Spicy Szechuan Wontons Recipes

SPICY SZECHUAN WONTONS

Steps:

• In a bowl, add the ground pork, egg, green onion, ground ginger, chicken broth, cornstarch. kosher salt, and ground white pepper.
• Using chopsticks or a spoon, vigorously stir in the same direction until everything is well combined. The mix will be wet and sticky.
• Take one of the wonton wrappers in your hand, place 1 teaspoon of the mixture in the middle, gently wet two of the edges with water, bring one corner to the opposite corner to form a triangle (or a half circle if using circle wonton wrappers). Seal the wonton making sure you press all the air bubbles out.
• Next moisten the two bottom points of the wonton, make a little dent in the center of the wonton filling, and then bring together bottom points to form a sort of boat shape. Repeat until all of the mixture is used. You'll get around 36-40 wontons.
• If not using wontons right away, place on a tray, freeze, and then transfer into a ziplock or container once frozen. When ready to use, just cook wontons straight from freezer.
• Boil: bring a pot of water to a boil, add the wontons (making sure not to overcrowd), and cook for 5-7 minutes or until all the wontons are floating to the top. Occasionally stir the wontons so they don't stick to the bottom of the pot.
• Steam: add wontons to a steamer and steam for 5-7 minutes or until cooked through.
• Fry: ONLY pan fry if using thicker wonton sheets. This is a wetter batter so you don't want to run the risk of the wontons exploding. Heat 1-2 tablespoons of oil in a skillet over medium-high heat, add the wontons and fry for about 1-2 minutes or until the bottom is golden brown. Lower the heat to medium, add about ¼-½ cup of water to the skillet, cover, and cook for an additional 5-7 minutes or until the wontons are cooked through.
• Serve the wontons with the spicy Szechuan sauce!
• Mix all of the ingredients but the sesame seeds in a bowl. This sauce makes enough for two-three servings (12-18 dumplings).
• Pour sauce over wontons when ready to use.
• Use sesame seeds to garnish the dish.

SICHUAN SPICY WONTON IN RED OIL (红油抄手)

Steps:

• Combine all the ingredients for the aromatic water in a small bowl. Stir to mix well and let infuse for 20 minutes. Strain and discard all the solid ingredients.
• Combine all the sauce ingredients in a medium-sized bowl. Stir to mix well.
• Add the minced pork into a medium-sized bowl. Add the aromatic water, egg, cornstarch, and white pepper powder. Mix until it forms a smooth and sticky paste.
• Work on the wontons one at a time. Place about half a teaspoon of filling (or 1 teaspoon filling for bigger wontons) on the lower third of the wrapper. Fold the bottom side over the filling, then roll the filling all the way across to the other side of the wrapper. Brush a thin layer of egg white on one end of the wonton wrapper. Bind both ends and press them together to lock the filling inside the wrapper. Place on a big plate, a finger's width apart.
• When you've finished 10 to 15 wontons, cover them with a wet paper towel to prevent them from drying out.
• If you are not going to cook and serve the wontons immediately, you can store them in the fridge for a day, or freeze them for up to a month. Seal the tray of wontons with plastic wrap and place it in the freezer. When the wontons are completely frozen, you can transfer them to an airtight ziplock bag to free up freezer space.
• Bring a large pot of water to boil. Add the wontons, 20 at a time. Stir gently with a spatula constantly, to prevent them from sticking to the bottom. Cook until the wontons are floating on top, about 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer 7 to 8 wontons into each bowl. Pour 2 tablespoons of the sauce, and 2 tablespoons of the hot broth used to boil the wontons, and serve.
• Mix the wontons well to coat them with sauce. Enjoy!
• If you are not going to cook and serve the wontons immediately, you can store them in the fridge for a day, or freeze them for up to a month. Seal the tray of wontons with plastic wrap and place it in the freezer. When the wontons are completely frozen, you can transfer them to an airtight ziplock bag to free up freezer space.
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Add wontons. Stir gently to prevent from sticking. Cook until bringing the water to a boil again. Turn to medium low heat. Cover the pot with a small gap on one side, to prevent from boiling over. Continue boiling for 2 minutes (3 minutes for larger wontons). Stand beside the pot the entire time and monitor the broth. If the broth starts to boil over, uncover and stir, then replace the cover. Uncover, continue cooking for another minute, or until the wontons are cooked through.

