Tender meat in slippery wrappers seasoned with a chili oil based sauce, Sichuan spicy wonton combines great flavour and texture. Follow my recipe to make it in 30 mins.

Fun facts about wonton
Wontons are stuffed savoury parcels consisting of thin, square wrappers and a meat-based filling. Considered one of the oldest types of Chinese dumplings (according to cookbook author Fuchsia Dunlop’s research), they are popular nation-wide in China.
Although universally called “Wonton” in English, in China its name varies depending on the region where they’re served. In northern provinces, they’re known as Húntun/馄饨. Cantonese people call it Yún Tūn/云吞. In Fu Jian, they’re Biǎn Shí/扁食. Yet in Sichuan where today’s dish originated, Chāo Shǒu/抄手 is its official name.
Spicy Wonton in Chili Oil
Spicy wonton in chili oil, known as Hóng Yoú Chāo Shǒu/红油抄手 (Red Oil Wonton), is one of the signature street foods (Small eats, 小吃) of Sichuan cuisine. Instead of being served in a broth like the classic Cantonese version, it comes with an aromatic, salty and pungent sauce.
It takes 3 simple steps to put this dish together: mix the meat filling; shape the wontons with ready-made wrappers; boil for a few minutes then mix with the sauce.
Use shop-bought wrappers
What makes a wonton distinctively different from a regular dumpling (Jiaozi, 饺子) is its square-shaped, super thin and slippery wrapper. Although a loyal fan of homemade dumpling wrappers as oppose to commercial ones, I usually use shop-bought wonton wrappers.
It takes a lot of time and effort to make them by hand and the result is seldom as good as machine-made ones (A pasta maker helps though. I’ll write a separate post in the future).
In the frozen goods section of Chinese/Asian stores, you might find two types of wonton wrappers: one is off-white and the other looks quite yellow as it contains alkaline. Both work fine for today’s recipe (although traditional Sichuan spicy wonton has the former look).
The night before you plan to cook this dish, remember to leave the wonton wrappers to thaw slowly in the fridge (do not open the package).
Make an extra moist filling
Traditionally, Sichuan spicy wonton in chili oil uses minced pork for the filling. That said, please feel free to substitute it with minced beef or chicken/turkey if you prefer.
Different from fillings that I introduced in my dumpling filling posts and my Easy Pork Wonton Soup, today’s recipe makes an extra tender and moist stuffing that’s mildly seasoned. This way, it creates an interesting contrast with the pungent, salty sauce that I’ll explain in later sections.
- A whole egg is mixed in to elevate the tenderness.
- Only use a little salt and white pepper to season (If using minced beef, I’d add a little Shaoxing rice wine too).
- To achieve a super smooth texture, I don’t put minced ginger and scallion directly into the filling. Instead, I use them to flavour the water which is added to the meat.
- The liquid content (water and egg) is very high in this filling. You’ll need to swirl the meat constantly in one direction to help it absorb. The finished filling should look sticky and jiggly but not watery.
How to fold wontons
If you find pleating a regular dumpling or a bao bun challenging, today’s wonton folding tutorial will ease your nerves. It’s very straightforward and simple! Although there are a few variations of wrapping styles, here is a classic method:
- Lay a wonton wrapper on your hand. Dip the back of a spoon in water then use it to wet two neighbouring edges of the wrapper.
- Put the filling (about a teaspoon) in the middle. Fold the wrapper to form a triangle. Gently press to seal.
- Wet one of the sharp corners of the triangle. Put the other sharp corner over the wet corner. Press to stick two corners securely.
If you’re not tight on time, check out the tutorial video in the recipe card below for a better understanding of how it works.
Cooking wonton is easy
Since the wrappers are very thin, it doesn’t take long to boil wontons (much shorter than cooking regular dumplings). Depending on the size of your cookware, you may be able to cook several servings all at once or in batches.
Here is a trick to help you make a judgement: Place the lid of your pot upside down on your hand. Cover its surface with wontons without overlapping. That would be the maximum amount you could cook at once.
- Fill your pot with plenty of water then bring it to a full boil over high heat.
- Add the wontons. Use a spoon to push them around to avoid sticking.
- Once you see all the wontons floating on the surface, cook for one more minute.
The irresistible wonton sauce
While waiting for the wontons to cook, you can start preparing the most exciting part of the dish: the spicy Sichuan wonton sauce. Salty, aromatic, numbing, spicy, with a hint of sweetness, it’s such an delicious combination of seasonings.
Bring out the serving bowls and add the following ingredients to each one (The quantity is for one portion with 10 wontons).
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1 tablespoon light soy sauce or regular soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon black rice vinegar
- ¼ teaspoon ground Sichuan pepper
- ¼ teaspoon sugar
- 2 tablespoon homemade chili oil, or to taste
If you fancy an extra nutty flavour, you could also add some crushed, toasted peanuts or a teaspoonful of Chinese Sesame Paste.
Use a slotted spoon to transfer the hot wontons straight into the bowls. Give everything a good mix then sprinkle with finely chopped scallions.
