(Chinese recipes, prepare authentic Chinese food now!)
Last week, when I was at Appetite for China, Diana’s post about her trip to Hong Kong and her bowl of divine wontop soup had me gawked at my computer and then drooled all over my keyboard. A bowl of sinfully plump shimp wontons swimming in supreme stock, whispering “eat me eat me” in my ears.
I love wonton soup, but there is a problem. For years, I’ve been searching high and low for a good bowl of wonton soup, but haven’t yet found a satisfactory one in Southern California.
I love regular wontons with ground pork and a wee bit of shrimp served at Cantonese noodle joints, but the pure prawny kinds are impossible to find. (The closest thing is the leeks and shrimp jiaozi/dumpling at Dumpling 10053 at El Monte.) To satiate my craving–not to mention virtual hunger–I knew I had to make my own…(get wonton soup recipe after the jump)
So, here is my delicious Cantonese wonton soup. It will never compare to the real wonton soup found in Hong Kong, but at least I got my fix for now. If you live in CA and know where to find a good bowl of wonton soup, please drop me a comment!
Please also note that I used yellow chives in my wonton soup recipe, which is typical Cantonese/Hong Kong style. My recipe also includes a Chinese prime stock (上汤) recipe, which is the core of all Chinese soup dishes.
Related Posts:
- Fried Wontons (with wonton wrapping video!)
- Shrimp Wontons
If you like Chinese food, you might want to check out my Chinese recipes.
Serving: 15 wontons or 3 servings of wonton soup
Ingredients:
8 oz. peeled and deveined medium size shrimp
1/8 teaspoon sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon chicken bouillon powder
1/8 teaspoon fish sauce
1 small pinch of salt
3 dashes white pepper powder
1 oz yellow chives (chopped finely)
1/2 teaspoon corn starch
15 wonton wrappers
3 cups stock
Salt to taste
White pepper powder to taste
Sesame oil to taste
Stock Ingredients:
1 1/2 pound leg quarters (chicken thighs and legs)
1 1/2 pound lean pork
1 1/2 pound ham
10 cups water
Method:
Prepare the stock first by boiling all the ingredients in a deep stockpot. Bring it to boil and skim off the scum that surfaces until the stock is clear. Simmer on low heat for a couple of hours. Pour the stock through a sieve and set aside. Save the extra in a container and keep it in the fridge for future use.
Put the shrimp in a small bowl and rinse them under cold running water for about 5-10 minutes. (This step makes the shrimp crunchy.) Drain the water and pat the shrimp dry with paper towels and then cut each shrimp into 3-4 pieces.
Add half of the chopped yellow chives into the shrimp and marinate with the seasonings for 1 hour. Blend the shrimp well with the seasoning.
Place a wonton wrapper on your palm and put about 1 teaspoon (about 3-4 pieces) of the shrimp filling in the center of the wonton wrapper. Gather the corners of the wrapper with the other hand and give it a twist in the middle to “close” the wonton. Repeat until the filling is used up. To see the video of wrapping wonton, please click here.
Add 3 cups of stock into a medium saucepan and bring it to boil. Add the remaining chopped yellow chives into the stock, add salt, white pepper powder, and sesame oil to taste and set aside.
Heat up another big saucepan with water. As soon as it boils, drop the wontons into the water. Stirring gently so the wontons don’t stick together. Continue to boil until the wontons are cooked and float to the surface.
Transfer the wontons out with a hand strainer and divide them into 3 equal servings. Pour a ladleful of stock over each serving and serve immediately.
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{ 38 comments… read them below or add one }
Oh, come on. It looks every bit as good as a wonton soup I’d get at a Hong Kong resto! This is one of my favorite things to eat when I’m sick or when it’s rainy out :)
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RM…your wontons look so scrumptious…are you attempting to make the rest drool like you?:p
Just kidding, but you’re right about those prawn dumplings…gosh, they’re like extinct creatures…you can rarely find them at all!!!
I miss Prawn wontons so much too….pickyeater now craves for it…and it’s RM’s fault:p
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Beautiful!
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I know you are in southern CA, but Joy Luck Place in Cupertino has fabulous wonton soup! The wontons are flavorful with a generous amount of shrimp and pork filling.
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wonton…i tries that the first time in BKK in a chinese restaurant…it was so funny! The first time I’ve used some chopsticks lol. Could you imagine ? cheers
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Looks yummy.
What do or can you do with the chicken, pork & ham after they're used to make the stock? Can they be re-used?
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Hi Dora, you have to toss them because the “sweetness” of the chicken, pork, and ham have gone into the stock. But you can try to reuse them once with the same amount of water to draw out all the flavors from them. :)
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Wow, yum. I want some wonton now… :D
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Mmmm this looks delicious! I’m going to try it one day :) Thanks for the recipe!
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I love wanton soup too, especially when the skin is thin and delicate with big, fat, juicy prawn/pork meat inside. I´d love to make them but can´t get wantan skin here :-(
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Is there anything you cannot cook to satisfy your cravings? Soo envious.
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That looks really good right now, especially because I think I’m coming down with a cold.
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I won’t be able to get pork here but maybe I’ll try out wonton with ground beef one of these days. ;-)
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i am staring my mac, salivating at your Shang Palace look alike wan tons…. and at the same time scratching my mind wondering where i can find wan ton at this hour - it’s 3 a.m. now.
i was so tired after 5 days of marathon unpacking that i fell asleep on the couch without any dinner.
