Wonton facts for kids

A wonton is a type of Chinese dumpling. It is a popular food found in many different styles of Chinese cooking. Wontons are often served in soup or fried until crispy.

History of Wontons

The story of wontons goes back a long time in China. A writer named Yang Xiong from the ancient Western Han Dynasty (around 206 BC to 9 AD) wrote about them. He said that wontons were a type of bread. The main difference was that wontons had fillings inside. People would steam or boil them before eating.

Long ago, Chinese people thought wontons were like sealed buns. They called them "hun tun," which meant "chaos." This was because they didn't have "seven openings" like a face. Later, the name changed to "hun dun" (wonton). At that time, wontons and jiaozi (another type of dumpling) were very similar.

For many hundreds of years, dumplings stayed mostly the same. But wontons became very popular in southern China. They started to develop their own special style. By the time of the Tang Dynasty (618 to 907 AD), people began to call dumplings and wontons by different names. This helped everyone know which one they were talking about.

Wontons vs. Jiaozi

Wontons look a bit like jiaozi dumplings, but they have some key differences:

• Size and Wrapper: Wontons usually have less filling. They are wrapped in a thin, yellow square dough wrapper, about 6x6 cm. Sometimes, they are folded into a triangle shape. This shape looks like an old Chinese gold piece called a yuanbao. Jiaozi, on the other hand, use a slightly thicker, round white dough wrapper. They have more filling and can have flat or pleated edges.
• Texture: The wonton wrapper is very thin. After it's cooked in boiling water, it becomes almost see-through. It also cooks much faster than a jiaozi. The texture of a cooked wonton is very smooth.
• How They Are Eaten: Wontons are usually served in a clear soup. Jiaozi are more often eaten with a dipping sauce on the side.

How Wontons Are Made

Making wontons involves a few simple steps:

• The Wrapper: First, you need a square wrapper. This wrapper is a thin sheet of dough. It's made from flour, egg, water, and a little salt.
• Adding Filling: You spread the wrapper flat in your hand. Then, you place a small amount of filling in the middle.
• Sealing: To seal the wonton, you press the edges of the wrapper together with your fingers. Sometimes, people dip a fingertip in water and run it along the dry dough. This helps the edges stick together better. It's important to push out any air from inside the wonton. This stops it from breaking open when it cooks.

The most common filling for wontons is ground pork and shrimp. A little flour is added to help the filling stick together. The mixture is seasoned with salt, spices, and often garlic or finely chopped green onion.

You can find frozen wontons in supermarkets. Many small restaurants or market stalls also make them by hand. They often prepare them right in front of customers. In markets, you can buy them uncooked, ready to take home and cook yourself.

Shapes and Cooking Styles

Wontons can be cooked in different ways and come in various shapes:

• Boiled in Soup: Wontons are most often boiled and served in a delicious soup.
• Deep-Fried: They can also be deep-fried until they are golden and crispy.

There are a few common shapes for wontons:

• Simple Triangle: The easiest shape is a simple right triangle. You make this by folding the square wrapper in half, bringing two opposite corners together. This flat shape is good for pan-frying, like a guotie (pot sticker). It can also be boiled or deep-fried.
• Globular Shape: Another shape is more round. You make this by folding all four corners of the wrapper together. It looks a bit like a small bundle.
• Little Wontons: A special kind of wonton is called xiao huntun (which means "little wonton"). For these, you use the same wrapper but only a tiny bit of filling, often meat. You quickly close your hand around the wrapper, making an uneven, squashed shape. These small wontons are always served in a soup. They often come with tasty additions like pickles, ginger, sesame oil, and cilantro.

Wontons Around the World

Each region in China has its own special way of making wontons. You can find different styles in places like Beijing, Sichuan, Shanghai, and Guangdong (Canton). Wontons and dumplings from the 7th and 8th centuries were even found in an ancient city called Turpan.

