How to make wontons

Wontons can be steamed or deep-fried and served as an appetizer, and they can also be gently poached in clear soup. Here we steam the wontons and serve them with a simple Chinese dipping sauce. This recipe makes 16 shrimp and vegetable wontons which serves four as an appetizer.

Peel the shrimp

Peel and devein 10 oz/300g of large raw shrimp (prawns). To save time you could also buy raw pre-peeled shrimp.

Finely chop the shrimp

Finely chop the raw shrimp with a sharp knife.

Chop the other ingredients

Next, finely shred and chop 1 cup of cabbage (Chinese or regular), finely chop a clove of garlic, finely grate 1 teaspoon of fresh ginger, and finely slice 1 scallion (spring onion).

Mix ingredients together

Add all the chopped ingredients to a bowl then add 1 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 teaspoon Chinese rice wine, 1 teaspoon sesame oil and 1 teaspoon cornstarch (cornflour). Mix together until well combined.

Place some mixture in the center of a wonton wrapper

Place a heaped teaspoon of the mixture in the center of a wonton wrapper (available in the refrigerated section of most supermarkets).

Fold over to encase the filling

Using a wet finger, moisten two sides of the wrapper along the edge and neatly fold over the wonton so it forms a half-triangle. Press down along the edges to seal the wontons and to remove any air.

Fold in edges

Moisten the bottom edges of the wonton and fold them together so they overlap. Repeat with the remaining wonton wrappers and filling.

Steam the wontons

Lightly grease a plate with peanut or canola oil and place the filled wontons on top (without touching one another). Heat 2 cups of water in the bottom of a wok or large saucepan over a high heat until boiling. Place the plate on a steamer rack or upturned cup in the wok, cover with the lid and steam for 12 minutes.

Serve the wontons warm with dipping sauce

Remove from the wok and serve warm with a dipping sauce made from 1 teaspoon finely grated ginger, ½ clove crushed garlic, ½ cup chicken stock, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 1 teaspoon sesame oil and 1 teaspoon superfine (caster) sugar.