Who’s in the mood for Chinese? How does gingery Beef and Broccoli, with carrots, baby corn, and mushrooms, over a bed of steaming jasmine rice sound? Maybe with a side of cream cheese wontons? Hmmm. Sounds great, huh? Put down that phone!! You are not ordering Chinese, you are making it!
Cream Cheese Wontons
- 2- 8 oz packages of cream cheese
- Package of small Wonton skins
- 2 stems of Green onion (scallion)
- 1/4 tsp. fresh Ginger
- 1 tsp. Soy sauce
- Small bowl of water
- 1 c. cooking oil
- 1 jar of Duck sauce
Take cream cheese out of fridge and allow to soften in a bowl for about 20 minutes. Finely chop the scallion, ginger, and garlic, and add to the cream cheese. Add soy sauce and mix until completely blended.
Fold one of the corners of the wonton over to the opposite corner, sealing the edge. If the edge is not sealing, add a tiny bit more water around the edge, but be careful not to have the edge too wet, or the skin will tear. Set the finished wontons aside to “dry” for about 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat the oil on medium high heat, in a deep fry pan. I test the heat of the oil by adding the edge of a chop stick; the oil should bubble around the chopstick when ready. Using tongs, slowly add one or two of the wontons. (The reason you dry them is so they do not puff up too much in the oil.)
Be very careful that you do not overcook the wontons. Count to about 35-45 seconds and turn the wonton in the oil, and then remove after another 35-45 seconds. The wontons should be golden brown and crispy on the outside.
Place on a plate covered with a paper towel to absorb the stray oil. After a few wontons, you should know be able to figure out how long you need before turning them. If you like them crispier, leave in the oil a little bit longer. Be careful not to leave it in the oil too long, however, as the edges will crisp too much and loosen the seal on the wonton, and the cream cheese will seep out. When you are finished frying all the wontons, turn the stove off and let the oil cool before discarding. Serve the wontons immediately with duck sauce. (You can also put the wontons in aluminum foil in reheat in the oven later-if you do this, only heat in 350 degree oven for about 10 minutes.)
Joyce Chen’s Beef and Broccoli makes a perfect Chinese entree with these Cream Cheese wontons!
