Wontons hold a special place in my heart. Sitting around our kitchen table making wontons is something I loved doing with my mother as a child.
Time was scarce, so the chance to make wontons with her became special mother-daughter moments for us. She always had all the fillings ready to go — my favorite was and still is pork, shrimp and vegetables. I’d carefully scoop a bit of filling onto the wonton wrapper and do my best to fold it as neatly as possible.
Years later, I’ve continued the tradition with my own children, and together as a family we make Popo’s wontons (“Popo” is the Chinese word for “maternal grandmother”). Just as it was for my mother and me, making wontons gives me and my kids the opportunity to escape the chaos of daily life and bond while we fold 34 together.
It also gives me the chance to share more about our heritage. For example, the Chinese revere wealth (like most people!). Wontons are a symbol for gold — when folding, your goal is to create a wonton shaped like a Chinese gold ingot. I suppose that’s one way of getting rich. My kids thought it was the silliest, most fun thing to eat “gold.”
Popo’s Wontons
Servings: Makes about 60
Ingredients
1 (3-inch) nob peeled ginger, minced
1/2 pound large (31 to 40) raw shrimp, shelled and deveined
2 tablespoons cornstarch, divided
2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
1 pound frozen shepherd’s purse, defrosted (or 2 bunches fresh watercress)
2 tablespoons light soy sauce
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
1 pound ground meat (pork, turkey or chicken)
1 large egg
2 (12-ounce) packages square, thin wonton wrappers (you won’t use them all)
Directions
In a small bowl, soak the ginger in 1/4 cup of water for 15 minutes.
Rinse the shrimp with cold water. Drain them and place in a medium bowl with 1 tablespoon of the cornstarch, massaging it gently into the shrimp to further clean them. Rinse the shrimp again with clean, cold water. Drain them, then toss with 1/2 teaspoon of the salt. Finely chop the shrimp. Set aside.
Rinse the defrosted shepherd’s purse with cold water, then squeeze out the excess water. Finely chop the greens, then toss them with 1/2 teaspoon of the salt. Set aside. (If using watercress, boil 2 bunches for 3 minutes, then drain and rinse with cold water. Squeeze out the excess water and finely chop.)
Remove the ginger from the water and squeeze it over the water to retain as much of the ginger-scented soaking water as possible. Discard the ginger, keeping only the ginger water.
In a medium nonreactive bowl, combine the ginger water, soy sauce, the remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt, oil, the remaining 1 tablespoon of cornstarch, and the white pepper. Add the ground meat and thoroughly mix it with the seasoning. Add the shrimp and greens and mix everything together. Allow it to marinate, covered in the refrigerator, for 30 minutes. Take a small piece and cook the meat mixture in boiling water until the meat floats, about 3 minutes. Taste it to see if it’s seasoned well. If not, then add another teaspoon of salt to the meat and mix well.
In a small bowl, whisk the egg so that it can be used to seal the wonton skins.
Fan the stack of skins out to create a pinwheel of skins. This separates the skins, making them easier to pick up. Take one wonton skin and place a dollop of meat mixture (about 1/2 tablespoon) in the center.
Using the tip of a butter knife dipped in the egg, brush the top and side edges of the skin. Fold the square in half and gently press edges together. The wonton is now a rectangle. Brush the bottom corners with egg. Holding the rectangle in your palm, bend the left and right corners together toward the center of the wonton. Squeeze the corners together to seal.
On a tray or plate lined with parchment paper, place the wontons in rows with a bit of separation between them so that they do not stick together. Make sure the tray or plate will fit in your freezer. Once the tray is full, freeze the wontons until the skin feels solid and frozen, about 1 hour. You can then place the wontons in a plastic freezer bag without worrying about them sticking together. Place the bag immediately back into the freezer to further freeze the wontons. Remember to write a date on the bags. They will keep for 3 to 4 months.
If you’re starting with fresh wontons, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Leave enough room in the pot for 1 to 2 cups of additional water. Add the wontons. When the water boils again, add 1/2 cup cold water. When the water boils again, add another 1/2 cup of cold water. When wontons float to the top, they are done. Adding cold water in steps like this keeps the skin of the wontons from overcooking and becoming too soft.
With frozen wontons, repeat the above, but add 1/2 cup cold water one more time because the frozen meat needs a bit longer to cook through.
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Ming-Na Wen is an actor and author of the cookbook “Have You Eaten Yet: Family Recipes From a Restaurant Daughter.”
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Excerpted from “Have You Eaten Yet? Family Recipes From a Restaurant Daughter.” Copyright 2026 by Ming-Na Wen. Reproduced by permission of Simon Element, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. All rights reserved.
