Wonton Noodle Soup

Soups and Congees

Wonton Noodle Soup
Ingredients for filling wontons:
1/2 pound ground fatty pork
1/2 pound small or medium shrimp, peeled, deveined, and coarsely chopped
6 water chestnuts, peeled and finely chopped
1/2 egg white
1 Tablespoon soy sauce
salt and pepper, to taste (1/2 teaspoon each is a good amount)
1 package square then wonton wrappers
Preparation of the wontons:
1. In a large mixing bowl, combine pork, shrimp, water chestnuts, egg white, soy sauce, and the salt and pepper.
2. Lay a wonton wrapper on a dry work surface and place one teaspoon of the raw mixture in the center of it. Then lighlty bruch the edges of the wrapper with water and bring up the corners to gently pinch and seal the wonton dough. Repeat with the remaining wrappers.
3. Cover with plastic wrap or a very lighly dampened towel and keep refrigerated until ready for use. The filled wonton wrappers can be frozen on a cookie sheet and them firm, transferred to an airtight container.
Ingredients for the soup base:
1 three-pound chicken
1/2 inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and sliced
1 bunch scallions, cleaned and trimmed
1 small onion, peeled and quartered
Prepartion of the soup base:
1. Wash and wipe chicken dry, then cut into four pieces and place it in a large stockpot with eight quarts of cold water.
2. Bring to the boil and reduce the heat so that it simmers. Remove any scum that comes to the surface, then simmer for two hours. Remove from heat, allow to cool and then strain. Keep refrigerated overnight and remove excess fat in the morning. Strain soup and use chicken in other dishes, as needed.
Ingredients for Wonton Soup:
1/2 of the above reserved soup base
1/4 inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and sliced
1 eight ounce package of fresh noodles
1 teaspoon sesame oil
24 prepared filled and sealed wontons
1/2 bunch green leafy Chinese vegetable
1/4 bunch scallion, washed and finely sliced, roots removed
salt and ground white pepper, to taste
Preparation of Wonton Noodle Soup:
1. In a large saucepan, bring reserved soup to the boil, then add ginger and reduce the heat to a simmer.
2. In another large pot, bring one gallon of water to the boil, add the noodles and cook until tender (about two minutes). Drain and rinse under cool running water, and drizzle with the sesame oil to keep the noodles from sticking.
3. Using the same pot, bring three quarts of water to the boil, add the wontons and simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Simmer until they float to the surface, then remove the wontons and divide them into eight bowls.
4. Dip the noodles into the wonton water, then divide them into the same bowls. Divide the vegetables into the same bows.
5. Remove ginger from the soup and ladle some soup on top of the vegetables in all of the bows, sprinkle with the scallions, then serve.

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