Chao Shou (Chengdu Style Pork Wontons)

Jacob Broussard fell in love with this style of dumpling on a trip to China and has been replicating it at home ever since to get the authentic flavor. Two sauces and a folding technique, and it's worth every step.

Ingredients

Wonton filling

• 1 lb ground pork (aim for a fatty blend like 70/30)
• 1 egg white
• 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine
• ½ teaspoon toasted sesame oil
• ½ teaspoon ground white pepper
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon finely grated fresh ginger
• 3 tablespoons ginger-scallion water (smash 1 scallion and a few slices of ginger into ¼ cup warm water and let sit 10 minutes)
• 1 pack thin, square wonton wrappers

Sweet seasoned soy sauce

• ¼ cup light soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 star anise
• 1 small piece cinnamon stick or cassia bark
• ½ teaspoon whole Sichuan peppercorns

Chili oil sauce (per bowl)

• 1½ tablespoons Sichuan red chili oil, scooping up the crunchy flakes from the bottom
• 1½ tablespoons prepared sweet soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon raw garlic, finely minced
• ½ teaspoon freshly ground Sichuan pepper powder
• ½ teaspoon toasted sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon hot wonton boiling water
• Sliced green onions for topping

Instructions

1. Make the sweet soy sauce. Toss the soy sauce, brown sugar, star anise, cinnamon stick, and whole peppercorns into a small pot. Bring to a low simmer for about 8 to 10 minutes until the sugar melts and the liquid gets slightly glossy and thickens up a bit. Strain out the spices and let it cool.
2. Mix the meat. In a large bowl, combine the ground pork, egg white, soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, sesame oil, white pepper, salt, and grated ginger. Pick one direction and stir the meat aggressively with chopsticks or a fork. Drizzle in the ginger-scallion water one tablespoon at a time while stirring. Keep going 3 to 5 minutes until the pork transforms into a sticky, bouncy paste.
3. Fold the wontons. Scoop about a teaspoon of filling onto the middle of a wrapper. Wet two adjacent edges with a dab of water. Fold into a triangle, pressing out trapped air as you seal. Dab water on one bottom corner, pull both lower corners around to overlap beneath the belly of filling, and pinch firmly to stick.
4. Prep your bowls. While the water heats, build the sauce directly in your serving bowls: chili oil with flakes, sweet soy reduction, minced garlic, ground Sichuan pepper powder, and sesame oil.
5. Boil and serve. Drop the wontons into a large pot of rolling boiling water and give one gentle stir. Cook 3 to 4 minutes, until they float and turn silky and semi-translucent. Ladle a tablespoon of hot cooking water into each bowl to loosen the sauce. Transfer the wontons straight into the sauce with a slotted spoon, toss to coat, and top with plenty of fresh green onions.

Recipe Notes

• From Jacob: stirring the pork in one direction is what gives the filling its bouncy texture. Don't skip it.