How many ways can you fold wontons?
The number of ways to fold wontons is limited only by imagination. I discovered at least 8 ways.
Some are traditional, others are newly made up.
Are you stuck in the rut with just one style? You don't have to be now that you've found the ultimate wonton folding classroom ... online.
I have 8 styles so far and I'm still on the hunt. The 8 styles are organized according to level of difficulty (in my humble opinion)
Dazzle your family and friends with wontons in all sorts of shapes.
Before you begin, do take note of the important tip of wrapping wontons.
2009 update!
The wonder of social media.
I found a few nice videos on wonton wrapping. There are actually quite a lot video clips at youtube showing how to fold wontons. I selected a few that I think are the best. Short, sweet and to the point. You will find them at the end of the style I think they represent.
Style 1 - Wonton Ravioli
- Place a wonton wrapper on a dry clean cutting board
- Place 1 teaspoon of filling in the center of the wrapper
- Take another piece of wonton wrapper and lay it over the filling
- Press the top wrapper gently but firmly over the filling, working out any air between filling and wonton wrapper
- Use a little water to seal the edges
This style is so easy. Ultimate beginners should start here. Because you are using two pieces of wonton wrappers for each wonton, either buy extra wonton skins or make less filling or you might run out of wrappers and have to make meatballs too.
Try to push all the air out between the filling and the wrappers. If you don't, the air will expand when boiled and your wontons might look like they have "pimples".
Sealing properly is important unless you want your wonton to spill its "treasure".
When you boil them, they are going to do cartwheels. When they finally stop and stay afloat, it means they are cooked.
Style 2 - Samosa
- Lay a wonton wrapper on a clean cutting board
- Place a teaspoon of filling in the middle of the wrapper
- Fold the wrapper in half to form a triangle
- Work out any air between wrapper and filling
- Wet the sides of the wrapper with some water
- Press to seal the wonton
This is a very simple style. Laying it on a cutting board to fold gives you more control. The next 2 styles are variations of this one.
Style 3 - Samosa with a twist
Lay a wonton wrapper on a clean cutting board. Place a teaspoon of filling in the middle of the wrapper
Wet the sides of the wrapper
Fold the wrapper in half to form a triangle. Work out any air between wrapper and filling
Wet the two side corners of the triangle, gently pull them together and press firmly.The center corner should stick out slightly. Cute right?
Boil the wonton in water
Style 4 - Envelope
- Lay a wonton wrapper on a clean cutting board
- Place a teaspoon of filling in the middle of the wrapper
- Fold the wrapper in half to form a triangle
- Work out any air between wrapper and filling
- Wet sides of wrapper and press firmly to seal the wonton
- Wet the two side corners of the triangle
- Fold the two corners on top of the wonton
This is not a traditional Chinese wonton style. But the little envelope lookalike is quite cute, don't you think so?
Style 5 - Taiwan (hua lian bian shi)
- Lay a wonton wrapper on a clean cutting board
- Place a teaspoon of filling at the lower half of the wrapper near a corner
- Shape the filling into a narrow rectangular shape
- Fold the corner over the filling and fold again to cover the filling
- Do not fold all the way up, leave the opposite corner free
- Flatten the two ends of the wrapper
- Pull them together and press firmly. Use some water to seal
A little more challenging, but the shape looks great. If you want a step-by-step photo guide to making this style, visit Gastronomic Fight Club.
This shape is similar to the samosa style with a twist except that the center corner that sticks out is a single layer here.
Nothing beats an instructional video. Here's one for style 5.
Style 6 - China #1
- Lay a wonton wrapper on a clean cutting board
- Place a teaspoon of filling in the middle of the wrapper
- Shape the filling into a rectangular shape, parallel to the wrapper
- Fold the wrapper in half
- Work out any air between wrapper and filling
- Fold the wrapper in half again
- Flatten the two ends of the cylindrical shape
- Pull them together and press firmly. Use some water to seal
This style is the same as the samosa with a twist style except you fold half into a rectangle instead of a triangle. When you connect the two ends together, you can choose to connect the diagonal sides together or from end to end.
Note that your choice can result in two very different wonton shapes
Style 7 - China #2
- Lay a wonton wrapper on a clean cutting board
- Place a teaspoon of filling in the middle of the wrapper
- Flatten the filling
- Fold all 4 corners of the wrapper towards the center of the wrapper
- Work out any air between wrapper and filling
- Gather all four corners and squeeze gently to close
This one is supposed to crease like an un-ironed shirt when it is cooked. What do you think?
Style 8 - Cantonese / Hong Kong
- Make a ring with your fingers and thumb
- Place a wonton wrapper on your hand on top of the ring
- Place a teaspoon of filling in the center of the wrapper
- Gently push the filling down the ring with the teaspoon
- Slowly move your fingers to close the ring to wrap the wrapper around the filling
- Dab a little water around the closing of the wrapper to seal
- Check that the wrapper is properly sealed
This looks simple, but needs a certain degree of dexterity.
This lady wraps the Hong Kong-styled wonton with such ease and finesse.
I couldn't provide step-by-step photos for all the folding styles at this moment. My skill as a photographer is as limited as it can get. So please use your imagination.
I hope you had fun folding wontons. If you have a wonton folding style that is not featured here and you would like to share it, share them here. It would be nice if there are before and after photos of the "product".
Feel free to use, forward or share the wonton folding instructions and photos featured here, but I would appreciate it if you would attribute it to this website by including a hyperlink of my website next to the photos. If you are adding to your website or blog, just cut and paste the following code:
Related links
Wonton, wontons
Looking for information on wontons? Everything you need to know about the wonton, including wonton recipes, you can find here.
Anatomy of a wonton soup recipe
Find out what a good wonton soup recipe should contain.
Wonton soup
Wonton soup is as important as the wontons themselves. Read more and find 2 recipes for wonton soups to go with your delicious wontons.
Wonton wrappers
Information about wonton wrappers or wonton skin here.
Wonton dipping sauce
Not satisfied with plain wontons? Use some wonton dipping sauces.
Wonton dessert recipes
Try out these sweet wonton dessert recipes
Recipes using wonton wrappers
Looking for recipes using wonton wrappers? I have gathered so many ideas for wonton wrappers here that you probably won't have time to try them all. Include wonton cheese recipes, wonton cups, wonton wrap etc.
Wonton filling recipes
Chicken wonton recipes
Check out these easy chicken wonton recipes. A good alternative if you do not eat pork. Yup! No pork at all.
Crab meat wonton recipes
Looking for crab meat wonton recipes? Check out these easy recipes using crab and pork. Includes a yummy crab rangoon recipe.
Fish wonton recipes
Fish is not a common wonton filling. Yet, they make healthy fillings. Once these babies are wrapped up, you can boil them, deep-fry them or steam them. It is up to you. Of course traditionally they are boiled and served in soup.
Pork wonton recipes
Pork is the traditional ingredient in wontons. It is common to add other types of meat or vegetable to make a delicious filling mixture. I have gathered quite a few pork wonton recipes here. Take your pick and choose your favorites.
Shrimp wonton recipes
The shrimp wonton recipes featured here range from using only shrimps to a combination of shrimp with other types of ingredients.
Turkey wonton recipes
I think these turkey wonton recipes will come in handy for using Thanksgiving leftovers. What could be nicer than a couple of turkey wontons floating in a hot clear broth to counter-act the effects of over-eating.
Vegetable wonton recipes
How can we leave out our vegetarian friends when we enjoy wontons? Here is at least 1 vegetable wonton recipe.
