ISO: Wonton Filling Suggestions

[eloise forever]

Does anyone have any suggestions for what to put inside fried wontons? I love these things and would like to serve them as appetizers at a get together. Any help will be much appreciated.

[MicheleF]

Oops!!! I forgot to also list green onions and carrots....We chopped those up fine and added them to our wonton "stuffing" as well!!!

[Gail]

If it doesn't have to be "traditional" fried wontons, you can use the wrappers for crab puffs which can be dipped into hot mustard, or you can wrap a small strip of chile around a small piece of jack cheese and make sort of a chile relleno wonton, using a salsa for a dip. Using those same wonton wrappers, you can steam them instead of frying and make shu meis. (Recipes cheerfully provided for crab puffs or shu meis on request.) http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif

[eloise forever]

Gail: I would LOVE both of those recipes!

[MicheleF]

How funny you should ask...Made these last week. I finely chopped chicken, celery, ginger, and Wood Ear Mushrooms.....The mushrooms were dried and cooked them according to package directions prior to chopping of course....It was no specific recipe, my husband and I were just experimenting. We thought they turned out rather well ourselves.....

[Gail]

PORK SHU MEI

3/4 pound ground lean pork
1/2 tablespoon cornstarch
1/2 tablespoon dry sherry
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 green onions, chopped
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 package won ton wrappers

Mix together all the ingredients except the wrappers. Stir the mixture by hand until you can feel it begin to bind together. This takes a minute or so of hard mixing.
Place a fat tablespoon of the mixture in the middle of a wrapper. Fold the four sides up and around the meat so that you have a little cup or open bag. Squeeze the meat gently so that a little begins to come out of the top of the little bag, and then push that meat back into the bag. Seal the edges of the wrapper by running your thumb around the top of the opening. Press the bottom flat so that the bag sits up in place in a steamer. Be sure to oil the racks of the steamer with a bit of peanut oil so that the shu mei will not stick. Steam for 15 or 20 minutes.

Makes 25 to 30

(From: The Frugal Gourmet)

The crab puffs were posted previously, so I'll just refer you to the original thread: www.cookinglight.com/bbs/Archives/Archive-000001/HTML/20000711-1-000054.html (http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/Archives/Archive-000001/HTML/20000711-1-000054.html)

Good luck!

[Leonard]

eloiseforever:

I have a recipe from the January issue of Bon Appetit. They are called "Quick Chicken and Olive Empanadas". I made them for a New Year's Eve party I attended. They were a huge hit. I made them for a group and was glad to have my DH helping out. You can get the recipe by visiting www.epicurious.com. (http://www.epicurious.com.) This website features and reviews recipes from Bon Appetit and Gourmet Magazines. Check it out.

[eloise forever]

Thanks everyone! These suggestions all look great.

Gail: Do you think that the filling for the Pork Shu Mei would work in a fried wonton if I put less inside and sealed it well? I'm thinking it would be yummy that way...

[Gail]

Eloise forever,

Yes, I think it probably would work. You'll just need to drastically reduce the amount, because as is the things come out meatball size and would need the full steaming time to cook through.

PS I think Michele's suggestion sounds yummy!

[This message has been edited by Gail (edited 02-10-2001).]

[eloise forever]

Thanks, Gail. I'll give it a try.

On a closely related topic, do any of you have a recipe for spring rolls?. I bought some wrappers at ethnicgrocer.com and I am not sure yet what I am going to put in them. I have found a few recipes, but was hoping that someone would have feedback on one they had actuaully tried.

[eloise forever]

Bumping this back up in hopes of some spring roll recipes. Thanks!

[This message has been edited by eloise forever (edited 02-12-2001).]

[ebobbitt]

Years ago Southern Living published a recipe for something that I think was called Tex-Mex Wontons. There were quite a few ingredients but it was basically taco mixture (ground beef with taco seasoning), sealed in wantons and fried. Boy, were they yummy. Now I would never make them but I remember making them for a party and they were very good; especially served with cheese dip! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif