Chinese Takeout Wonton Soup Secrets Revealed

a lot of people struggle with making a proper takeout style wanton soup at home so today I'll explain everything you need to know about the broth the dumplings and the exact brands most takeout kitchens use to make this iconic dish to get started we'll first address the broth one of the main reasons your wanton soup at home tastes differently from your favorite takeout joint is that you're likely using the wrong kind of chicken broth most takeout kitchens use an Asian style chicken buan base but what are the differences between western style and Asian style chicken broths in the west our broths and stocks often use a mirp this is a vegetable mixture of onions carrots and celery you'll also find other aromatics like black peppercorns parsley bay leaves and sometimes herbs like Thyme and rosemary the flavor profile of these ingredients is completely different from an Asian style chicken broth which generally includes only chicken green onions and ginger a western style broth is fine if that's all you can find but for the classic take out flavor grab a can of Asian style chicken buan powder I've been in dozens of takeout kitchens over the years and the two most common Brands I see in most of them are no chicken flavor broth mix and leom key chicken buan powder you'll know you've got the right kind if you see Chinese characters on The Packaging now I'll show you how to make two different versions of the broth a simple basic takeout style and an aromatic infused broth with Chinese rice wine you'll find at more upscale restaurants for the basic broth we'll start by adding six cup cups of water to a large pot heat the water to a simmer and add your chicken bullan powder whisk it in until it's dissolved and kill the heat then add one teaspoon of table salt 1/4 taspo of MSG 1/4 teaspoon of sugar one pinch of white pepper half a teaspoon of light soy sauce and 1/4 teaspoon of toasted sesame oil whisk all the seasonings in give the broth a taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary and this is a classic takeout style chicken broth super simple once it's cool P off you can store the broth in a covered container in the fridge for about 3 to 5 days and you can freeze it for about 3 months now it's essentially the same process for the slightly more upscale broth but we'll Infuse some aromatics into it and add some Chinese rice wine that will give some depth and complexity to the soup so we'll start by adding six cups of water to a large pot bring the water up to a simmer and add the chicken buan powder whisk until it's dissolved and lower the heat until it's just under a simmer then toss in two garlic cloves two two small pieces of Ginger and the whites of two scallions and one of the things you can do to increase the flavor is to lightly pound the aromatics before adding them to the broth this will help them release more flavor compounds by rupturing some of the cell walls so they can expel more of their essential oils into the broth then you'll Infuse the aromatics for about 30 minutes and keep it at just below a simmer if the broth is at a rolling boil it'll reduce too much and become much too concentrated after the aromatics have infused remove them from the broth and turn off the heat then add 1 taspo of table salt 1/4 taspo of MSG 1/4 taspo of granulated sugar 1 pinch of white pepper half a teaspoon of light soy sauce 1 tbsp of shaing wine and 1/4 teaspoon of toasted sesame oil whisk all the seasonings in give the broth a taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary once it's cooled off you can store the broth in a covered container in the fridge for about 3 to 5 days now for the dumplings I'll show you how to make the two most popular shapes and explain why you should never cook them in the broth but before we get to that I'd like to take a moment to thank today's video sponsor maid in if you watch my videos regularly you may have noticed I've been using some new cookware in them one of the main reasons I switch to maid in is because they designed professional quality products that are ideal for the home cook and one of the best ways to level up your culinary game is to use the kitchen wear professional chefs are using in the world's best kitchens for our wanton broth today I'm using in's 4q stainless saucepan and there are a few reasons I prefer Maiden stainless collection over literally any other brand firstly they have the best handles on the planet and they're specifically designed to stay cool while on the stove top so you'll never have to worry about burning your hand on a red hot handle again secondly the entire stainless collection is engineered with rolled rims which allow you to easily pour from the pans without spilling Maiden has partnered with multigenerational factories and Craftsmen in Italy to bring you handpicked stainless pieces that every home cook needs in their kitchen and you can check out the entire stainless collection and maiden's other cookware by using the link in my description to save on your order now for the dumplings making them by hand may seem daunting at first but they're actually quite easy to prepare it may take you a few tries to get it right but I'll give you a few tips so you can make them much easier so what kind of won rappers are most takeout restaurants using you'll see several different styles at most Asian grocery stores and this is an oversimplification but there are two main types of skins used for wantons for the southern Chinese dumplings they're often a yellowish color and they'll often be labeled as Hong Kong style you typically won't find many takeout restaurants using this type what is much more common is the northern Chinese style of wrapper which is white specifically the extra thin variety the most common brand I've seen in most takeout kitchens is Twin Marquee extra thin won wrapper if you're not able to track down twin Marquee just get the thinnest Square white won wrapper you can find any brand that's labeled as won wrapper will work fine for this recipe now for the filling the most classic version is made with ground pork and finely minced shrimp if this isn't kosher or Halal fill free to use ground chicken or turkey I would suggest ground chicken or turkey thighs because the breast meat tends to dry out a bit more but they're much better with pork and shrimp and to suggest otherwise is slanderous when you're buying the pork try to get the the fattiest version you can find the fat will help emulsify the mixture and the shrimp will plump up and give you that traditional springy texture to prepare the filling for the dumplings we'll start by finally mincing half a pound of peeled and dained shrimp and you really want to chop it as fine as you can you want to turn it into a paste almost and we'll add the minced shrimp to half a pound of ground pork in a large bowl