Wonton Wraps

[momothree]

Greetings! I was just reading in this section for the first time, and found the posts regarding rice paper wrappers. I was wondering if the same was true for wonton wrappers. Does anyone know if they are gluten free too? My kids would be thrilled if we could make wonton soup. Perhaps even find a chinese food restaurant with wonton soup that has no gluten in the fillings. That would be very exciting for all of us!!

[Michi8]

  momothree said:

Greetings! I was just reading in this section for the first time, and found the posts regarding rice paper wrappers. I was wondering if the same was true for wonton wrappers. Does anyone know if they are gluten free too? My kids would be thrilled if we could make wonton soup. Perhaps even find a chinese food restaurant with wonton soup that has no gluten in the fillings. That would be very exciting for all of us!!

AFAIK, wonton wrappers are made with wheat flour.

Michelle

[Fiddle-Faddle]

You could make wontons out of rice paper wrappers--fill them, fold them. dip them beaten egg, then cornstarch, then fry in a little oil. Put them in your soup at the last possible moment!

[Guest nini]

standard won ton wrappers have gluten unfortunately... I haven't tried the rice wrappers yet... but I would really like to have won ton soup too, so if anyone does come up with a successful recipe, please let me know!

  Fiddle-Faddle said:

You could make wontons out of rice paper wrappers--fill them, fold them. dip them beaten egg, then cornstarch, then fry in a little oil. Put them in your soup at the last possible moment!

I want the actual soup recipe...

[momothree]

Too bad--how unfortunate that they are made of wheat. I think I'll try the rice wrapper idea, they are quite interesting, and can imagine they would taste pretty good. So, with reference to your suggestion (Fiddle-Faddle), does the egg and cornstarch do something specific? Perhaps help them stay together, or is it a flavour thing? It sounds like a fair amount of work, but I bet my daughter would ove to help me. I'll let you's know if we have any luck. As for the recipe, I plan on simply using a chicken broth with green onions, some bok choy, perhaps some broccoli and baby corn. When the veggies are tender, I'll add the wontons (filled with onion, ground turkey, and water chestnuts), and some soy sauce. We'll see, I've never really made it myself before, but my husband has, so I'll ask him for suggestions. Thanks everyone.

[Michi8]

What about making "wonton" soup without the wrappers. I know it wouldn't really be the same, but you could try making "meatballs" of the ingredients without wrapping them up, and simply put them in the broth. It would look more like Italian wedding soup, but should have the same flavour of wonton soup.

Michelle

[Fiddle-Faddle]

I would cook the ground meat first before wrapping it in the rice wrappers--they might not stay together long enough to cook the ground meat in the soup, even with the egg and cornstarch (which helps keep it together and gets it nice and crisp when frying).

[Michi8]

Another thought...have you ever tried Pho (vietnamese soup)? You can make it with rice noodles (precooked and added to the broth before serving), and the meats are thinly sliced and added to the (very) hot broth just before serving (the broth cooks the meat).

Michelle

[momothree]

Wow! You guys all have some super ideas. Given the fact that we are true lovers of wonton soup, I'm thinking that they are all worth a try! Now, hmmm, which one to try first?? Thanks for all your suggestions

[ehrin]

Please be aware that most commercial soy sauce has wheat in it.

Lay Choy is gluten-free as is most tamari's.

[seamaiden399]

  ehrin said:

Please be aware that most commercial soy sauce has wheat in it.

Lay Choy is gluten-free as is most tamari's.

Actually, a lot of tamari unfortunately has wheat in it, so you still need to read the label carefully. The tamari sold at Japanese markets almost always has wheat in it. Health food store tamaris are far more promising. San-J is an excellent option for wheat free soy sauce- especially their low sodium variety (make sure you get the one clearly marked wheat free), and some people like Braggs liquid aminos. La Choy is inexpensive and easy to find, but IMO tastes dreadful. Not good for recipes where the flavor of the soy sauce really matters. Ok for adding brown color and salt flavor to the recipe.

Re: wontons, I'm sorry to say I tried several different recipes for gluten-free wonton skins from another board I'm on, and they were both disappointing. The first one was very sticky, and if you steamed it it disintegrated into white gooey yuckiness, and if you fried it, got all greasy and drippy. The second one seemed promising and I rolled out tons of skins, but then I put them in the refrigerator and they dried out and wouldn't allow themselves to be folded over- BIG disappointment. THe few I was able to seal properly that did not crack were ok when boiled, but as DH said, not like wontons. More like gluten-free ravioli filled with chinese flavors. I also tried making a sio pau (steamed bun) this weekend, and while the dough behaved itself nicely and seemed promising, the finished product was practically inedible. The dough part took a while to steam and once steamed tasted like gummy chalk. I ate the fillings out and then went off for a good cry. (Just kidding, but I was pretty bummed). I think I'll try making Bette Hagman's crumpets and filling THEM with the leftover fillings I have, as at least I know the crumpet part will taste good.

[Fiddle-Faddle]

When you fry, make sure the oil is hot enough, and when they are done, put them on a rack, not on paper towels.