Shrimp and Pork Wontons

Wontons are probably one of the best appetizers/add-ons in the world. They can be served up as fried crispy snacks, or as part of a warm, hearty soup (think Wonton Noodle Soup, or Mi Hoanh Thanh as we call it in Vietnamese). You can customize the filling any way you want, but this pork and shrimp based filling is one of my absolute favorites! It can be quite a lengthy process hand-folding each wonton individually, but I can assure you that it is quite a labor of love, as there is nothing as satisfying as seeing the end product: a mountain of wontons that you know you will be loving to eat and share with your loved ones (or maybe just eat them all for yourself; no shame in that!)

Special thanks to Vicki Pham for her original recipe that you can find here!

Ingredients (for approx 100 wontons)
-1 lb of peeled and deveined shrimp
-1 lb ground pork
-1 cup thinly sliced jicama
-1/2 cup thinly sliced green onion
-3 Tbsp oyster sauce
-2 tsp sugar
-1/2 cup corn starch
-4 tsp sesame oil
-1/4th tsp black pepper
-Square wonton wrappers
-1 egg, beaten

Useful Tools
-Food Processor

Procedure
1) Add shrimp, pork, jicama, green onion, oyster sauce, sugar, corn starch, sesame oil, and black pepper into a mixing bowl and mix well to combine
2) Place the mixture into a food processor and grind together to a paste
3) To assemble the wonton, place about a tsp of shrimp/pork paste in the middle of the wonton wrapper. Lightly brush the top of the wrapper with beaten egg and fold the wrapper in half over the filling to create a triangle. Afterwards, brush the bottom sides of the triangle with beaten egg and fold it into the middle. Check out the diagram for folding technique:

4) After folding, here are some ways to cook the dumplings:
a) Air-Frying: Air fry at 360°F for 7 minutes
b) Boiling: Place the wontons in boiling water in a saucepan for 4-5 minutes, then drain.
c) Deep-Frying: Place wontons in hot canola oil (or other oil with high smoke point) for approx 5-6 minutes, or until golden brown.
d) Pan-Frying: Place wontons in hot canola oil and fry each side for approx 3-4 minutes, or until golden brown on each side.

Observations/Tips
-The beaten egg yolk acts as a binder and keeps your wonton from falling apart as you fold
-It’s quite a lengthy process folding each dumpling by hand, but making it in large batches is totally worth it! You can freeze any leftover dumplings in the freezer for up to six months, and they are so easy to defrost and cook for a quick appetizer/snack!
-The folding technique listed above is only one of many ways to fold wontons. Like origami, the wonton can be folded into various other shapes. Feel free to get creative and fold your own patterns.

References
Vicki Pham’s Shrimp and Pork Wonton Recipe