Buffalo Wontons for an afternoon in front of the big screen

So you need a finger food for the next football party?  Well, what about putting our wonton skills to good use?  We've already made some Cream Cheese Wontons and Crab Rangoons using these little sheets of goodness.  But they don't have to be just a Chinese delicasy. 

Wontons are extremely flexible foodstuffs.  You can use them in any cuisine to create some crunch, but they also make great appetizer mediums. You can stuff them with just about anything.  In this example, we've shredded some chicken, mixed a hot wing mixture, sealed them and then fried them up in hot oil.

You don't have to limit yourself to a Buffalo sauce.  You can replace it with your favorite barbecue sauce, or the chipotle sauce from the adobo chiles, or even a teriyaki glaze.  Just dress up the meat before rolling it up and and provide a comparable dipping sauce and you're ready to go.

Buffalo Wontons
Makes 20-25

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/2 cup buffalo wing sauce
1 tablespoon butter
4 ounces bleu cheese (optional)
1 package (roughly 20-30) wonton square
Small amount of water in a shallow bowl

Fully cook the chicken breasts.  Once cooled, using two forks, shred the chicken.  Easiest way to do this is to stab one fork into the meat, then pull against the grain of the meat to pull small shreds of chicken off the breast.  Place the shredded chicken into a bowl.  Place the buffalo wing sauce and butter in a small glass and microwave for 25-30 seconds until the butter melts.  Pour the concoction into the chicken and stir until evenly mixed. 

Lay one wonton on the counter.  Place a little less than a tablespoon of filling in the center.  Sprinkle a small amount of bleu cheese on top, if you want.  Wet your finger using the water in the bowl and drag it around the edge of the wonton.  Moistening the edge of the wonton will help seal them.  Fold the wonton into whatever shape you wish (see the options below), making sure that the edges are pressed down to keep them sealed during the frying process.  Place them on a cooling rack and let them sit for 5 minutes.   Fill a saucepan or large sauce pan with enough oil to come 1 1/2 - 2 inches up the sides and heat to 350 degrees.  Fry the wontons in small batches for 3 minutes or until they are golden brown.  Let them cool and drain on the colling rack.  Server with a mixture of 1/4 cup buffalo sauce mixed with 1 teaspoon melted butter.

As for how you fold them, it's up to you.  As I mentioned back in the cream cheese wonton post, there are a number of options...

The easiest way to seal it is to fold it over from the opposite corner, creating a small triangle. Make sure to press down all of the edges to create a nice, tight seal so when they are frying, none of the cream cheese escapes.

Another way to wrap the wontons is into a little log, kind of like a football.  You place the filling the center and the roll it up like a burrito.  Then you pinch the ends together and tuck them under.  Make sure to moisten the exterior of the wonton where the ends tuck under to.  This will ensure that the ends will stay in place and not open up in the oil.

The next way to wrap is to fold them into these little packages.  It's just one more step beyond the triangle.  You bring one opposite corner over to make the triangle shape and press together the outer edges.   Then take the corners on the left and right side and fold them across.  Moisten the wonton where the two sides come together so they will stick together

The final one I'll show you is the flower shape.  These are a little more difficult than the others because you're working with all four sides at the same time.  After you moisten the edges, bring the centers of all four sides of the square up to the top and pinch them together.  Next, pinch the wonton together to seal it down by the cream cheese, not along the wonton edge.  This allows the 'petals' to flare out when you cook them.

Now you can fold them any way you want.  You could envelope fold them.  You can fold all the corners up and crimp them closed so they look like old-time money bags.  You could also roll them like above, but twist close the ends so they look like pieces of salt water taffy.  They all taste the same.

Remember, you don't have to use Buffalo Wing sauce. Any type of sauce will work.  Just swap out the buffalo for barbecue sauce, teriyaki glaze, chipotle sauce, salsa, almost any flavor you love. 

So make a batch of them for the next football party, provide lots of dipping sauce and see how fast they disappear.