My Dad's Homemade Pork & Shrimp Wontons

There are two kinds of wonton wrappers in the world, an over-stuffer and an under-stuffer. And in my family, I am the over-stuffer. I use a little bit over a tablespoon of filling and my beautiful wonton babies always come out nice and plumpy. You could even tell which ones are mine because they are twice the size and weight than the others. I can't help it, I like them chonky. My dad, on the other hand, is the under-stuffer, which I think is the way most people wrap their wontons. My dad uses a teaspoon amount in the center of the wrapper and I would call them you're standard restaurant sized, one bite dumplings. But honestly, when I'm making them at home, I want them to be a big two-biter kinda dumpling. The chunkier, the better! Its 100% up to you on how much you want to stuff into your dumplings but for this recipe, if you want chunky dumplings like me then you will use only 1 pack of wonton wrappers and if you want smaller dumpling you will use 2 packs of wonton wrappers.

My go to method of wrapping wontons is the "pot of gold" method because I think its the easiest way to go. The first step is to lay down the wonton wrapper in a diamond shape, with one corner pointing towards you and the other pointing up. Spread a little egg wash around the edges and then add some filling in the center of the wrapper. Connect the bottom corner to the top corner to create a triangle. Then grab the the left and right corners and overlap one on top of the other. Use some egg wash to make them stick and that's it! You have your "pot of gold" wonton!

Now that you have one down, keep on making them until you have used up the wrappers and filling. Place them on a sheet pan or large plate as go and then transfer them straight into the freezer for 1 hour. Take them out and place them into a plastic bag for easier storage. Put them back into the freezer and you are good to go whenever a crazy wonton craving kicks in. They can keep in the freezer for about 6-7 months but really they only last about 3 months in my house because anytime I'm hungry or lazy, I just drop a couple into a pot of boiling water and cook them until they float. My favorite way of eating them has been with some chili crisp oil, soy sauce, and pickled mustard greens. So so good! But if I'm craving more of a meal I'll make a bowl of super quick and easy peanut butter noodles on the side or go all out with a hot bowl of delicious wonton noodle soup!!

Homemade Pork & Shrimp Wontons

Ingredients:

• 1.5 pounds of ground pork

• 1 pound of shrimp, peeled & deveined

• 5 water chestnuts, peeled & chopped finely

• 1 stalk of scallions, diced

• 1 clove of garlic, peeled & diced

• 1 stalk of cilantro, diced

• 1 1/2 tablespoons or 9 grams of sugar

• 1 tablespoon or 4 grams of salt

• 1 tablespoon or 7 grams or of corn starch

• 3 tablespoons 37.5 grams of soy sauce

• 2 tablespoons or 30 grams of fish sauce

• 2 1/2 tablespoons or 31.25 grams of cooking wine

• 1 1/2 tablespoons or 18 grams of sesame oil

• 3 tablespoons or 47 grams of oyster sauce

• 1/2 teaspoon or 2 grams of five spice powder

• 1 pack of wonton wrapper

• 1 egg

Instructions:

1. Start by chopping your peeled and deveined shrimps into small chunks, about 5 -7 pieces each. Place this into a large bowl. Add in the ground pork, finely chopped water chestnuts, scallions, garlic, cilantro, sugar, salt, corn starch, soy sauce, fish sauce, cooking wine, sesame oil, oyster sauce, and five spice into the bowl. Mix until everything is well combined, about 1-2 minutes.

2. Beat an egg into a small bowl and grab your wrappers. Place your square wrapper down with one corner pointing up and one corner pointing to you. Using a knife or your finger spread a little bit of egg on the edges of the wonton wrapper.

3. Take about a teaspoon or tablespoon of filling and place into the center of your wrapper. Lift the bottom corner over the filling to meet the top corner. Press together to create a triangle. Then use a little bit of egg and overlap the left and right ends of the triangle to create your "pot of gold" wonton dumpling. Place it onto a sheet pan or plate. * See pictures for reference*

4. Repeat until the wonton filling and wrappers are used up. Then place all your wontons in the freezer for 1 hour. Once they are frozen, transfer them to a ziplock bag where they will keep for up to 6 months.

Cooking Your Wontons:

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil and drop in your wontons. Cook them until they float and then place them into a bowl. Serve with chili crisp oil, soy sauce and pickled mustard greens for a light lunch or quick snack. If you a little bit more hungry, check out my wonton noodle soup recipe for something more filling.