Crispy Fried Wontons

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I rarely cooked before I have my own home. I never have to worry about food on the dinner table all my life because both my parents are excellent cooks, and my dad also knew where to find all the good food outside. Besides instant noodles, the only other dish which I learned to cook back then was this fried wontons (wrapped dumpling with meat fillings).

See Also:

• Money Bag Wontons Recipe
• Steamed Dumplings Recipe
• Chinese Recipes

I usually prepare the marinaded filling myself, after which my mum & I will wrap the wontons together. Then she will help me deep fry the wontons while I hid far away because I was scared of oil splatters. Now that I am staying on my own, I have to do everything by myself including the deep frying. This was the one and only so-called “proper” dish which I can make even when I had zero experience in cooking back then and I still enjoy making it now.  One difference between  home-made and outside version is that the latter is often without water chestnut, which to me is so important to me because of  the nice crunch it gives to the dumplings.

Ready for the sizzle

In case you are wondering if these wontons can be boiled instead of deep fried, yes you can.  I frequently make wonton soup or wonton noodles with them and they are great.

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Fried Wontons Recipe

In this recipe, the technique used folding the wontons is the easiest one – a half diagonal triangle fold. You can try out other ways of folding (such as twisting the ends to form a nice pouch) or use round wonton skins instead of squares. The most time-consuming part of making this dish is the wrapping, so you can enlist the help of your family for some special bonding time.

Serves: 4

Prep Time: 20 mins

Cook Time: 20 mins

Ingredients:

• 120g minced pork or chicken
• 100g fresh water chestnut peeled and roughly chopped
• 6 prawns shells and veins removed, diced
• 150g square wonton skins
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• water

(A) Marinade

• 1 tsp sugar
• 2 tbsp finely chopped spring onions
  
• 1 tbsp chopped garlic
• 1 tbsp Shaoxing wine
• 1 tsp light soy sauce
• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• 1 tsp cornstarch
• a small pinch of salt
• a few dashes of Chinese white pepper powder

Directions:

1. In a bowl, mix minced meat, water chestnuts and prawns with (A); marinade for a few hours or overnight in the fridge.
2. Place 1 tsp of the mixture in the center of the wonton skin, and add a piece of prawn on top of the filling.
3. Wet the edges with water, fold down halfway diagonally to form a triangle. Press gently on the edges to seal the wonton.
4. Heat oil in wok until 180°C (356°F), then deep fry the wontons, in batches, for about 2-3 minutes, or until golden brown. Drain wontons on kitchen towels/tempura papers before serving.

Cooking Notes

1. Run leftover oil from deep frying the wontons through a sieve and store the filtered oil in an air tight container for re-use. You can re-use the oil a couple of times. If the oil becomes too black or when it smokes too soon, it shows that the oil has spoiled and should be discarded.
2. If you have leftover wonton skin wrappers, deep fry them on their own for a crispy and delicious snack.
3. While wrapping the dumplings, cover the dumpling skins in a clean and moist kitchen towel to avoid them from drying out.

Ingredients Used: cornflour • garlic • pork • prawn • sesame oil • Shaoxing wine • soy sauce (light) • spring onion • sugar • water chestnut • white pepper • wonton skin