Wonton Soup

Wonton soup is a staple Chinese takeout dish. It was always one of my favorite soups to order from my local restaurant and I only wish I knew sooner how easy this is to make at home!

What’s great about cooking at home is that you can alter the dish to perfectly suit your tastebuds. Also, you know exactly what’s going into the food which is impossible when ordering from restaurants.

This recipe was created to perfectly suit my tastebuds, so please feel free to make adjustments to this recipe based on your preferences. Also remember that brands differ, so you may need more or less seasonings based on the broth you use.

Broth

The broth is the most important ingredient for this recipe. Without a good broth, you will be left with a lackluster result. So, don’t make the mistake of using a bland broth! If you wouldn’t want to drink it by itself, then it needs to be adjusted.

You will always hear me recommend homemade broth first and foremost. But, I understand this is not feasible for many due to the time and ingredients involved. You need to let it simmer for many hours and you also need a good amount of bones.

There are many alternatives that will give you results that are just as good as homemade! If you’re using a broth that doesn’t have much flavor, you can add a bouillon cube. These are cheap and easy to find at the store. Or, you could cook some chicken thighs in the broth to give it a deeper chicken flavor.

Cooking

A lot of recipes will tell you to cook the broth for 5 minutes then it’s done. I think you’re missing out on a lot of flavor this way because the ingredients are not given time to properly develop and infuse. Instead, I recommend bringing the broth to a boil then letting it simmer for at least 15 minutes to let the water evaporate and flavors come out. You may need to simmer it longer based on the broth you use. If your broth isn’t very flavorful after 15 minutes, you can let it simmer for longer and the flavors will become more pronounced.

Aromatics & seasonings

The aromatics and seasonings for this recipe are very simple and common ingredients used in Asian cooking. It’s best to add only a small amount of fish sauce and soy sauce to the broth, then taste and add more if needed. Always remember it’s easier to add more than it is to take out after you’ve added too much.

Wontons

Wonton wrappers

I bought the wonton wrappers from Chinatown in the refrigerated section, but it can also be found in the frozen section. Compare brands and buy the thinnest wonton skins you can find because this will give you best results for taste.

Peel your wonton skins right before wrapping to make it easier and always keep it covered with a damp towel to prevent it from drying out.

Folding

I tried out many, many different ways of folding and found the method shown in my video below to be the easiest. It’s much easier to learn by watching, so if you need help you can watch my video. It’s only 30 seconds long and won’t take long!

Basically, I took a teaspoon amount of filling and placed it in the middle of the wonton wrapper. It may not look like enough, but the meat will swell when cooking. Fold the wonton in half, bring the sides up, then pinch it shut from the front and back. There’s no need for water to close it because the meat is sticky enough. After a few tries, you’ll get the hang of it. There’s also no need to make these pretty because the shape sort of changes after cooking.

Cooking

I recommend boiling a large pot of water on the stove to cook the wontons separately from the broth. The wontons skins are starchy and might change the texture of your soup. In addition, it will make your broth cloudy when we’re aiming for a clear broth like the restaurants!

Storage

The broth can be stored in the fridge for 4 to 5 days, or up to 6 months in the freezer.

This recipe makes 40 wontons which can be frozen and used later. You can choose to cook all of the wontons at once if you will eat it all within a few days. If not, then you can lay out the folded and uncooked wontons on a baking sheet and freeze til solid. Then, transfer to a ziplock or container for long-term storage.

Tips for a Quick Meal

Wonton soup is the perfect quick meal that can be made in no more than 15 minutes using leftover wontons from the freezer. I always like to make extra wontons to store in the freezer for emergency meals.

The broth is very easy to make and all you need to do is add the frozen wontons. There’s no need to defrost – just boil the wontons in a separate pot of water and add to your broth.

Watch my video tutorial below!

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