BreezyCooking
Washing Up
Was steered to the following recipe yesterday (scroll down a little - it's the Feb. 19th Pork/Spinach Wonton recipe):
The Bitten Word
Decided to adapt it a bit & make it my own. Made it last night to rave reviews. VERY spicy, which is the way we like most of our Asian dishes. If you don't like very spicy food, cut down on or substitute regular sesame oil for the hot chili version in the sauce. Here's my version:
Breezy Chicken & Spinach Wonton Dumplings
One 6-ounce bag baby spinach, rinsed
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon dry sherry
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
1 pound ground chicken
1 scallion, minced
Approx. two tablespoons peeled minced fresh ginger
Cornstarch, for sprinkling
30+ wonton wrappers
For sauce:
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons hot chili sesame oil
1 large garlic clove, minced
4 tablespoons minced cilantro
1. In a skillet, cook the spinach, stirring, until wilted; transfer to a colander and press with the back of a spoon until relatively dry. Finely chop the spinach.
2. In a bowl, combine the 3 tablespoons of the soy sauce, the sesame oil, sherry, salt, sugar and white pepper. Mix in the chicken, scallion, ginger and spinach. Chill for 20 minutes - this makes the filling easier to work with.
3. Dust a large baking sheet with cornstarch. Arrange 4 wonton wrappers on a work surface, keeping the other wrappers covered with plastic wrap. Brush the edges of the wrappers with water and spoon 1 teaspoon (measuring teaspoon - not dining teaspoon) of filling in the center of each. Fold the wrappers diagonally over the filling to form triangles; seal. Bring the two opposite corners of the triangle together; press to seal. Transfer to the baking sheet. Repeat.
4. In a large pot of boiling water, add the wontons - 10 at a time - over moderate heat, stirring occasionally & CAREFULLY. When they float, cook for 3 minutes longer. Drain the wontons well. Either line a bowl with paper towels & begin stacking them, or oil a colander & stack them. (I cooked a "test batch" of 4 first to make sure the timing was correct. You don't want to find out after you've cooked 10 or more that the filling isn't cooked.)
5. In a large bowl, combine all sauce ingredients. Add the wontons, fold lightly, & serve.
I ended up using a 1/2 pound of filling for 34 wontons (so much for the original recipe saying you can make 30 using 1/4 pound of meat - lol. And I did use a measuring teaspoon for the filling.). I've saved the leftover filling & will either add it loose to a stirfry, or make some more wontons for soup in a couple of days. You definitely won't have any waste with such nicely seasoned meat.
The Bitten Word
Decided to adapt it a bit & make it my own. Made it last night to rave reviews. VERY spicy, which is the way we like most of our Asian dishes. If you don't like very spicy food, cut down on or substitute regular sesame oil for the hot chili version in the sauce. Here's my version:
Breezy Chicken & Spinach Wonton Dumplings
One 6-ounce bag baby spinach, rinsed
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon dry sherry
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
1 pound ground chicken
1 scallion, minced
Approx. two tablespoons peeled minced fresh ginger
Cornstarch, for sprinkling
30+ wonton wrappers
For sauce:
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons hot chili sesame oil
1 large garlic clove, minced
4 tablespoons minced cilantro
1. In a skillet, cook the spinach, stirring, until wilted; transfer to a colander and press with the back of a spoon until relatively dry. Finely chop the spinach.
2. In a bowl, combine the 3 tablespoons of the soy sauce, the sesame oil, sherry, salt, sugar and white pepper. Mix in the chicken, scallion, ginger and spinach. Chill for 20 minutes - this makes the filling easier to work with.
3. Dust a large baking sheet with cornstarch. Arrange 4 wonton wrappers on a work surface, keeping the other wrappers covered with plastic wrap. Brush the edges of the wrappers with water and spoon 1 teaspoon (measuring teaspoon - not dining teaspoon) of filling in the center of each. Fold the wrappers diagonally over the filling to form triangles; seal. Bring the two opposite corners of the triangle together; press to seal. Transfer to the baking sheet. Repeat.
4. In a large pot of boiling water, add the wontons - 10 at a time - over moderate heat, stirring occasionally & CAREFULLY. When they float, cook for 3 minutes longer. Drain the wontons well. Either line a bowl with paper towels & begin stacking them, or oil a colander & stack them. (I cooked a "test batch" of 4 first to make sure the timing was correct. You don't want to find out after you've cooked 10 or more that the filling isn't cooked.)
5. In a large bowl, combine all sauce ingredients. Add the wontons, fold lightly, & serve.
I ended up using a 1/2 pound of filling for 34 wontons (so much for the original recipe saying you can make 30 using 1/4 pound of meat - lol. And I did use a measuring teaspoon for the filling.). I've saved the leftover filling & will either add it loose to a stirfry, or make some more wontons for soup in a couple of days. You definitely won't have any waste with such nicely seasoned meat.