Wonton Soup

For the wonton filling:
Wash the green part of the bok choy and steam it until it’s wilted (similar consistency of steamed spinach). Drain and rinse with cold water, then remove as much water from it as you can by squeezing it with a paper towel.

In a medium bowl, mix together the bok choy, cooked ground pork, sesame oil, white pepper, soy sauce, salt, and wine. Mix thoroughly until it’s very well combined and thick.

Assembling the wontons:
Fill a small bowl with water, which you’ll use to dampen your hands as you assemble the wontons. This acts as a glue to help seal the edges of the wonton as you fold.

Take your wonton wrappers out of the package one at a time. It’s easiest to mold them if they haven’t been sitting out in the open—otherwise they dry out and crack when you bend them.

Add about a teaspoon of filling to the middle of the wonton. Moisten your hands and fold the wonton in half, creating a rectangle. Press down all around the filling, removing any excess air. Take the bottom two corners and bring them together, using more water on your hands to help it stick.

Repeat until all of the wontons are filled and folded. At this point I stopped for the night and refrigerated the wontons in Tupperware containers. Then I made the broth the next day. You can also freeze the wontons until you’re ready to make your soup.

For the broth:
In a large pot, bring the chicken broth, sesame oil and a dash of white pepper and salt (optional) to a light simmer. My source for this recipe indicates that you should lightly boil the wontons in a separate container of water, then drain, add to serving bowls, and pour the broth on top. I chose to cook the wontons right in the brother instead, because (gasp), some of mine lost a little filling and I wanted that to be saved in the soup to give more flavor to the broth. Either way works!

The wontons are done when they float to the top. They have a tendency to stick to each other and/or to the bottom of the pot so give a delicate stir every so often to prevent this. Once the wontons are a-floatin’ and your broth is nice and warm, you’re ready to serve! Prepare to be amazed, by the way. Garnish the bowls with diced green onions for extra pizzazz.

Recipe adapted from The Woks of Life.