This weekend I had a go at making my own wonton dumplings with Laverstoke organic pork mince. When I was a kid, I remember helping my mum make jiaozi dumplings in preparation for dinner parties. I found great pleasure in pleating the folds of the pastry and getting them just right. Later in life, this obsessive repetitive action turned into an interest in modular origami. There is much to be said of folding flat planes into 3D units, multiple times over.
Wonton can be boiled or deep fried. For the sake of my health, the following is a recipe for boiled pork wonton dumplings.
You will need:
- 400g Laverstoke organic pork mince
- 3 shiitake dried mushrooms, reconstituted in warm water
- 2 spring onions (which I stupidly forgot to buy)
- 2 tsps grated ginger
- 1 tbsp Shaoxing wine
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- Salt and pepper
- A pack of wonton wrappers (or ‘wanton’ wrappers, as mine were labelled – LOL). These can be found in all good Asian supermarkets, containing around 30 pieces.
- 1 egg
Marinade the meat by combining it with the grated ginger, Shaoxing, sugar, soy sauce and a dash of salt and pepper. Use your hands to blend. Then add finely chopped mushrooms and spring onions. Set aside for at least 15 minutes.
Beat an egg to use for the wonton ‘glue’. When folding your wonton, use this handy guide on how to fold wonton eight different ways. They look so cute! I mostly went for the ‘boat’ style because it looks like a Chinese ingot; it’s a popular fold as it symbolises wealth. I managed to make about 32 mini dumplings. The important thing is to make sure not to overfill each wrapper – one teaspoon of mince is enough.
To boil your wonton, drop in a saucepan of boiling water and boil until they float to the top. Unfortunately, when I dropped mine in they floated to the top immediately because of air bubbles due to poor wrapping (duh). If that happens, boil for 3-5 minutes.
Serve your dumplings proper Hong Kong wonton noodle style – with thin yellow egg noodles in a chicken broth, and if you can find some, add a head of pak choi. For extra flavouring on the side, dip liberally in a tart vinegar-based or hot chilli sauce.
Laverstoke organic pork mince is £4.20. Don’t forget you can use my code MEATINABOX to get 15% off any Laverstoke order online.
These look brilliant! I must try them sometime, and with prawns, too. I’m a great fan of dumplings myself, which pretty much follows this recipe but has more chopped veggies that have been lightly boiled/blanched. The thicker dumpling skins hold more in, so you get more of a full meal – but you miss out on the yummy noodles and soup…
Yes there is an argument for the prawn/pork mix! I think these could have done with a touch of that.