Thinking of reaching for that takeout menu tonight? You'll reconsider after you take a look at this unthinkably simple soup recipe. With store-bought wrappers, a minimalistic meat mixture, and a couple of cups of stock, you can easily craft plump wontons and a savory, chili sauce-spiked broth.
This doable, weeknight-approved dinner comes from actress Ming-Na Wen; she starred in The Joy Luck Club and voiced the titular character in the Disney movie Mulan. But before she hit it big, Wen grew up in her family’s legendary Pittsburgh restaurant, Chinatown Inn. Inspired by her childhood, Wen wrote the cookbook Have You Eaten Yet?, which contains a wealth of chef-approved favorites adapted for the home cook.
"If the thought of making traditional wontons overwhelms you, don’t panic, I’ve got you covered," Wen writes. "This recipe for wontons cuts some corners without losing any flavor. At the restaurant, we make wontons using this method because it’s so much faster." The instructions are so straightforward that you'll feel like a pro in no time.
"These wontons don’t include shrimp, so those with allergies or an aversion to shellfish can eat them," Wen continues. "FYI, these are also great as party apps. Because they use thicker wonton wrappers, you can deep-fry them, and they’ll hold their shape beautifully." In other words, you can save this recipe for next Tuesday or for your next potluck.
Simple Wonton Soup
Author: Ming-Na Wen
Prep Time: 30 min
Cook Time: 7 min
Calories: 320 calories per serving
Servings: 4 servings
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons light soy sauce (plus more for serving, optional)
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon ground white pepper
- 1 pound ground meat (pork, chicken, or turkey)
- 1 (12-ounce) package square, thick wonton wrappers
- 1 large egg, beaten
- Chili sauce (optional)
- 1 (14.5-ounce) can chicken broth, or about 2 cups homemade stock
- 1 whole scallion, chopped
Directions
- In a medium nonreactive bowl, combine the soy sauce, salt, and white pepper. Add the meat and mix well with the seasoning. Set aside to marinate for 15 minutes in the refrigerator.
- Place a ½ tablespoon dollop of marinated meat above the bottom corner of a wonton skin, leaving about ¼ inch of space to the edge of the wrapper. Using a butter knife, fold the corner up and over the knife and meat. Roll the wonton skin once with the knife, then slip the knife out. The wonton should be a triangle with meat inside.
- Dip the knife into the beaten egg and dab the egg on the right point of the triangle. Fold over to the opposite, left side, point of the triangle and squeeze it to seal it with the egg. Repeat with the remaining wontons. (See Cook’s Note if you are freezing the wontons.)
- When ready to eat, bring a large pot of water to a boil, leaving enough room in the pot for 1 to 2 cups of additional water. Add the wontons. When the water boils again, add ½ cup of cold water. When the water boils a third time, add another ½ cup of cold water. When the wontons float to the top, they
are done. Adding cold water in steps like this keeps the skin of the wontons from overcooking and becoming too soft. - You can eat these alone with some soy sauce or chili sauce, if desired.
- To make a simple wonton soup, boil 2 cups of chicken broth. Serve the broth in small bowls, add the cooked wontons, and garnish with the scallion.
Chef's note: To freeze the wontons: On a tray or plate lined with parchment paper, place the wontons in rows, with a bit of separation between them so that they do not stick together. Make sure the tray or plate will fit in your freezer. Once the tray is full, freeze the wontons until the skin feels solid and frozen, about 1 hour. You can then place the wontons in plastic freezer bags without worrying about them sticking together. Immediately place the bags back into the freezer to further freeze the wontons. Remember to write a date on
the bags. They will keep for 3 to 4 months.
To cook frozen wontons, repeat the above, but add ½ cup cold water one more time because the frozen meat needs a bit longer to cook through.
Excerpted from HAVE YOU EATEN YET? Copyright © 2026, Ming-Na Wen. Photography Copyright © 2026 by Jennifer Chong. Reproduced by permission of Simon Element, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. All rights reserved.
