Wor Wonton Soup - A Chinese Treasure

Wor mean “everything” and can easily be a complete meal. When my wife is sick, she makes me make this soup. Fortunately, I often have several bags of wontons ready frozen for a quick preparation.

Wonton Filling

¼ Cup chopped shallots

½ Pound ground pork

1 Teaspoons peanut oil

1 Tablespoon Tamari soy sauce

1 Teaspoon sherry

2 Teaspoons cornstarch

1/8 Teaspoon salt

1 Teaspoon white pepper

2 Teaspoons peeled, minced ginger

2 Cloves minced garlic

1/3 Pound uncooked medium shrimp, peeled, deveined

1 Package wonton wrappers

This makes 55 or more won ton. When making these, line the plate with parchment paper and space prepared wontons slightly separated so the do not stick to each other. Freeze what is not needed in a plastic zip lock bag shed of as much air as possible. Serve 6 or more wontons per portion if using a dinner bowl or 2~3, if a smaller bowl is a first course.

Constructing Wontons

The round wrappers are the easiest to use. Place a teaspoon of filling in the center of the wrapper. (See picture.) Wet your finger in a bowl. Rub an arc along the outside edge of the lower half of the wrapper, Fold the lower edge so it exactly meets the upper edge of the wrapper, which will fold the wonton in half. Press the edges together firmly to seal. Wet the right-wing edge of the wonton and fold it over a finger to join the left-wing. Now press firmly along the joined edge to seal. Continue making wontons until the filling is used up.

Broth

6 Cups chicken broth or stock, filtered

2 Scallion greens, thinly sliced

1 Small clump of cilantro, chopped coarsely

1 Baked thick marinated boneless pork chop, baked to medium rare then thinly sliced in strips

1 Small chicken breast, thinly sliced into strips, pounded flat, marinated

1/4 Pound sliced cremini mushrooms, sautéed in butter

1 Teaspoon sherry wine

1 Teaspoon soy sauce

Blanched julienned Napa cabbage (white section only), optional

Water chestnuts, optional

Blanched carrot slices

Stock Thickener

                1 Tablespoon wonder flour

2 Tablespoons butter

1 Teaspoon mushroom soy

1 Teaspoon Kitchen Bouquet

Drippings from baking pork chop

3 Tablespoons of chicken stock

Prepare this in the fry-pan and quickly fry the chicken strips.

Pork Chop marinade

                Red food coloring

1 Teaspoon Rice vinegar

1 Tablespoon Hoisin

2 Teaspoons Tamari

Chicken Marinade

                2 Teaspoons Tamari

                1 Teaspoon chicken stock

                ½ Teaspoon minced ginger

You will need large Chinese soup bowls, one for each person

Make the filling in a food processor and refrigerate for several hours ahead. If the wonton wrappers are frozen, let thaw 3 hours while still wrapped.

Marinate the pork in its marinade. Marinate the chicken in its marinade.

Use fry-pan and a tablespoon on butter to fry the sliced mushrooms. Toss to cook evenly. Set mushrooms aside in a bowl.  Add a tablespoon peanut oil to same pan, bring to high heat and quickly fry the chicken strip a minute on each side. Set chicken aside with mushrooms.

Make stock thickener in the fry pan. Add butter over medium heat and when melted, add flour and stir to make a roux. Cook while stirring several minutes. Add chicken stock, mushroom soy, Kitchen Bouquet, drippings from pork chop. Cook several more minutes.

When pork is cook, cool some. Remove pork from pan for slicing. Deglaze pan with a tablespoon or two of chicken stock. Save in a small cup. Slice the pork into thin slices and retain with mushrooms, and chicken slices.

Peel carrot and slice thinly, the cross cut 2 inch diagonal end cut sections. Blanch carrot when you later cook the shrimp. Peel, and devein shrimp.

Bring chicken stock to a simmer.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Put the carrot and Napa Cabbage slices in a strainer basket and lower into boiling water. Cook until al dente. Remove strainer basket and cool vegetables under cold water. Divide blanched vegetables into each serving bowl. Add a pinch each of chopped cilantro and sliced scallion green to each bowl. Place shrimp in a strainer basket and lower into boiling water. Cook shrimp until orange. Remove strainer basket and cool shrimp under cold water. Divide cooked shrimp into serving bowls.

Bring pot of water back to a bowl. Place required quantity of wonton on a strainer and lower in water. Do not let them stick to bottom of pan. As the wontons come back to a boil, add a glass of room temperature water. Allow wonton to return to the boil. Use a strainer or slotted spoon, place required quantity of wonton into each serving bowl. Place some pork, and chicken, and sautéed mushrooms in each bowl, add thickener to chicken stock. Ladle simmering stock into each bowl to cover the wontons.