Pork and Shrimp Wontons

     I made wontons!  I made wontons!  I was doing the wonton dance around the kitchen on Saturday night.  Dear Daughter took one bite, nodded her head and smiled.  Success!  It was a good thing that I made extra because she consumed most of them.  This is a super easy recipe and surprisingly, there is an incredible depth of flavor.  Seriously...try these and you will never order them again in a restaurant.  Yours will be so much better.

     The other great thing about this recipe is that you can make a big batch of the filling and freeze what you do not use immediately.  Then whenever the wonton craze hits you (and it will), you will have a stash ready to go.

Pork and Shrimp Wontons

Ingredients

1/2 pound ground pork

1/2 pound shrimp, peeled, deveined and roughly chopped

1 T Sherry

1 T soy sauce

1 T sugar

1 T finely grated ginger

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 t Sriracha (optional)

1/2 cup chopped scallions, green and white parts

1/4 cup chopped chives

Wonton skins

1 small egg, beaten

cornstarch for dusting

2 c good quality chicken broth

1 t Sesame oil

1/2 cup chopped cilantro

1.  Combine the pork and shrimp in a mixing bowl.  Season with salt and pepper.  Add sherry, soy sauce, sugar, ginger, garlic, scallions, chives and Sriracha and mix until well combined.  Pan fry a small amount and check the seasoning.  Adjust if necessary.  Cover filing with plastic wrap, place in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.  You can also chill this mixture up to 24 hours.

2.  To make the wontons.  Remove a few skins from package and lay them on a dry work surface.  Put 1 teaspoon of filling in the center of each square.  Paint edges of square lightly with egg.  Fold one side over to the other, making a rectangle.  Pinch the sides together.  Pull the lower corners down toward each other and pinch together.  It should now look like a traditional wonton.  Place completed wontons on a baking sheet.  Dust lightly with cornstarch.  Refrigerate until ready to cook.

3.  In a pot, heat the chicken broth with sesame oil.  Put chopped cilantro in the bottom of several soup bowls.  Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. When boiling, drop in 10 wontons (depending on the size of the pot) and cook for 2-3 minutes.  Remove with a slotted spoon to the soup bowls.  Continue with remaining wontons.  Pour a bit of broth over the wontons and serve immediately.

Enjoy!