Wonton Soup

It's gotten a little chillier around here lately, which made me decide soup needed to be on the menu.  I adapted this soup from another recipe and we all loved the results.  Making the wontons is a little time consuming, but the end result is so worth it.  My husband, who loves wonton soup in Chinese restaurants, declared this to be better than any soup he's had in a restaurant.  So give it a try and see what you think.

Since it's been two weeks, I flubbed and forgot to take a picture of what your ingredients are for this gem.  You'll want to gather green onions, a handful of mushrooms (I used about 8), ground pork, soy sauce, sesame oil, bread crumbs, an egg, salt, snow peas, a half pound of shrimp, 2 cartons (8 cups) of chicken broth, and a small handful of snow peas.

Start out by slicing the mushrooms and green onions.

Now take out a little (maybe 1-2 Tablespoons) of each...

 and chop them up fine.  We'll use these with our wontons and the rest in our soup.

In a bowl, add your pork, finely chopped mushrooms and green onions, sesame oil, soy sauce, bread crumbs, egg, and salt.

Combine it well with your hands or a big wooden spoon.

These are wonton wrappers.  Let me save you some trouble--you will find these in the refrigerated section of the grocery store.  Mine are by the cheese slices.  Do not look in the Asian food section; do not ask the pimply-faced teenager who is stocking shelves because he will probably not know where to find them either.  Let's not ask how I know such things.  Just trust me on this one.

Lay one of your wrappers down and add about a teaspoon full of the meat mixture.  It does not take much, and you don't want to overstuff these.  They'll bust open in your soup and you'll have oozing wontons.  Less is more here.  Actually, in this picture, there's probably a bit more than you really want.  I have self-control issues, okay?

Dip your finger in some water (I keep a shotglass filled with water at my workspace) and moisten all the way around the edges.  Fold opposite points together to form a triangle.

Now you have some options.  My favorite fold for wonton soup is this one.  Just pleat the triangle once on each side and you'll make a cute little pillow.

Or you could hold it center point down and fold the side points up over your finger and pressing together.  This makes a more traditional wonton shape.

Or you could bring up the corners and give them a twist.  It's your choice.  Play with them and see what you like the best.

Keep making wontons until you've used up your wrappers.  There are about 48 in a package, so you'll have plenty of yummy goodness for your soup.  You should have some extra meat mixture leftover; this freezes well.  Pull it out someday when you're feeling particularly kind and use it to make your family some fried wontons.  They'll love you even more.

Here's what you should have left gathered up on your counter:

When you peel your shrimp, cut them into bite sized pieces.  It will make them easier to eat in the soup.

Bring your broth to a boil.

Add the wontons and cook for about 3 minutes.

Then add the shrimp, remaining mushrooms, green onions, snow peas and a splash of sesame oil.  It adds a distinct asian flavor that is quite tasty.

Let it simmer gently for a few more minutes to cook the shrimp and then serve. 

It's so tasty and generally healthy too.  Lots of veggies, lean meats and no butter!  I hope you'll try this with your family sometime.  Enjoy!!


Wonton Soup

1 pound ground pork
6-8 mushrooms, sliced
1 bunch green onions, sliced
1/4 cup bread crumbs
1 egg
1 Tablespoon sesame oil (plus a splash more)
1 Tablespoon soy sauce
1/4 tsp. salt
12 ounce package of wonton wrappers (about 48)
8 cups chicken broth
1/2 pound shrimp--peeled, deveined, and cut into bite sized pieces
1 handful snow peas

Mix ground pork, 1-2 Tbsp. each of finely diced mushrooms and green onions, 1/4 cup bread crumbs, 1 egg, 1 Tablespoon soy sauce, 1 Tablespoon sesame oil, and 1/4 tsp. salt in bowl.  Use 1 tsp. per wonton wrapper and fold into desired shape.

For soup, bring broth to a boil.  Add wontons and cook for 3 minutes.  Add shrimp, snow peas, mushrooms, and green )