Family Secrets: Wonton Soup

I'm very excited to share this recipe of homemade Wonton Soup because it comes from my father, who has managed to become quite the chef. I don't remember him cooking very much in my childhood, it was always my grandmother who would fill our bellies with amazing Vietnamese cuisine. Something I took for granted at the time and only realize in adulthood how much I could have learned from her. Luckily, my father must have paid more attention than me because on our recent visit to Connecticut he cooked some extraordinary meals and I made sure I paid attention. 

This recipe for Wonton Soup beats anything you will EVER find in a restaurant. The broth is clear and flavorful and the delicate wontons melt in your mouth. My dad says if you're in a hurry you can use wonton soup base for your broth but know that cooking your own will taste way better. This recipe makes enough to feed an army! But the broth can be used for other dishes or frozen for up to 3 months and the wontons can also be wrapped tightly and frozen for 1 month.

Homemade Wonton Soup

Broth
Water
1 pound pork bones
1 pound chicken wings
1 whole, unpeeled garlic bulb
1 whole, unpeeled onion
coarse sea salt

Fill a large stock pot 3/4 full of cold water. Add pork bones to cold water and bring to a slow boil and simmer for 1 hour. Skim the fat off regularly. Add the rinsed chicken wings and bring back to a slow boil. Add the whole garlic, onion, salt, and continue to simmer for 1-2 hours longer making sure you continue to skim off any fat or blood.

Strain the broth, reserving the pork bones to add to the soup and the chicken wings can be saved for another purpose. Discard the onion and garlic. Keep the broth warm until you're ready to serve the wontons.

Wonton Filling
1 pound crushed shrimp
1 pound ground pork
1 tablespoon sesame oil
salt & pepper

Crush the shrimp using an empty bottle or rolling pin. Leave nice chunks so you can identify the shrimp in the final product. (Never use a blender as they sometimes do in restaurants and in pre-packaged wontons, you want to be able to identify the pork and shrimp by texture when you eat the wonton).

In a large bowl mix the crushed shrimp, pork, sesame oil and salt and pepper together using your hands.

Wonton Crowns
Makes about 42-45 wontons
1. Lay 6 wontons out at a time keeping the remaining wontons covered in plastic wrap so they don't dry out.  Have a small bowl of water next to you to wet your fingers, this will be the glue you use to close the wonton wrappers.

2. Put about 1 tablespoon of filling on each wrapper (don't overfill or they will burst open when you cook them).

3. Wet your index finger and moisten two corners of the wonton wrapper.
4. Fold the wonton over making a triangle and seal the edges.

 


5. Gently fold the wonton edges over each other to form a "crown". This is food fit for a king :)

6. Set aside and cover as you make them so they don't dry out.
7. Cook wontons in batches in a separate pot of salted boiling water. They are done when they float and look clear.

Soup Toppings
12 sliced/quartered baby bella mushrooms, cooked in broth
7 green onions, whites removed, greens sliced (reserve white stems)
3 tablespoons cilantro, chopped
1 package bean sprouts, rinsed (optional, pour hot water over spouts to take away smell and soften them)
1 bunch Kai-lan (a.k.a. Chinese broccoli or Chinese kale)

Cook the mushrooms in the strained broth until a clear layer appears, remove. Add white stems of the green onion and cook until softened.

Prepare your bowl
Add wontons to your bowl. Add toppings: cooked mushrooms, green onions, cilantro, bean sprouts, and Kai-lan. Ladle broth over the wontons and toppings. Serve with a side of hoisin sauce and Sriracha. You should also add the pork bone to your bowl, this still has meat on it and is loaded with flavor.

Dad's Essential Tips:
1. Never buy cooked shrimp. Ever. Not even for shrimp cocktail. Cooked shrimp is full of water and has no flavor. Buy raw shrimp with the head and tails on and cook it yourself for maximum flavor.
2. Coarse sea salt is preferable, Morton's iodized salt is too bitter for such a delicate dish.
3. Do not cook your wontons in the homemade broth, it becomes too fat and soggy and the flour from the wontons changes the flavor of your broth. Rather, cook the wontons in a separate pot of boiling water and spoon the homemade broth over the cooked wontons right into your bowl (this also goes for homemade chicken noodle soup).
4. Put vegetable oil in your boiling water to help the wontons stay separate.
5. Use a full tablespoon of salt in your pot of water to cook the noodles.
6. Never ever add your hoisin sauce and Sriracha directly into your bowl of noodles. You just worked really hard making a homemade broth and you'll lose all of its delicate flavors by putting it directly in your soup. Rather, have a small bowl of the sauces next to you and use your chopsticks to season the wonton directly.


Once you try this soup you will never crave restaurant wonton soup again. The broth alone is enough to make you weep. The texture of the pork and shrimp in the wonton really stands out and this dish manages to be both light and filling at the same time. It freezes nicely so you'll do half the work next time you have a craving for homemade soup. I hope you try this and enjoy, let me know what you think!

Take This Spoon

I consider myself lucky to be surrounded with talented and creative people. I've always been drawn to artists; perhaps because I lack such talent of my own I siphon what I can from those around me. So I felt fortunate to travel to Maryland last year with my girlfriend Sandra who published a touching short story in the Free State Review. She read her very personal story to a room full of strangers and I was in awe of her strength and talent with words. 