then toss in 1 teaspoon of table salt 1 teaspoon of white sugar 1/4 teaspoon of MSG 1/4 taspo of ground white pepper 1 teaspoon of grated garlic 1 teaspoon of grated Ginger 1 tpoon of corn starch 1 tpoon of toasted sesame oil 1 and 1/2 tpoon of light soy sauce 2 tpon of shaing rice wine 2 tbsp of water half a teaspoon of chicken buan powder and 1 tbspoon of finely minced green onions when you've got all the spices and aromatics added you'll want to squeeze them into the mixture with your hand like this until everything is well Incorporated and you might think there's too much liquid at first but it will eventually emulsify into the filling and this is how we'll ensure our dumplings stay extra juicy then using your hand you'll stir the mixture around like this in one direction for several minutes until you notice little strands developing into the filling the reason you'll mix like this in One Direction is that it will form microscopic Links of protein which will give you that characteristic bouncy springy texture of classic Chinese dumpling Lings you'll know the filling is ready when you see what appear to be tiny threads like this and you can use this immediately or store it in the fridge for up to 2 days to make the dumplings the most classic shape you'll find in wanton soup at takeout restaurants is called the pouch or the cloud shape what you'll do is Place one of the wanton wrappers in front of you like a diamond then put about one teaspoon of filling directly in the middle of the wrapper wet two edges of The Dumpling skin with water then bring up the bottom corner of the skin to meet the top corner like this so they match up and lightly press them together so they seal press down like this until you feel the top of the filling then bring up both sides so they come together at the top then lightly press down all around the top of the filling trying to get out as much air as possible so it forms a little ball at the bottom of the dumpling one of the main reasons wons come apart when they're cooking is because people leave too much air in their dumplings and this is the most classic shape of won dumpling you'll find in a majority of takeout restaurants now for the slightly more complicated version or what is called the water Caltrop shape you'll start by laying down a wrapper in front of you just like we did with the last dumpling then place about 2 to 3 teaspoons of filling directly in the middle wet all four edges of the wrapper with water now bring up the corner facing you to the top corner and press down on both sides to form a triangle like this lightly press down around the filling to get the air out and place the dumpling in your hand with the top Corner facing your thumb then wet one of the bottom corners with water and bring the dry Corner around the bottom so it overlaps with the wet corner and lightly press them together so they seal pull up the top flap if it's folded downward and the finished dumpling should look like this with a slight dimple at the bottom of the filling and once you get comfortable you should be able to make these in your hand it's much faster but if you've never made dumplings before I think it's best to start with the wrapper on the table and these are ready to cook right away but if you want to make a big batch and store them for later just line a baking sheet with parchment paper and place the dumplings on it so they're not touching then cover them with plastic wrap and place them in the freezer for about 2 hours once they're frozen you can place them in a large Ziploc bag to save on Space they'll stay good in the freezer for about 2 to 3 months when you're ready to make the won soup start by heating some of the broth until it's hot and you never want to cook the wontons directly in the broth the reason is because the Skins are covered in starch to keep them from sticking together and this can Cloud the broth and make the wons really gummy if they sit in it for too long so to cook the wons in a separate pot heat some water until it starts to boil then lower the heat until it's simmering and place the wontons in the water and you want to give the dumplings a little stir right after you put them in the water because they'll sink and the Skins will stick to the bottom and rip the dumplings the cooking time varies but for both of the shapes we've made today it generally takes about 4 to 6 minutes A lot of people say you'll know the dumplings are ready when when they start to float but I found a much better indicator of dness is when the wrappers turn translucent and you can see that the filling has plumped up when they're done remove the dumplings from the water drain them thoroughly and place them in a large bowl pour over enough broth to cover the wons and garnish with some thinly sliced green onion and this is a classic takeout style won soup now very quickly before our taste test I want to show you another dish you can make if you want to mix things up and you've got a ton of oneand in your freezer I learned about these dumplings and sweet chili oil sauce from fuchsia dunlop's book every grain of rice which I love and you should totally get if you don't have it so these are basically the wons prepared exactly as we've done previously but they're dowed in a sweet aromatic soy sauce with chili oil and crispy garlic and they're amazing to make the sauce let's start by adding half a cup of light soy sauce to a small pot then toss in 3/4 cup of water and bring it up to a boil then add a/ thir of a cinnamon stick half a teaspoon of finnel seeds half of a star in East pod half a teaspoon of Sichuan peppercorns and one small piece of lightly crushed Ginger lower the heat to a light simmer and Infuse the aromatics for about 30 minutes then kill the Heat and whisk in 3 tbspoon of brown sugar strain the sauce to remove the spices and you can store the sauce in a covered container in the fridge indefinitely to prepare the dish layer the cooked wons in a large bowl and pour over the sweet aromatic soy sauce some chili oil a bit of crispy garlic and finally some thinly sliced scallions and these dumplings are one of my favorite dishes of all time so I implore you to try them if you have a couple of extra Frozen wons on hand all right back to the taste test I mean this is a classic for a reason it's incredibly delicious and if you freeze the broth and dumplings you should be able to whip this up in about 10 minutes and if you'd like to learn how to make traditional Thailand style pad tie at home be sure to check out this video thanks for watching see you next time

Channel: Jason Farmer

Views: 23,772

Keywords: chinese takeout wonton soup, won ton soup, secrets revealed, jason farmer, chinese takeaway wonton soup, wonton dumplings, won ton dumpling, wonton dumpling, won ton dumplings

Id: xL8cAKqkwO4

Length: 12min 37sec (757 seconds)

Published: Sat Jun 29 2024