Cantonese Wontons

In Cantonese cuisine, which is popular in places like Hong Kong, wontons are often filled with shrimp and minced pork. They are commonly served with thin noodles to make wonton noodles. Sometimes, people add red vinegar for extra flavor. The soup for these wontons is special. It's made by boiling shrimp shells, pork bones, and dried flounder. This gives the soup a unique and rich taste. After World War II, Hong Kong wontons became popular street food.

Sichuan Wontons

In Sichuan, a province known for its spicy food, wontons have a unique shape. They are called "folded arms" (pinyin: chāo shǒu). This is because after folding the wrapper into a triangle, each end is pressed against the middle of the opposite sides. This makes them look like crossed arms or hands. These wontons are often served in a spicy sauce made with sesame paste and chili oil. This dish is famous as "red oil wonton" (Chinese: 红油抄手).

Shanghai Wontons

In Shanghai, wonton fillings are often made with minced meat (usually pork) and a leafy green called shepherd's purse. They are served in a clear chicken soup. Shanghai cuisine has a clear difference between small wontons and large wontons.

• Small Wontons: These are wrapped quickly by just closing your hand around the wrapper with a bit of pork filling. They are popular for breakfast or brunch.
• Large Wontons: These are carefully wrapped, often in a shape similar to tortellini. A single bowl of large wontons can be a full lunch or a light dinner. They come with many different fillings. One popular type is "three delicacies wonton" (san xian hun tun), which has pork, shrimp, and fish.

Wontons Outside China

Wontons are enjoyed in many countries beyond China:

• American Chinese Cuisine: In the United States and Canada, wontons are served in two main ways. One is in wonton soup, which is wontons in a clear broth. The other is as an appetizer called fried wontons. Fried wontons usually have a meat filling (often pork). They are eaten with dipping sauces like duck sauce, plum sauce, sweet and sour sauce, or hot mustard. A popular fried wonton is crab rangoon, which has a cream cheese and crab filling.
• Philippines: In the Philippines, fried wontons are often called pinseques fritos. They are also a key part of the noodle soup pancit Molo. In this dish, the wonton wrappers in the broth act like the noodles.
• Indonesia: In Indonesian Chinese cuisine, wontons are called pangsit. They are served fried or in soup, usually with Chinese noodles.
• Peru: In Peru, wontons are called wantán. They are part of a special mix of Peruvian and Chinese food called Chifa. You can find them fried with meat filling to eat with rice or Tallarín saltado. They are also used in wonton soup, called sopa wantán.
• Thailand: In Thailand, wontons are called kiao (เกี๊ยว). Wonton soup is known as kiao nam (เกี๊ยวน้ำ). The soup is made with chicken stock, and the wontons have a pork filling. This soup is very famous in Thailand.
• Vietnam: In Vietnamese cuisine, they are known as hoanh thanh.

Chinese Names for Wonton

In Mandarin, wontons are called huntun (simplified Chinese: 馄饨; traditional Chinese: 餛飩; pinyin: húntun).

In Cantonese, they are called wantan (simplified Chinese: 云吞; traditional Chinese: 雲吞; Jyutping: wan⁴tan¹; Cantonese Yale: wàhn tān). This name literally means "cloud swallow." This is because when the wontons are cooked, they float in the broth like small, soft clouds.

Mythology Connection

There's a fun connection between wontons and Chinese mythology. Hundun (混沌) is a legendary faceless creature in Chinese stories. The word sounds very similar to huntun (馄饨), the Mandarin name for wonton. In Chinese mythology, Hundun also represents the original, shapeless chaos of the world, like a "World egg" before everything was formed.

Gallery

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  A bowl of wonton noodle soup (云吞面), a popular dish.

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  A plate of fried wontons called Pangsit Goreng (锦卤馄饨) with sweet and sour sauce from Indonesian Chinese cuisine.

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  Sichuan cuisine's famous "Red Oil Wontons" (红油抄手), often served with a spicy sauce.

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  Fried wontons, a common appetizer in American Chinese restaurants.

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  A grilled wonton snack.

See also

In Spanish: Wantán para niños