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Tomato Beef Wonton

5 from 1 vote
These wontons are filled with fresh herbs, juicy tomatoes, and beef, creating a rich and moist texture, and they’re served in a refreshing tomato egg drop soup.
Prep Time: 1 hour
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Course: Appetizer, Main
Cuisine: Chinese
Servings: 50 wontons
Author: Maggie Zhu

Ingredients

  • 1 can (28 oz) Muir Glen whole peeled tomatoes (*see footnote 1)

Wonton

  • 1/2 pound (220 grams) ground beef
  • 2 to 3 green onions , finely chopped
  • 1 tablespoon light soy sauce (or soy sauce)
  • 1 tablespoon rice wine (or Shaoxing wine) (Optional)
  • 1/4 teaspoons ground Sichuan peppercorns (or ground black pepper)
  • 1/2 teaspoon ginger , grated
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil (or vegetable oil)
  • 1 pack wonton wrappers (or dumpling wrappers) (*see footnote 2)

Quick tomato egg drop soup

  • 4 cups chicken stock
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 piece ginger
  • Chopped cilantro for garnish (Optional)

Instructions

Prepare tomatoes

  • Transfer the whole tomatoes into a colander placed on a large bowl to drain the extra liquid. You can save the liquid to use later (see the last paragraph in the post to make a sweet and sour soup base, in a dish such as this tomato sauce fried noodles, or use it in various dishes). While draining the tomatoes, you can start to prepare the dumpling filling.
  • Remove the seeds from the tomatoes. Gently squeeze them to remove extra moisture. This process is very important, so the wontons won’t end up watery.
  • Finely dice 5 of the tomatoes to 2/3-cm (1/4-inch) pieces. Coarsely chop the rest of the tomatoes, and transfer them into another bowl for the egg drop soup later.

Make wontons

  • Combine ground beef, green onion, light soy sauce, Sichuan peppercorns, ginger, and sugar in a large bowl. Stir to mix well. Let marinate for 5 to 10 minutes.
  • When you’re ready to wrap the wontons, add the 5 diced whole peeled tomatoes, salt, and sesame oil into the bowl with the beef (*see footnote 3). Mix well with a spatula.
  • Prepare a small bowl of water. Prepare a tray or a large airtight container (one you can store in the freezer), and spray a thin layer of oil onto it. This will prevent wontons from sticking to the bottom.
  • Work on the wontons one by one.
  • Place 1 teaspoon of filling onto the center of the wonton wrapper (*see footnote 4). Wet the edge of the wrapper with your finger. Fold the wonton so it forms a triangle. Squeeze as much air as possible from the wonton, and press the edge to seal. Place completed wonton onto the tray (or container).
  • When you’ve finished wrapping 20 wontons, seal the tray and store it in the freezer. This process keeps the wontons fresh and prevents drying out.

Tomato egg drop soup

  • Add chicken stock into a pot and bring to a boil. Add the chopped whole tomatoes.
  • When the stock starts to simmer again, turn to low heat. Put a spatula (or a fork) against one end of the bowl with the egg in it. Slowly drizzle egg into the soup in a swirling motion. Mix the soup and taste it with a small spoon (be careful, the soup is very hot!). Add salt to adjust seasoning, if necessary.
  • Turn to lowest heat to keep the soup warm.

Cook wontons

  • Now, you should have two batches of wontons, 20 frozen and the rest fresh. Cook them separately, fresh first.
  • (Option 1) Wonton soup (*see footnote 5) - Bring a large pot of water to a boil over medium high heat. Add wontons one by one. Gently stir with a ladle to prevent sticking. Cook until the wontons are floating on top and start to inflate like balloons. Remove a wonton and carefully taste it to see whether it’s cooked through. If yes, transfer wontons to each serving bowl. Add the tomato egg drop soup. Garnish with cilantro, if using. Serve immediately.
  • (Option 2) Pan-fried wontons - Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large nonstick pan over medium high heat until hot. Place wontons into the pan. Add 2 to 3 tablespoons water and cover immediately. Turn to medium heat. Let steam for 2 to 3 minutes (you will need more time if you made larger dumplings, or if you’re cooking with frozen wontons), or until the bottom turns golden. Remove a wonton and carefully taste it to see whether it’s cooked through. If yes, transfer the wontons to a large plate.
  • Serve warm with the tomato egg drop soup as a side.

Notes

  1. If you don’t cook the egg drop soup, you can use a 14.5-oz. can of whole peeled tomatoes instead.
  2. You can use store-bought dumpling wrappers or homemade dumpling wrappers, as well. Read more about how to seal the dumplings here. Learn how to make dumpling wrappers here.
  3. Always add salt right before you wrap the wontons. Salt draws moisture out from the ingredients, and the filling will become watery if you add salt too early.
  4. If you’re using dumpling wrappers (not wonton wrappers), you can use more filling per dumpling.
  5. Only use this method if you make the dish with wonton wrappers or homemade dumpling wrappers. Store-bought dumplings wrappers are very dry and thick. They usually won’t stay sealed when boiling.

Nutrition

Serving: 617g, Calories: 460kcal, Carbohydrates: 57.9g, Protein: 31.6g, Fat: 10.7g, Saturated Fat: 2.7g, Cholesterol: 138mg, Sodium: 1123mg, Potassium: 838mg, Fiber: 4.3g, Sugar: 6.7g, Vitamin A: 1900IU, Vitamin C: 40.4mg, Calcium: 80mg, Iron: 14.8mg