Pork and Shrimp Won Tons
- Total Time
- 1 hour, plus at least 30 minutes chilling
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- ½pound ground pork, not too lean
- ½pound fresh shrimp, peeled, deveined and roughly chopped in ¼-inch pieces
- Salt and pepper
- 1tablespoon sweet rice wine, such as Shaoxing rice wine (or use sherry)
- 1tablespoon soy sauce
- 1tablespoon sugar
- 1tablespoon finely grated ginger
- 2cloves garlic, minced
- 1teaspoon spicy Chinese bean paste, also called chili bean sauce (or use chile paste)
- 2serrano chiles, finely chopped
- 1½cups chopped Chinese garlic chives (or use ¾ cup chopped scallions, green and white parts)
- 36wonton skins, about 3 by 3 inches, available at Asian markets and many grocery stores
- 1small egg, beaten
- Cornstarch for dusting
- 8ounces baby spinach leaves
- ½cup chopped cilantro
- 8cups good chicken broth, hot, salted to taste
- Red pepper oil (optional), see note
Nutritional analysis per serving (30 servings)
170 calories; 3 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 1 gram monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 26 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 2 grams sugars; 9 grams protein; 362 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Put pork and shrimp in a chilled mixing bowl. Season with salt and pepper and mix briefly with chopsticks, wet hands or wooden spoons. Add rice wine, soy sauce, sugar, ginger, garlic, bean paste, serrano chiles and garlic chives. Mix well to incorporate. Pan-fry a small flat patty in a small amount of oil to check seasoning; taste and adjust. Transfer mixture to a small container, cover and chill at least 30 minutes, or longer if you have time, up to 24 hours.
- Step 2
To prepare wontons, remove a few wonton skins from package and lay them on dry work surface. Put 1 teaspoon filling in the center of each square skin. Paint edges of square lightly with egg. Gently fold one side over the other, pinching edges together. You should a have a folded rectangle. Now pull the lower corners in toward each other and pinch together to make the traditional curved wonton shape. Place wontons 1 inch apart on a baking sheet or platter. Dust lightly with cornstarch and refrigerate, uncovered, until ready to cook.
- Step 3
Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil. Meanwhile, put a small handful of spinach leaves and about 2 tablespoons cilantro in each person’s deep wide soup bowl. When water is boiling, drop about 10 wontons into pot and cook for 2 minutes. Remove with wire bamboo spider (or a large fine-meshed sieve with a handle) and divide among bowls. Repeat with remaining wontons. Pour about 1½ cups hot broth over each serving. Drizzle with red pepper oil if desired.
- To make red pepper oil, heat ½ cup vegetable oil in a saucepan until quite warm. Turn off heat and add 4 red Chinese chiles, ½ teaspoon cayenne, ½ teaspoon hot paprika and 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil. Let cool. Store at cool room temperature.
Private Notes
Comments
I tried something different: I made a double-batch, using one half to make won tons, which freeze well for a future dinner, and used the remaining half to make four burgers. Grilled and served with an avocado aioli, they were fabulous.
It's fiddly and time-consuming to fold this many wontons; next time I'll try to recruit someone to help me do it. But it's absolutely worth the effort. I froze the extras and cooked them straight from the freezer.
My husband is allergic to shellfish and my daughter is a vegetarian, but I have found a way to make these that suits both. I mix together the seasonings, chiles and chives, then split it into two bowls. Pork gets added to one bowl, and crumbled extra-firm tofu gets added to the other. Then I proceed with the recipe, keeping the two types separate. Both are delicious and the shrimp is not missed. A very satisfying dish.
I didn’t swoon over these. Also, I had about half of the meat leftover after making 30 wontons, so I’m not sure what happened there. IF I were to make them again, I would use thin wonton wrappers. I’d also need to up my broth game (and wouldn’t bother with the spinach or bok choy in the broth).
Wow. These were amazing. So much character and as my husband said ‘very authentic’. Fabulous recipe with just the right amount of spicy!
Thanks NYT. The meat mixture is fabulous. Had wonton in a fine restaurant in China and this has the taste. I used a full pound of pork, four garlic cloves, 12 large wild-caught shrimp I shelled/deveined (try to avoid any other). Next time I’d double the chili paste, use six garlic cloves. Added chopped shallot, chopped garlic and cubed tofu to chicken stock; added the leftover egg to the boiling stock before serving. Make sure to use a good handful of raw spinach as it wilts to nothing.