SICHUAN SPICY WONTON IN CHILI OIL (红油抄手)

Steps:

• Finely chop the scallions. Put the white part into a bowl (keep the green part for garnishing the dish later). Add the ginger. Pour in the water. Leave to infuse for 5 mins.
• In another bowl, mix the minced meat, egg, salt and white pepper until well combined.
• Remove the scallions and ginger then pour the water into the meat in batches while stirring in one direction until the liquid is fully absorbed.
• Lay a wonton wrapper on your hand. Dip the back of a spoon in water then use it to wet two neighbouring edges of the wrapper.
• Put the filling (about a teaspoon) in the middle. Fold the wrapper to form a triangle. Gently press to seal.
• Wet one of the sharp corners of the triangle. Put the other sharp corner over the wet corner. Press to stick two corners securely. Repeat to finish all the wrappers.
• Bring a large pot of water to a full boil. Gently slide in the wontons. Cook over high heat. Push them around with a spoon to prevent sticking to the bottom (You may cook all 40 wontons at once or in two batches depending on the size of your cookware. They need to be able to move around with ample space).
• Once all the wontons rise to the surface, cook for a further minute.
• While waiting for the wontons to cook, add all the ingredients for the sauce in each serving bowl.
• Use a slotted spoon to take out the wontons. Add them into serving bowls.
• Garnish with the green part of the scallions saved from step one. Mix well then serve immediately.
• Uncooked wontons freeze well. Lay them on a tray and keep in the freezer until fully frozen. Transfer to an airtight container/bag and put back to the freezer. Consume within 3 months.
• Follow the same procedure to cook frozen wontons. Defrosting is unnecessary and not recommended.

SICHUAN SPICY WONTONS

Steps:

• Next, add all of the wonton filling ingredients to a bowl (everything from the pork to the white pepper) and whip everything together by hand for 5 minutes or in a food processor for 1 minute. You want the pork to look a little bit like a paste.
• To make the wontons, take a wrapper, and add about a teaspoon of filling. Use your finger to coat the edges with water or egg wash (this helps the two sides seal together).
• Fold the wonton in half so you have a rectangle shape. Bring together the two outer corners so they overlap slightly, add another drop of water or egg wash, and press to seal.
• Keep assembling until all the filling is gone, which should make you about 18 wontons. Like all wonton recipes, you can double or triple the batch, eat some, then freeze the rest for another day. Place the wontons on a baking sheet or plate lined with parchment paper to prevent sticking.
• Boil a pot of water for the wontons. While the water is coming to a boil, make the sauce by mixing all of the ingredients together in a small mixing bowl. If you like spicy, add more of the chili peppers and not just the oil from your homemade chili oil. This recipe makes enough for 18 or 20 wontons.
• Give the boiling water a good stir and drop the wontons in, being careful not to crowd them. Continue stirring so they do not stick. Adjust the heat to achieve a low boil, and cook the wontons for about 2 minutes or until the wrappers begin to look translucent. I like mine a little bit al dente, so I take them out right at 2 minutes when they float to the top.
• Use a slotted spoon to drain the water and transfer the wontons to a serving bowl. Stir in 1/4 cup of the boiling water into your sauce, then pour the sauce over the wontons. Garnish with scallion if using and serve!

SICHUANESE WONTONS IN CHILLI OIL SAUCE (HONG YOU CHAO SHOU)

Steps:

• Crush the ginger with the flat of a cleaver or a rolling pin and put it in a cup with just enough cold water to cover. Place the pork, egg, Shaoxing wine and sesame oil in a bowl with 1 1/2 tsp of the ginger water and salt and pepper to taste. Stir well. Mix in the stock, 1 tbsp at a time. Finally, add the spring onion greens.
• Fill a small bowl with cold water. Take a wonton wrapper and lay it flat in one hand. Use a table knife or a small spatula to press about 1 tsp of the pork mixture into the center of the wrapper. Dip a finger into the cold water, run it around the edges of the wrapper and fold it diagonally in half. Press the edges tightly together and lay on a flour-dusted tray or large plate.
• Bring a large pan of water to a boil over a high heat. While you are waiting for the water to boil, prepare three or four serving bowls. In each bowl, place 1 tbsp sweet aromatic soy sauce (or 1 tbsp tamari soy sauce and 1/2 tsp sugar), 1 1/2 tbsp chilli oil with sediment and 1/2-1 heaped tsp of crushed garlic to taste.
• When the water has come to a boil, drop in the wontons. Stir gently to make sure they do not stick together. When the water returns to a rolling boil, pour in a small cup of cold water to calm it down. Repeat this one more time. When the water has come to a boil for the third time, the wontons should be cooked through (cut one open to make sure). Remove the wontons with a slotted spoon, drain well, and divide between the prepared serving bowls. Scatter each bowl with some of the spring onion greens. Serve immediately, stirring everything together before digging in.