Wonton noodles

Cook it at home: Hong Kong shrimp wonton noodle soup

Dried flounder and dried shrimp give the broth its deep, sweet sea flavor. Toast the flounder before simmering. Fill the wontons with mostly shrimp and a little pork fat so they snap when you bite.

Pans and tools

• Stockpot
• Two pots for boiling
• Fine-mesh strainer
• Spider or slotted spoon

You’ll need

• For the broth: 1 oz (30 g) dried flounder (daimyo fish), 2 tbsp dried shrimp, 2 lb (900 g) pork bones, 1 small piece rock sugar or 1 tsp sugar, 10 cups (2.4 l) water, 1 tsp salt, white pepper
• For the wontons: 10 oz (280 g) raw shrimp, peeled, deveined and patted dry
• 2 oz (55 g) fatty ground pork
• 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp sugar, 1/2 tsp sesame oil, 1/4 tsp white pepper, 1 tsp cornstarch, 1 egg yolk
• About 32 thin square wonton wrappers (the yellow Hong Kong style)
• 4 portions (about 10 oz / 280 g) thin fresh egg noodles (wonton noodles)
• To serve: chopped yellow chives or scallions, a few drops of sesame oil, red vinegar and chili oil on the side

Steps

1. Toast the dried flounder in a dry pan over medium-low heat, 2 to 3 minutes a side, until golden and fragrant. Break into pieces.
2. Put the pork bones in a pot of cold water, bring to a boil for 5 minutes, drain and rinse. This keeps the broth clear.
3. Return the bones to the clean pot with the toasted flounder, dried shrimp, rock sugar and the 10 cups water. Bring to a boil, then simmer very gently, uncovered, for 1 hour. Never let it boil hard or it clouds. Strain, season with salt and white pepper.
4. For the wontons, cut each shrimp into 3 pieces, and lightly smash half of them with the flat of a cleaver. Mix with the pork, salt, sugar, sesame oil, pepper, cornstarch and yolk. Stir hard in one direction for 2 minutes until sticky. Chill 15 minutes.
5. Put a heaped teaspoon of filling in the center of a wrapper. Wet the edges, fold in half into a triangle, press out the air, then bring the two side corners together and pinch. Keep them under a damp towel.
6. Bring two pots of water to a boil. Boil the wontons in one for 3 to 4 minutes, until they float and the shrimp shows pink through the wrapper.
7. Shake the noodles loose and cook them in the other pot for 20 to 30 seconds only. Lift them out and rinse quickly under cold water, then dip back in the hot water 5 seconds. This gives the springy bite.
8. Put 8 wontons in each bowl, the noodles on top, then ladle over the hot broth. Finish with chives and a drop of sesame oil. Serve with red vinegar and chili oil.

Contains: Shellfish, fish, wheat, egg, sesame.