I’ve been trying to come up with ways to make my eating life more organized and one of the things that pinterest has convinced me of (pinterest convinces me to do things all the time) is that freezer meals are the way to go. With websites like onceamonthmom.com, it’s neat to think of having weeks of meals almost ready to go.
However, the huge lists of throw it in the crockpot meals I see on Pinterest aren’t very appealing to me, so I’m taking baby steps into the freezer.
I have some chili in the freezer that is not exciting, so I won’t bother writing about it, but one thing I’ve learned freezes excellently is wontons. Last week was crazy and hectic at work, so one night, I stopped everything for a while to enjoy the wonderfully brainless task of making a ton of wontons.
The beauty of frozen wontons is that you can just plop a few straight from the freezer into boiling broth and they’re ready in just a couple of minutes. It’s perfect becuase you can grab just as many as you need.
Jaden at Steamy Kitchen has an amazing technique for boiling the wontons that I use if I’m making a whole pot at once, but since I am a) usually eating just a few at a time and b) a total hypocondriac about meat not being completely done, did a little research into the cooking time for frozen wontons.
Wonton Noodle Soup for the Freezer
(Inspired by Chinese Wonton Noodle Soup by Steamy Kitchen’s Jaden Hair)
1 pound ground pork
a bunch of green onions, finely minced
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons rice vinegar
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon sesame oil
a package of wonton wrappers, covered with a damp towel
1 tablespoon cornstarch + 1/4 cup cool water (cornstarch slurry)
2 quarts chicken broth (or the amount of broth you want to eat)
1 teaspoon sesame oil
chili garlic sauce
In a large bowl, combine the pork, scallion, soy sauce, rice vinegar, cornstarch, sugar and sesame oil. Mix well. Put a teaspoon of filling in the middle of a wonton wrapper, brush cornstarch slurry on all edges, I always use my fingers. Fold over to form a triangle, press to secure edges. Brush cornstarch slurry on one tip of the triangle. Bring two corners together and press to secure. Repeat until you run out of wrappers or filling.
Freeze as many as you’re not eating right now in a single layer on a cookie sheet. When frozen, dump into a freezer bag and pull out as many as needed. (Do not forget to put them in the freezer bag, and forget to tell your boyfriend you made wontons, or they could end up on the floor).
Bring chicken broth to a boil and drop your wontons into the pot. I usually put in some chili garlic sauce right about now as well. For fresh wontons, reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes. For frozen wontons, bring the broth back to a boil, then simmer for 5 minutes.
Some possible additions to mix it up a little, broccoli, baby bok choy, cilantro, bean sprouts, mushrooms, tofu, maybe some bamboo shoots for crunch?
