS
Instructions
- Wash the bok choy really well and then blanch in boiling water until wilted - around 1 minute. Drain and rinse in cold water.
- Squeeze out as much water as you can and finely chop the vegetables - you don't want big clumpy bits in your wonton!
- In a bowl add your vegetables to pork mince, 2 tablespoons of sesame oil, pinch of white pepper, soy sauce, salt, 1 ½ tablespoons of shaoxing wine. It looks like a lot of liquid, but mix thoroughly in a circular direction and it will bind with the meat to almost a paste.
- Get ready to make your wonton. Get a small bowl with water ready and get your wrappers out of the packet. They will dry out eventually so I like to just keep a tea towel on top to stop that.
- Put a wrapper in one hand and place about a teaspoon of the meat in the center. Don't try and overfill it as the meat will ooze out if you have too much in it. Get your finger wet and moisten the top half of the wrapper. Fold the wrapper in half and press the two sides together to form a rectangle. Make sure you have sealed all the way around - no one likes a leaking wonton.Once you have your rectangle dampen one corner of the folded edge (i.e. not the edge which you have just sealed) and bring the two corners together and give it a bit of a squeeze and you are done!)👍🏼. (see video to watch if you are confused). When we were kids, we used to just squeeze the whole wrapper
- Place each wonton on a tray lined with a piece of baking paper (make sure they aren't touching) and continue making wonton until you are done. If you aren't going to eat them all, you can freeze them at this point. Cover your tray with plastic wrap and place in the freezer until frozen. Then you can transfer into a freezer bag until you want to use. (they will keep for a couple of months). When you want to use them just add to boiling water from frozen.
- To make the soup, heat up your chicken stock to a simmer and add about a teaspoon of sesame oil and some salt and white pepper. I use home made stock if I have some, or otherwise I will use a carton of stock, or some powdered chicken stock. All are fine.
- Bring a separate pot of water to boil and carefully add the wonton one at a time into the stock - they will sink to the bottom so it is a good idea to swirl the pot so that they don't stick to the bottom. If they do stick, don't panic, just leave them for a minute and they should come off the bottom. Once they are floating, give them another 1-2 minutes in the simmering stock. Remove them from the pot with a slotted spoon and put them in each bowl.
- Pour or ladle the soup on top of your wonton, garnish with spring onions, chilli oil if using and serve!
