Vegan Wonton Soup

Vegan Wonton Soup

This soup is so good! It takes a bit of extra time to make the wontons, but the broth is really simple, so it all evens out in the end. This is a little different from a traditional wonton soup, because I fry the wontons before adding them to the soup to give a crispier texture (a technique learned from Taiwanese friends). I also use a broth that is slightly Thai-inspired: sweet, sour, and salty all together.

Step 1: Make the Wontons

Ingredients:

• wonton wrappers (I used the small ones, but of course you could use the larger size if you prefer those)
• 1 cup prepared soy “meat”
• 1/3 cup green peas
• small onion, diced (you’ll need more of these for the broth, if you want to chop everything together and keep separated for later)
• 1 tbsp. chopped garlic
• 1 tsp. grated ginger
• peanut oil (enough to pan fry wontons)

1. Sautee the onion in a pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and ginger when the onion starts to clarify.
2. Add soy “meat” and peas. Heat through.
3. To make the wontons, I set out several wrappers at a time on a cutting board. Have a small bowl of water standing by (to wet the edges). You can make enough wontons for serving this soup (I figure on about 4 small wontons per serving; the recipe makes about 4 servings), or make them all and freeze the extras (remember to put waxed paper between layers so they don’t stick together). Put about 1 tablespoon of the filling in the center of each wrapper. Wet the edges of the wrapper (I do this part one wonton at a time). Take the bottom right corner and fold it over to the top left corner. Wet the remaining two edges again, and fold the bottom left and top right corners over to the top left corner. Press the edges together to make sure they’re sealed. Then set them all aside and let dry before frying.
4. To pan fry, add enough peanut oil (or other oil if you prefer it) to cover about 1/8″ of the bottom of the pan (I use a nonstick cast iron skillet). Fry each side until lightly browned and crispy. Since the wontons don’t lie flat, some of the sides won’t be cooked — that’s okay! They will finish cooking quickly in the soup.

Step 2: Make the Broth

Ingredients:

• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 tbsp. chopped garlic
• 1 tsp. grated ginger
• 1 tsp. Thai seasoning (I use a Spice Islands mix that basically has lemon peel, chiles, coriander, and “other spices”)
• 1/4-1/3 c. soy sauce
• 2 tsp. raw sugar
• juice of 3 limes (or lemons)
• about 6 cups water
• 1/2 c. chopped cilantro (optional)

1. Sautee the onion, garlic and ginger as you did for the wontons. When the onions are beginning to brown, add the Thai seasoning, and let it cook for a minute or two.
2. Add about 6 cups of water. Add soy sauce and sugar. Stir and allow to come to a boil, then turn the heat down to a simmer. Add the cilantro and lime/lemon juice. Taste the broth — it should have a nice mix of sweet, sour, and salty. If not, adjust the flavors.
3. When I make this soup, I usually only add as many wontons as I am actually going to serve at that time. That way, they don’t go all mushy in the broth. So add about 4 small wontons (or 2-3 large ones) per serving, and simmer for a couple of minutes. If you have leftover wontons, they’ll stay good in the fridge for a couple of days, or you can freeze them.
4. Enjoy!

Please let me know if you try this recipe and how you like it!

-Raven

P.S. Thanks to my husband for the photo — he’s a chef and writer, and is much better at the taking-pictures-of-food-and-making-them-look-appetizing thing than I am!