Sunday, August 23, 2009

Wonton Soup

Wonton SoupA couple of years ago I made the mistake of introducing David to Chinese food. Let's just say it was a big hit and the beginning of a Chinese food craze around here.

We have bamboo place mats and Asian dishes with those cute little flat porcelain spoons that you can't get in your mouth (and aren't supposed to but that doesn't stop my kids from trying).

Periodically we pull it all out for a fun night of Chinese-a-Go-Go complete with this easy won ton soup recipe. You can mix it up in about five minutes, stuff the wontons in ten and have soup on the table in under 30 minutes.

Wonton SoupI make this particular recipe with scallops but you can substitute pretty much any fish. I daresay you might even be able to used flaked canned tuna in a pinch. I like flaked, canned tuna. Don't try to talk me out of it.

For broth:
8 cups chicken broth
2 tablespoons miso paste
1/2 tablespoon chili garlic paste
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/4 cup green onions, sliced on bias
sesame seeds (for garnish)

For wontons:
6 ounces small scallops, thawed
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon finely minced ginger
1/2 tablespoon finely sliced green onions
1/2 teaspoon fish sauce
2 tablespoons cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 tablespoon peanut oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon sugar
1/2 beaten egg white
1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
20 wonton skins

Bring the first five ingredients to a boil. Take off heat and work on the wontons.

For wontons, combine all the ingredients except the wonton skins in a bowl and mix well. Spoon a bit of the mix with two or three scallops onto each wonton skin and fold over on the diagonal then seal the corners together.

Return soup mix to a boil, add the wontons and green onions then boil for 2 minutes. Remove from heat, ladel into four or five bowls then garnish by sprinkling sesame seeds on top.

Sponsored by Pak Naks--decorate your stuff!

11 comments:

LunaMoonbeam said...

Mmm...that looks good!!
My (Chinese) MIL makes wontons if we ask very nicely, and she fills them with a mixture of half ground pork and half minced shrimp, plus the seasonings you mentioned. Highly tasty. :-)

chelle said...

So want to try this some day!

PunditMom said...

Thanks for this! PunditGirl is VERY into making Chinese food right now and it will be fun to make this together! :)

Pam D said...

Yum! Not only do I like the wonton recipe, I like the whole table setting idea. My boy LOVES Chinese, whether I make it or take(out) it. He would find it infinitely more fun if I did the table settings and used the low table on the screen porch; we could sit on pillows and listen to the creek run while we ate. Very zen... I like it!

Unknown said...

I am definitely going to try this--tweak it to make it veggie, but it looks delicious!! Thanks for sharing.

Heart2Heart said...

Michelle,

This sounds so easy and I suppose it is as long as you have all the ingredients ready to go. I am going to have to try and locate some Asian inspired dishes perhaps at World Market maybe. Love all the soups from Won Ton to Egg Drop!

Love and Hugs ~ Kat

Sheri said...

My son loves Chinese food, he's starting experimenting with different stir-fry recipes. I'll have him try this.

Superdumb Supervillain said...

I like wonton soup with noodles and some sliced char siu (really, really easy to make Chinese roast pork). And a handful of bean sprouts and torn up fresh basil and some lime wedges. Oh, wait. My Chinese soup turned Vietnamese!

a Tonggu Momma said...

Oh, you know the Tongginator is all over this. She loves wonton soup, though egg drop soup remains her fave. Thanks for the recipe.

The Library Lady said...

Actually, those spoons are my kids only way to eat soup--they hold it better than regular spoons. They're big enough now to easily use regular spoons, but still like the Chinese kind. And I also find them great as kitchen tools!

I'm Filipino by marriage and we make a lot of Asian food around here. Homemade fried rice is the easiest thing going--toss the veggies in the pan, add cold rice, season with soy sauce and done.
We also make lumpia, which are the Filipino version of egg rolls. Easy to make, though mine never LOOK that great. :D

Serena said...

This sounds delicious! My husband LOVES Chinese food. I'm not sure if this will taste quite the same without the special spoons and bowls, though. ;)