Vegetarian Won Tons
Making Wontons
Wonton making is incredibly fun! I’ve always looked at wontons and egg rolls and thought they would be too hard to make. Since I had some time this morning I decided to experiment.
I hope you’ll enjoy this as much as I have. The best part is you can put anything in them you like! I added two others as long as I was making the basic ones. Kids would get a kick out of helping too, and choosing their own ingredients. They really are fun to make. It’s also a great way to use leftovers, even little bits. I used basic vegetables for this, but next time I’ll have bean sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower and spinach available too. Chopped up, they would taste great in a wonton.
The wonton wrappers are surprisingly forgiving as you work with them. An extra spot of water easily helps seal if needed. The hardest part was not putting too much of the veggie mix on each wrap! They don’t hold more than a tablespoon or so. Since none of them broke or unsealed during cooking, I considered it a success.
Tip: It’s suggested that you cover the waiting wonton wrappers with a damp paper towel so they don’t dry out.
For the sauce, once again you can use such a variety! I’ve included a recipe for “Oriental Dipping Sauce” found on allrecipes.com, but you can use teriyaki sauce or a sweet and sour sauce. Along with the hoisin dipping sauce, I served both wasabi and hot mustard, mostly because they’re two of my favorites.
The hot mustard combined with the dipping sauce was the top choice in my household. It seemed a better fit, though with the one non-vegetarian example I’ve included, the salmon and capers, was especially good with wasabi.
Give them a try. Have fun stuffing them with whatever you like too.
Want to serve them on the side? Try a quick dish like my Chicken Stir Fry with Vegetables. It’s a fast easy addition to your menu.
Variety Makes Wontons More Fun
The ingredients I’ve listed made twenty mushroom and soy crumble wontons. Since this was a test for me, I fried half of them in a little oil until browned and crisp. The other half I put in boiling water for 5 minutes. Both came out very well. I’ll probably cook some of each next time too.
The flavors were very tasty, the texture good, and the variety of sauces were delicious!
I’m already thinking of several others to try, so I hope to be back. If you aren’t trying for vegetarian, shredded chicken would be great with bean sprouts and spinach. Finely chopped cabbage with other vegetables would taste wonderful too. That’s how many egg rolls are made.
I also couldn’t resist trying a ‘Mexican wonton,’ though I know the name is inappropriate. They were very tasty!. For that one, salsa would be perfect for dipping. They may already have a name at a Mexican restaurant, but I enjoyed their bite size goodness, instead of a larger tortilla size.
And as good as cauliflower is added into most dishes, I will definitely try one with riced cauliflower and more. They sound so good, I may have to make more later this week.
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 4 to 6 servings
- THE BASIC WONTON:
- 1 package wonton wrappers
- ½ cup green onion, chopped
- 1 cup mushrooms, chopped
- 1 splash low sodium soy sauce
- ½ cup soy crumbles
- SAUCE:
- ¼ cup low sodium soy sauce
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon green onions, chopped
- 1 tablespoon water
- 2 tablespoons Hoisin sauce
- ½ teaspoon white sugar
- ¼ teaspoon fresh ginger, minced (optional)
- MEXICAN WONTONS
- ¼ to ½ cup refried beans
- 2 tablespoons green onion, chopped
- ¼ cup cheese, grated
- Salsa for dipping sauce
- A NON VEGETARIAN SALMON WONTON
- ½ cup cooked salmon
- 2 tablespoons capers
- lemon
- Mix the dipping sauce ingredients together and refrigerate for an hour.
- Assemble your ingredients on parchment paper or in small bowls, including a small bowl of water.
- Saute the chopped mushroom with some of the onion and a splash of soy sauce.
- Remove a portion of the finished mushrooms for mushroom wontons and set aside.
- Add the soy crumbles to the pan, and heat through, then put in another bowl.
- Wash your hands thoroughly, then you are ready to assemble.
- Set two to four wontons on parchment paper or a clean flat surface.
- Put a spoonful of your heated soy/mushroom mix onto the center of a wonton. Add a dash4 to 6 of the chopped green onion.
- Lightly wet the edges of the wonton, then fold over. Press together and fold up. (I added another spot of water to be sure they stayed)
- Set aside while you do more of them.
- When they are all prepared, cook by boiling in water for 5 minutes or by frying in a little oil until browned.
- Drain on a paper towel briefly.
- Serve and eat!
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
June 5, 2015
Merry, I saw some won ton wrappers in the grocery store and had thought that would be a good idea. Great timing to see your recipes. I do have a question though. What is Hoisin sauce? Thanks.
June 4, 2015
Merry, so glad to see this recipe. I’ve never attempted won tons at home. These look wonderful. I’m especially intrigued by the Mexican wontons. I understand there is quite a Mexican/Chinese/American food crossover in certain towns on either side of the border. I’ve forgotten the name of the Mex-Chinese food, but apparently there are cafes springing up with this particular infusion of flavors and cooking styles.
June 4, 2015
Thanks Kathryn! You should try them. They were very fun to make, and you can put whatever you like in them. Anxious to try them again!