The beaver is a proud and noble animal
Notes from a bemused canuck
Soak Chinese wheat noodles in boiling water. Stir-fry thinly sliced pork with ginger and sambal oelek and powdered onion. Add sliced mushrooms and sliced celery. Fry for a few minutes and add sliced Chinese cabbage and shredded carrots. Add a veggie stock pot. Dissolve some corn starch in a bit of water and soy sauce. Thicken the stir fry with the starch mix. Drain noodles and toss until well covered.
The name won ton means swallowing a cloud, and the wonton floating in this popular soup are thought to resemble clouds. This recipe for Won ton soup serves 4. You can get most of the ingredients in a good asian supermarket. Get frozen won ton wrappers, they cost next to nothing and will save you a lot of hassle.
won ton wrappers
1/2 pound boneless lean pork, chopped finely
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 tablespoon Chinese rice wine, mirin or rice vinegar
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 green onion, finely minced
1 teaspoon cornstarch
2 dashes of pepper
1 small knob of fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated
Combine all the filling ingredients in a bowl, mixing well. Lay one won ton skin in front of you. Cover the remaining won ton skins with a damp towel to keep them from drying out.
Filling the won tons:
Moisten all the edges of the won ton wrapper with water. Place a heaping teaspoon of won ton filling in the center. Fold the won ton wrapper in half lengthwise, making sure the ends meet. Press down firmly on the ends to seal.
Use thumbs to push down on the edges of the filling to center it.
Keeping thumbs in place, fold over the won ton wrapper one more time.
Push the corners up and hold in place between your thumb and index finger.
Wet the corners with your fingers. Bring the two ends together so that they overlap. Press to seal.
The finished product should resemble a nurse’s cap.
Repeat with remaining won tons.
Here’s a video with a similar way to fold won tons:
Boiling the won tons:
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the won tons, making sure there is enough room for them to move about freely. Let the won tons boil for 5 – 8 minutes, until they rise to the top and the filling is cooked through. Remove from the pot with a slotted spoon.
To make the soup:
Bring the 1L of chicken stock to a boil. Add the won tons and bring the soup back to a boil. Add the green onion, remove the pot from the heat. Ladle into soup bowls, allowing 6 won tons per person.
Optionally, you can also add sliced bok choi and thinly sliced red pepper to the stock.