Bùn Riêu Wontons
I recently saw Jen (CrazyThickAsians) make Bùn Riêu style gyoza, and it reminded me for my LOVE of crab paste.
If you’ve never had Crab Paste before, imagine the amazing taste of crab, hyper focused and concentrated in an umami packed paste.
It’s a super vital ingredient in the meatballs found in Vietnamese Bùn Riêu— one of my favourite soups!
I thought that these meatballs would be SUPER delicious stuffed inside a wonton wrapper, so that’s exactly what I did.
Without further adieu, let’s make them!
Bùn Riêu Wontons
200g pork belly (or medium ground pork)
200g raw shrimp, deveined
65g crab paste (in soybean oil)
35g cilantro stalks, chopped
2 green onions, thinly sliced
1 shallot, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
8g dried shrimp
15ml light soy sauce
15ml Shaoxing wine
5g sugar
3g white pepper
15g corn starch
pinch salt
1 pckg of wonton wrappers
Add your pork belly to a food processor. Blitz until it forms a rough paste. It doesn’t have to be extremely fine, just avoid large chunks.
Place the ground pork belly in a medium bowl.
Remove the shells and devein your shrimp. Place them on a cutting board.
Using two knives in parallel, (or one!) start chopping the shrimp to form a rough paste. It doesnt have to be too fine, some larger chunks of shrimp will add texture.
Add the shrimp to the bowl with the ground pork belly.
Prepare your minced shallot, garlic, cilantro stems and green onions.
Add the crab paste, the above prepared aromatics, dried shrimps, light soy, Shaoxing wine, sugar, white pepper, corn starch and salt to the bowl.
Use a pair of chopsticks to mix in a circular motion. Combine until it forms a smooth paste-it should be quite sticky.
Tip: To test if the filling is seasoned enough, take a teaspoon of the filling and place it on a plate, microwave it for 15-20 seconds (or until cooked) and taste it! Add more sugar, salt, etc. if necessary.
Prepare a baking tray by dusting it lightly with corn starch.
To fill the wontons: Create a “C” shape with your hand. Place a wonton wrapper atop of your thumb and index finger. Use the back of a spoon to assist you: Take 1/2 tbsp of filling and place it in the centre of the wrapper.
Press down on the filling while simultaneously closing up the wrapper and pinching it between your thumb and index finger. Pinch to seal and place on the tray dusted with corn starch.
Repeat the above process until all the filling is wonton-ified. These can be stored in the freezer in an airtight container, or cooked right away.
To cook: Place wontons in a pot of boiling water for 2 minutes or until they float to the top. The wrapper should be soft and wrinkly, but not disintegrating.
Remove from the water with a slotted spoon or a spider, and transfer to a bowl for serving.
Optionally, serve with Lemongrass & Tomato Consommé, Lime Leaf oil, Chilli Oil and chopped cilantro for garnish.
Notes:
These will keep in your freezer for 2 months stored in an airtight container or freezer bag.
Do not store the uncooked wontons in the fridge. The wrapper will get soggy.
The filling can be made ahead of time, and wontons can be filled when you want to cook them!