It was there in Maryland that I met Mr. Barrett Warner, a poet, critic, and editor of the Free State Review. He invited us to his sprawling horse ranch on acres of rolling hills; its beauty so breathtaking I couldn't believe such a heaven existed on earth. It was there Barrett told stories of his wife Julia Wendell, another artist of considerable talent and avid horse lover. She was away racing horses in a 3 day event so I never had the pleasure of meeting her face to face. Barrett spoke fondly of her and was proud of her accomplishments in poetry and horse racing; Julia has 8 other published works and trophies, ribbons, and pictures of Julia on horseback filled their home. It was rather intimating honestly, how does one family have such success on so many different levels? It was a foreign and beautiful weekend on that horse farm in Maryland. 

So it was with pleasure that I read Julia's latest work, Take This Spoon, and I consider it an honor that Barrett asked me to review the book here on my blog. This isn't just any work of poetry, it's a book of poetry about food written by an anorexic. Julia speaks about her addictions with such startling intimacy you can't help but be drawn into her story, she takes you for a ride with words and it will sit with you long after you read it. 

"I surround myself with cats

who kill and eat, dogs who eat

what's killed, and horses

who eat what's given to them. 

Self-consciouness doesn't ruin

their appetite or enjoyment.

They don't judge what they consume,

or long for what they won't allow themselves.

They don't confuse who they are

with what they eat,

fearing they won't be loved

if they're fat, or don't cook, 

or overcook, or nearly kill themselves

by making up for their gluttony

with fasting."

-from DIETING

Her book is divided into 7 parts and each begins with a different recipe handed down from her own family. She speaks frequently of her mother and their relationship with food, something I identify with very much. I have wonderful memories of cooking in the kitchen with my mother and Julia writes of her own experiences in a way that most anyone can relate. For example, your mother's unique handwriting written on a recipe card that has the power to transform you to different place and time. I can't remember what I did ten minutes ago but I remember so clearly standing next to my mother as she showed me the proper way to cut a whole chicken into pieces. The power of food and how we relate to it is intertwined into the people we become and I can't recommend reading this work enough. It will leave you wishing for more and you won't be able to look at your next meal the same way again.

I've shared one of Julia's recipes for Peanut Butter Pie. She says whoever eats a piece is guaranteed to ask for the recipe, and since trying it myself I will have to agree. It's so easy to make and so wonderfully light and delicious. The secret she says is lots and lots of beating. I used a store bought pie crust and it turned out wonderfully. I can't wait until I have an excuse to make this pie again.

PEANUT BUTTER PIE

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup peanut butter

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

Baked, cold pie crust

whipped cream

Beat butter until light and fluffy. Add peanut butter and beat again. Add eggs, one at a time. Beat 5 minutes, first egg, and 3 minutes, second egg. Add vanilla. Blend well. Pour into baked crust and chill until firm. Top with whipped cream. 

 You can buy Julia's book by clicking here. While many of her poems spoke to me deeply, I'd like to share this one; the lesson is one that we can all identify with.


CHOCOLATE SAUCE

I'm here to entice
you to sit down
at your abandoned
dining room table,
even if the kids
have long gone,
their shipwrecked seats
still stained
with dried ketchup
and soy sauce.
Invite someone
over for dinner
you haven't seen
in a while. Begin
to set aside the time
with four things at hand-
chocolate, cream, sugar,
and pinches of
any sweet something
you choose to add:
maybe that longed-for trip
to St. John or new career,
maybe the words
I'm sorry or I love you-
essential ingredients
in anyone's kitchen.

Thank you Julia for writing a beautiful book of poetry and thank you Barrett for thinking of me and letting me share it with the world. 

Chicken Stir-Fry with Cabbage Pancakes

The trick to a great stir fry is to prep ALL your ingredients before you ever turn on the flame. This stir fry is served with a delicious cabbage pancake which doesn't take long to cook. It's important to wash, cut and have all your veggies and chicken in prep bowls before you begin cooking the pancake. The warmer it is before serving, the better.

I actually substituted tofu in lieu of chicken and if you prefer it this way its super easy to make the switch with one 8oz package of extra firm tofu. Make sure to serve the final dish alongside your favorite spices; sliced jalapenos and crushed red pepper flakes gave mine just the final touch it needed.

Chicken Stir-Fry with Cabbage Pancakes
Serves 4

Pancake
2 cups shredded cabbage
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
1 teaspoon tamari

Stir-Fry
2 tablespoons olive oil

1 lb fresh green beans, ends trimmed and halved
8oz mushrooms, sliced
1 lb skinless, boneless chicken breast tenders, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 teaspoon ginger, grated
1 teaspoon garlic, minced
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon cornstarch

Combine pancake ingredients in a large bowl. Spray a 12 inch skillet with cooking spray and heat the pan over a medium high flame. Pour batter and cook, covered until set and browned, 4 minutes. Lower the heat, flip and cook, uncovered, about 2 minutes. Keep warm.

Heat wok over a high flame until it begins to smoke. Add 2 tablespoons oil and immediately add green beans and stir fry 2 minutes. Add mushrooms and stir fry 2 more minutes. Add chicken, 1/2 garlic, 1/2 ginger, 1/2 oil, and stir 3 minutes.

Mix water, cornstarch and the remaining ginger, garlic, and sesame oil in a small bowl. Pour over stir fry and cook 1-2 minutes.

Cut pancake into 4 wedges and spoon stir fry over each wedge. Serve immediately.