Soft wontons are filled with vegetables and textured vegetable protein to make a vegan version of a classic Chinese soup. Homemade wontons are great for making in batches and then freezing for later use. A perfect soup for the chilly fall nights ahead!
Just like homemade dumplings, homemade wontons are a bit of labor of love. So just be prepared to set aside a bit of time to do this, about 1 ½ to 2 hours. Don’t let that intimidate you though. They are not hard to make and trust me they are so worth it. The thing that I love about making homemade dumplings or wontons is that they don’t have to be perfect. Who cares how pretty they are? They are just complete comfort food and nothing is better than when they are fresh!
I decided to keep the filling easy and minimal for these, just like traditional wontons. Textured vegetable protein (TVP) is used here, it makes a great substitution for any ground meat. It can be found online or in stores, I usually get mine at Whole Foods. However, you can also replace it with ½ block of extra firm tofu. You can also use mushrooms too if you prefer a completely soy free option.
Homemade wonton dough is very simple to make, you only need flour, salt, and water. However, you can also find wonton wrappers in some food stores and Asian markets. Just always be sure to check the ingredients to make sure they are vegan friendly. You can also make the wrappers ahead of time and store them in the refrigerator in a container. Just be sure to sprinkle each one with cornstarch so they do not stick. You will have leftover filling but you can just save it and eat it with rice! For the pleating technique, I followed an easier way I found to do it on YouTube, this isn’t the traditional pleating technique.
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INGREDIENTS
Wonton Wrappers
2 ½ cups (300g) all purpose flour, plus more for dusting
½ teaspoon salt
¾ cup (180ml) warm water
2 to 3 tablespoons cornstarch, to prevent them from sticking later on
Filling
¾ cup (70g) TVP
¾ cup (180ml) warm water
2 cups (85g) shredded cabbage
2 green onions, roughly chopped (40g)
1 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
½ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon ginger powder
Salt, optional to taste
Soup
6 cups vegetable broth or Trader Joe’s Miso Ginger broth
3 large handfuls baby spinach
*I don’t measure this just enough to get something extra in the soup
Garnish with green onion, sesame seeds and chili oil if you like
METHOD
- Prepare the dough: in a food processor or by hand combine all the ingredients until a shaggy dough is formed. Then knead the dough for 3 to 4 minutes until it has come together. It should be a smooth ball. If the dough is too wet and is sticking add more flour at ¼ cup increments at a time. Set the dough aside for 20 to 30 minutes covered with a damp paper towel.
- Prepare the filling: rehydrate the TVP by pouring the water over it and set aside for 10 minutes until all the water is absorbed. Once it is rehydrated place it in a food processor along with the other ingredients. Pulse for 30 seconds to 1 minute until the ingredients are broken down and small.
- After the dough has rested I like to check it by pressing my fingers into it, as long it doesn’t directly bounce back and my fingers leave an indent I know it is ready to roll. Separate the dough into two halves, cover half while you work on the other half.
- Lightly flour a clean surface and a rolling pin. Roll the dough out to be as thin as you can into a square the best you can, but if it winds up being a rectangle that is okay. Do not worry about it being perfect, you will cut the rough edges off.
- Once it is rolled out use a sharp knife or a pizza cutter to cut the edges off to make a neat and even rectangle. Then cut 4 equal columns and 3 equal rows resulting in 12 rectangles (they should almost be square) For example: my rectangle was 14 inches by 10 inches. I cut the 14 inch side into 4 equal pieces (3.5 inches each column) and then the 10 inch side into thirds (3.3 inches). *if you need help be sure to watch the youtube video
- Then lightly dust them with cornstarch and place on a dish. Repeat with the other dough half.
- To assemble the wonton start by taking 1 wrapper and place heaping ½ teaspoon of the filling and place in the center towards the bottom of the wrapper closest to you. Use your finger to lightly wet the edge of the wrapper. Fold the bottom portion of the wrapper up to the top to make a small rectangle. Use your fingers to pinch and seal the wrapper. Then fold one of the bottom corners over the top of the other corner to make the wonton shape, use a bit of water to get them to stick if they do not stick. *if you need help be sure to watch the youtube video
- Repeat with all the remaining wontons. If you would like to freeze them at this point place them on a lined rimmed baking sheet and freeze then place in a container for storage.
- To cook bring the broth to a boil over high heat. Add the spinach and wontons and boil for 10 minutes over medium high heat.
- To serve garnish with sesame seeds and green onions.
Yields 24 wontons
Serves 3 as a main, 4 to 6 as an appetizer
SAVE TO PINTEREST
kianapepper
I’m definitely going to try this!!
chefkreso
Looks and sounds perfect!
J Forsyth
Can you buy this Vegan Wanton Soup Ready made as I’m not able to make it but would love to try it x
Plantifully Based
you can buy vegan dumplings and put them in a vegetable broth but vegan wonton soup is a bit hard to find because wontons are typically filled with pork
LL Francis
OMG…the recipe and photos are fabulous! I like the idea of using the TJ’s miso & ginger broth. I love working with dough and kneading…to me it’s meditative. I want to make these now! So many great recipes and not enough time! Saving this one!
Plantifully Based
thank you so much!! I agree I love making dough it is so much fun. I appreciate all your love <3
Jessi Doshier
Made this tonight and oh boy it was yummy! I thought that with the simple ingredients and recipe it wasn’t going to have a lot of flavor depth but it really did! I used tofu instead of TVP as well as pre-made wonton wrappers and the wantons came out great! I used TJ’s miso broth which was 4 cups so I added two cups of veggie broth (Better than Bouillon no beef base) and I really loved the combo of the two! My meat-eating mom said it totally mimicked pork wontons! Definitely will make again since it was so simple and tasty 🙂
plantifullybased
aww Jessi thank you for taking the time to leave a comment!! i am so so happy you enjoyed it!