Wontons are a great make-ahead meal, and freeze wonderfully. It’s also an easy way to include friends in the meal prep. Many hands make this move quickly!

You can use the same filling as either as a soup or as pan-fried appetizers.

Both methods of preparation are described below.

Wonton filling

Ingredients

• 4 cups of various mushrooms, minced. I usually use a mix of shiitake, oyster and cremini.
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced or grated
• 2 Tbsp grated ginger
• 1 small onion, minced
• 1-2 Tbsp soy sauce
• Red chili flakes (optional)
• 36 or more wonton wrappers (from the store because you don’t want to spend all night on this, right?)

Instructions

Saute the mushrooms for a few minutes to remove moisture.  Once the pan looks a little dry, add garlic, ginger and onions. Cook for another 3-5 minutes, or until the onion is translucent.

Add a splash of soy sauce and chillies, if using. Add your filling to a bowl and let it cool for a few minutes.

Wonton Soup

Ingredients

• Wonton filling (as described above)
• 3 cup roughly chopped bok choy, cabbage or kale
• Chopped green onions
• Mushroom broth (see below)

Mushroom broth

• 3 cups vegetable trimmings including mushroom pieces, carrots, tomato, onion skins etc.
• 2 cups mushrooms, chopped
• 2 dried red chilies
• 1 medium onion, quartered
• 2 stalks celery, halved
• 2 Tbsp grated ginger
• 4 cloves garlic
• 3 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1/3 cup white miso
• 8 cups of water
• Salt and pepper

Instructions

Mushroom broth

I keep a bag of kitchen trimmings in my freezer for broth days. This includes carrot tips, washed onion and garlic skins, green onion trimmings, mushroom tips and more.

In a large pot, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Add onion and red chilies and saute until the onion begins to char. Add in mushrooms and garlic and cook for a minute until water starts to release.

Add in 8 cups of water, soy sauce and miso, stirring well to dissolve miso, then add remaining ingredients. Simmer over low heat for at least 30 minutes, or up to an hour.  While the broth is cooking, fold your wontons.

After cooking, adjust salt and pepper then strain through cheesecloth or a fine sieve to remove the vegetables. Return broth to the pot and bring to a boil.

Wontons

Add about 2 teaspoons of mushroom mixture to each wonton.

Wet the edge of the wrapper in a c-shape and fold in half in your hand.

Ensure that there are no air pockets, or the wonton is more likely to burst in the broth.

You can cook them as-is, just folded in half again if you’d like, wetting the two inside  corners that stick together. I usually fold one more time so they fit better on a spoon and have a little pocket to pick up broth.

As you’re folding them, set them on a cookie tray lined with parchment paper so they don’t stick to anything.

Do not pre-cook your wontons or they can get mushy. Only cook as many as you will eat immediately (about 5 per serving).

Drop wontons into simmering broth for three minutes. Toss in your greens in the last 30 seconds to soften.

Serve immediately in bowls, ladling in mushroom broth and topping with sliced green onion and hot sauce.

Wonton Appetizers

Ingredients

Wontons

• Wonton filling as described above
• 1 small onion, diced
• red chili flakes

Dipping sauce

• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup rice vinegar
• 1 Tbsp sesame oil
• 1 Tbsp finely sliced green onion
• 1/2 tsp each grated ginger, grated garlic and chili paste (optional)

Instructions

Prepare wonton filling as described above.

Add about 2 teaspoons of mushroom mixture to each wonton.

Wet the edge of the wrapper in a c-shape and fold in half in your hand. If I know that I’m pan frying then I’ll usually add in some more creases here.

Heat a large pan (with a lid) over medium-high heat. Add 2 tablespoons of sesame or other oil, mix in the diced onion and red chili flakes and fry until crispy. Then remove this mixture from the pan and set aside.

Heat the pan back to medium-high then add 1 tsp sesame oil.

Add wontons to the pan, and cook for 2-3 minutes, flipping with chopsticks or tongs to crisp every side.

Once they are nice and crispy, add a few tablespoons of water then cover and steam for another 3 minutes to cook throughout.Remove the lid and boil off any remaining water.

To serve, plate and top with spicy onion mixture.

Dipping Sauce

The photo is from a weeknight meal where I popped them out of the freezer and served in 10 minutes. So the wontons are served with hoisin. Here’s another dipping sauce if you want something with a little less sugar:

Mix equal parts soy sauce and rice vinegar in a bowl. Whisk in grated ginger and garlic, chili paste and sesame oil. Add the green onions and get dipping.

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To freeze, lay out the wontons on a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Freeze for one hour, then remove from baking sheet and move to a bag or airtight container.

When you’re ready for a quick meal, add directly to simmering broth or hot pan.