Wonton Soup

by fattydumpling

About one moon ago was the lunar new year.

Friends gathered for a dumpling-making party—specifically, wonton soup.

Oh, how divine it was! With momma’s recipe in hand, ingredients from a whole chicken for broth from the farmer’s market to fish sauce from the tiny Asian supermarket downtown were gathered. After hours of simmering, wonton-wrapper filling, and filling, me buds and I settled for soup, tea, and treats. We welcomed the new year in with lanterns and laughter.

This is my last year in my university town. After April, I must become a real person.

I really don’t want to. Please don’t make me.

I’ve been a student for as long as my brother has been alive. That’s almost two decades. I’m really good at being a student. I don’t know how to do anything else. I’m scared for the future.

I adore rubrics. I adore marks. I adore the frenzy I feel before exams and the satisfaction of bubbling in scantron sheets. Life has been good. Making friends, losing friends, longed for and found love. I know, these things can be found outside of school in other ways. But…school is my home. It’s my safety net. I like it here. Please don’t make me leave.

I must, though. I need to interact with the world. Soon, I will be heading overseas on every uni student’s dream. Excitement rolls in my belly. That will be a great challenge and I will tell you more about it soon.

2012 has been amazing. I hope that 2013 will be also. Usher it in, I usher you in—come in, come in, year 2013. Have a bowl of soup. Treat me well, k?

Wonton Soup
Chicken Broth
1 whole chicken
1 large pot of water

Bring the pot of water to a boil.

Meanwhile, chop the chicken into smaller pieces. Discard any giblets.

When the water is boiling, place the chicken inside. Lower the heat to medium-low and let simmer for 2 hours. Then carefully strain the stock, discard the chicken, and return the liquid back into the pot.

2 onions, quartered
5 carrots, chopped
1 tsp satay sauce
½ tsp salt
½ sugar

Add the above ingredients to the broth and simmer for a further 30 minutes. Add more seasoning to taste.

Chicken for Broth
6 chicken breasts, cut into large pieces
½ tsp salt
½ tsp pepper
½ tsp sugar
1 tsp sesame oil
2 tsp fish sauce
1.5 tbsp oil
½ chopped onion

Marinate the chicken with the salt through fish sauce for 15 minutes.

Heat the oil on medium heat and cook the chicken. Once finished, set aside to cool then store in fridge until later.

Wontons
1 lb headless shrimp, peeled, deveined, and roughly chopped
2 lb ground pork
2 tsp salt
2 tsp pepper
2 tsp sugar
4 tsp sesame oil
8 tsp fish sauce
8 tsp fish sauce
3 white parts of green onions, chopped
2 pkg wonton wrappers

Mix all of the ingredients above, from the shrimp to the green onions.

Spoon 1/2 – 1 tsp of this filling into the center of a wonton wrapper. Fold it by bring opposing sides into the center.

Bring a small pot of water to a boil. Boil the wontons until they rise to the top.

Garnish
¼ bunch of cilantro
3 green parts of green onions

Chop both ingredients and mix together.

Serve

Each bowl should have soup, many wontons, and the garnish of cilantro and green onions :)