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Looks delicious! These are so common in Chinese restaurants and yet it is so rarely good. Next time I have a craving I think I’ll try it at home.
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hey..a little late but better late than never …happy belated birthday!
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Looks like that almost at the same time we had cravings for wontons!! :)
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Selamat Hari Jadi!
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My uncle is a chef in Hong Kong and he has a great wonton soup recipe, which calls for lard. Mix the shrimp with the lard and the wonton will be silky rich. But your wonton soup recipe is equally good and healthy.
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I am so glad I found your wonton soup recipe. I will have to try your recipe soon to fix my wonton soup craving!
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Your wonton soup looks fantastic! I’m sure it’s up there with the best of them :) Thanks for sharing the recipe for the Chinese prime stock…I also crave wonton soup or some Chinese style noodle soup some times and this will be good to know!
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If you live anywhere near alhambra there is a place called won ton time. it’s probably the best shrimp wonton i’ve ever had.
here is the addy:
Won Ton Time
19 E Valley Blvd
Alhambra, CA 91801
Phone: (626) 293-3366
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Hi Rasa Malaysia. Recommended by customers from HK, my fav is at the corner of Valley and Garfield, next to Starbuck. Hong Kong style Wonton noodle Soup ( looks exactly like Diana’s post), a sister store from HK, complete with attitude filled waitress.The real deal, a small crowded place, with only 5 items on the menu and you may be asked to 撘檯 with others diners. Huge, plump shrimps with a few Gailan. It was close for remodeling last week.
Another place for Wonton Noodle soup is along E.Garfield ave, btw N. Garfield and S. Lincoln,( South side of Garvey) Har Lem Kee 蝦林記. The wonton noodle soup 卡輸單博, but still very Hong Kong style. This place is not famous for Dimsum, but special breakfast items are great, like 炸兩.
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Happy Birthday my friend!
Btw, this wonton soup looks yummy. Its been a very very long time since i had wonton soup because of the ingredients. I can use your wonton soup recipe and substitute pork with chicken. Now, just gotta make the noodle. *hint*
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i was going to suggest won ton time in alhambra… i just yelp-ed it right now & i'm quite sad to find out it has closed down. ='(
if you're ever in the bay area, try the wonton at food talk cafe in fremont.
i'll let you know if i find any good ones in socal~ ( =
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This looks SO much better than the version served in my local restaurant!
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All - thanks for your sweet comments. I am floored. ;)
Anonymous & Cooknengr - I will try out the recommendations you told me. Yum, I can't wait to have those bouncy prawny wontons, again!
Scott - thanks for your comment. UK has a lot of good Chinese food, so this is a high remark. :)
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Those wontons look amazing! So silky.
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those wontons look like perfection to me. i love the stock recipe too. I think i’ll make this for my in-law’s when they visit next month.
btw - after months of stalking the recipes i finally made your honey turmeric chicken wings last night. my husband and I ate them so fast I couldn’t even bloggem. They are our of this world Ms. M!
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By the way, your wonton easily surpasses Jaden’s in that contest, except for probably the costs. Would rather make and eat yours though. Still can afford it!
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what kind of ham do you use for your soup? Like the ones from the deli? What kind?
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you can buy shrimp won ton bowls at costco - at least, here in seattle you can. they are carrying the CP brand shrimp won ton bowls, 6 in a box for about $10. while i’m sure they don’t come close to the recipe listed here (that i plan to try out asap), they are still good. you get 5 won tons per bowl in a clear broth with green onion and garlic and these are good sized shrimp/prawns, fat and juicy. i fill ‘em with water to just below the brim, microwave x 2.5 min and - voila! - a quick and tasty snack that puts something warm and yummy in an empty stomach real fast, and only 200 calories. as a ready made, i’m sure it’s not any competition for home made, but it’s a quick way to get a shrimp won ton fix. they sure don’t last long around my house.
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Just found your blog.
Love the pictures.
If you love wonton soup you have to try
Wonton Forest
18230 Gale Ave
City of Industry, CA 91748
They have the best wonton soup with a broth that isn’t too salty.
I hit this place anytime I’m back in LA.
Check out the reviews at yelp.com
You won’t be disappointed!
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If you somewhere in San Francisco, there is a small shop open by a chinese family, served the best wonton and dumplings ever. They are famous with their beef noodles. They use “wonton noodles” for most of their noodles. But their wonton is the best ever that I tried over there. Eating it with their chilli paste there is really taste good… I missed it a lot.
Do drop me a line if you want to know where exactly is that shop.
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Sorry to comment on an old post, but 1) this blog is incredible, and 2) I have a question: is there a reason why you boil the wontons in water instead of the soup stock? Just wondering if that extra step is necessary. Is it to keep the flour from thickening the soup? Thanks.
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Rasa Malaysia replied:
Thanks for the comment and complement, Travis. Yes, the extra step is keep the flour from thickening the soup, indeed. If you like heavy soup, I guess it’s okay :)
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Yum! I just tried your recipe for wonton soup and it was delicious! Thank You!
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THE BEST WONTON SOUP IVE HAD IN CA IS IN A LITTLE CITY ANTIOCH, CA. A RESTAURANT CALLED CHINA CITY, IVE SEARCHED BUT COULDNT FIND ANYTHING MORE FLAVORFUL AND SIMPLE THAN THEIR WONTON SOUP…PLEASE IF U HAVE THE CHANCE AND ARE HEADING TO THE BAY AREA/EASTBAY DONT HESITATE TO TRY IT :)
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