Spicy Wontons (紅油抄手)

I love spicy wontons (紅油抄手) but I have yet to find a really great rendition of them here in the Bay Area. Taikee Wonton in North San Jose has pretty good regular wontons but they don't make spicy wontons the way I like them. Luckily, I've learned to make a pretty decent rendition of these wontons via trial and error after watching my aunt in the kitchen for years. The recipe is fairly approximate, so do adjust the ingredients and flavoring to your personal taste. 

Wonton ingredients

• 1 pound of ground pork
• 3 tablespoons of soy sauce
• 3-4 pinches of white pepper
• 1-2 teaspoons of sesame oil
• 1/8 cup of chicken broth 
• 20-30 wonton wrappers (I have yet to figure out the right amount of pork for exactly one pack of wonton wrappers)

1. Mix wonton ingredients together in a large bowl (except for the wrappers). Add water until the consistency is soft but not too watery (approximately 1/8 cup of water).

2. Put 1-2 teaspoons of filling per wonton wrapper. Seal the wonton any way you prefer. I copy my aunt's method of scrunching them up in one hand, but I don't do it as well as she does - sometimes mine fall apart as the meat escapes the wrapper, while hers always stay perfectly intact.

3. Boil wontons in a large pot of water. After wontons have been floating for a few minutes, remove from pot and into a large bowl.

Spicy sauce

• 2-3 cloves of minced garlic
• 2-3 tablespoons of soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon of sugar
• 1-2 teaspoons of Chinese chili garlic sauce (For many years, I used the Lee Kum Kee brand but I've recently switched to Ning Chi to up the spice factor.)
• 2 teaspoons of black vinegar
• 2-3 pinches of black pepper

1. Pour sauce over the wontons. Garnish with green onions if you wish. Enjoy!