Sichuan Wontons in Red Chili Oil and Black Vinegar Sauce

Early this week, the wife and kids were in the mood for dumplings .  We began to weigh the pros and cons of eating out for dim-sum or perhaps making dumplings at home.  I had a hard time justifying paying  kr 60,- (approximately $12.00 to my peeps Stateside) for 3 pieces of siu mai from a restaurant in Oslo.  So we opted to go home and make wontons instead.

I decided to make Sichuan style wontons in red chili oil and Chinese black vinegar.  These are always a big hit and one can never make too much wontons.  Wontons are often associated with Cantonese dimsum, but each region has their own way of making wontons. 

Sichuan Red Chili Oil Wontons are really quite easy to make and can involve the whole family in wrapping each wonton.  I enjoy making these wontons with my family and we often use this time to not only eat fantastic wontons, but also to have quality with one another. 

The wonton filling is based from the Cantonese method, by  including minced pork and shrimp to ensure the filling to bind and to have a compact and dense texture.  The shrimps also add extra flavor to the pork and really give it more complex flavor. So enjoy these wontons and share with your friends and love ones.

Time
Prep: Approx. 1 hour
Cooking tie 10-15 minutes total

Ingredients

Filling:
250 grams minced pork
250 grams minced prawns
2-3T Sesame seed oil
2T soy sauce
1 stock chopped green onions (green portion)
Salt and pepper to taste

Sauce:
1/4 cup soy sauce
5T Chinkiang Black Vinegar
3T Red Chili Oil
1T Sesame seed oil
1t crushed Sichuan pepper corn
2 stocks chopped green onions (greens only)
Fried garlic
pinch of sugar to bring together the flavors

30-40 wonton wrappers

Instructions:
1.  Combine minced pork, minced shrimp, sesame seed oil, soy sauce, chopped green onions, salt and pepper thoroughly.  Set aside and marinate for at least 30 minutes

2.  Fill wonton wrappers with 1tablespoon of the meat mixtures.  When wrapping, place meat in the middle of the wrapper.  Moisten the two sides of the wrapper and fold wrapper in half (think  of the wrapper has a diamond and folding into a triangle).   Moisten the two bottom edges of the wrappers and press the two corners together.

3.  Place wontons in boiling water (season water with salt or use chicken stock for extra flavor).  Boil the wontons till they begin to float (approx. 5 minutes).

4.  Prepare red chili oil and vinegar sauce by combining all the ingredients, with the exception of the fried garlic and chopped green onions.  Mix well.

5.  Place wontons on a large serving bowl.  Pour red chili oil and vinegar sauce mixture over wontons. 

6.  Garnish dish with chopped green onions and fried garlic

7.  For extra flavor, I like to add "Lao Gan Ma" brand chili sauce in oil.  

Enjoy!

---The Frustrate Fil-Am Chef