Make your own chili oil
From the Chinese name of this dish “Red Oil Wonton”, you can tell that chili oil plays a key role which determines the level of deliciousness. If you haven’t tried my recipe for Homemade Chili Oil, it’s time to give it a test! You’ll regret you haven’t brought it into your life sooner. Believe me!
I usually add about 2 tablespoons of chili oil to each serving of Sichuan spicy wonton. Make sure you stir it very well before spooning it out so that you get the red oil, as well as some sediment which sinks to the bottom. Please feel free to adjust the quantity based on your own tolerance to heat.
“It looks super hot!” I often get comments like this when I present dishes with a good amount of chili oil. The fact is that they usually don’t taste insanely spicy. Using a mixture of chili flakes and chili powder with different heat level, your chili oil could look hot but taste just right in heat.
Freeze leftover wontons
My recipe makes 40 wontons which are enough for about 4 servings (The shop-bought wrappers usually come in 40-50 package). Even if you plan to serve less on the day, I still recommend you follow the recipe and freeze the leftover for later use.
Put the assembled wontons in a single layer on a plate/tray. Keep in the freezer until they’re fully frozen. Then transfer to an airtight container/bag. Store in the freezer for up to three months.
You don’t need to defrost the frozen wontons beforehand. Cook them following the same procedure.
Other Sichuan street foods
Looking for more Sichuan street food that’s super tasty yet simple to make? Here are a few recipes:
- Dan Dan Noodles. A must-try noodle dish that bursts with complex flavours.
- Chongqing Noodles. It’s fiercely spicy, mouth-numbing and super aromatic.
- Leaf-wrapped Sticky Rice Cake. Soft, gooey dough stuffed with a tasty filling that can be either savoury or sweet.
- Hot & Sour Glass Noodle Soup. Slippery noodles in a tangy soup, it’s absolutely addictive.
Sichuan Spicy Wonton In Chili Oil (红油抄手)
Ingredients
For the wontons
- 2 stalks scallions
- 1 tablespoon minced ginger
- 80 ml warm water
- 200 g minced pork - or beef/chicken/turkey
- 1 medium egg
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 pinch ground white pepper
- 40 ready-made wonton wrappers
For each portion of the sauce
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon black rice vinegar
- ¼ teaspoon ground Sichuan pepper - see note 1
- ¼ teaspoon sugar
- 2 tablespoon homemade chili oil - or to taste, see note 2
Instructions
Mix the filling
- Finely chop the scallions. Put the white part into a bowl (keep the green part for garnishing the dish later). Add the ginger. Pour in the water. Leave to infuse for 5 mins.
- In another bowl, mix the minced meat, egg, salt and white pepper until well combined.
- Remove the scallions and ginger then pour the water into the meat in batches while stirring in one direction until the liquid is fully absorbed.
Shape the wontons
- Lay a wonton wrapper on your hand. Dip the back of a spoon in water then use it to wet two neighbouring edges of the wrapper.
- Put the filling (about a teaspoon) in the middle. Fold the wrapper to form a triangle. Gently press to seal.
- Wet one of the sharp corners of the triangle. Put the other sharp corner over the wet corner. Press to stick two corners securely. Repeat to finish all the wrappers.
Cook the wontons
- Bring a large pot of water to a full boil. Gently slide in the wontons. Cook over high heat. Push them around with a spoon to prevent sticking to the bottom (You may cook all 40 wontons at once or in two batches depending on the size of your cookware. They need to be able to move around with ample space).
- Once all the wontons rise to the surface, cook for a further minute.
Assemble the dish
- While waiting for the wontons to cook, add all the ingredients for the sauce in each serving bowl.
- Use a slotted spoon to take out the wontons. Add them into serving bowls.
- Garnish with the green part of the scallions saved from step one. Mix well then serve immediately.
Store the wontons
- Uncooked wontons freeze well. Lay them on a tray and keep in the freezer until fully frozen. Transfer to an airtight container/bag and put back to the freezer. Consume within 3 months.
Cook frozen wontons
- Follow the same procedure to cook frozen wontons. Defrosting is unnecessary and not recommended.
Video
NOTES
NUTRITION
NUTRITION DISCLOSURE: Nutritional information on this website is provided as a courtesy to readers. It should be considered estimates. Please use your own brand nutritional values or your preferred nutrition calculator to double check against our estimates.
This looks so good, can you tell me what type of oil do you use for the Chili Oil?
You can use any type of oil with neutral flavour, such as sunflower, rapeseed, canola, corn, peanut, soybean oil, etc.
I first tried this last December and now I make it all the time. It’s one of my favorite quick and easy meals. I usually make huge batches of wontons ahead of time and freeze them so the meal comes together in about the amount of time it takes to boil a pot of water.
Sadly I’m out of wontons and down to my last couple of spoonfuls of homemade chili oil. Time for a big prep day. Just the thing for cold and rainy weather :>)
Yes, frozen wontons/dumplings are great things to have! Hope my recipes make the cold season more enjoyable for you Kalia.
I made this tonight for my wife and I. It was amazing. By far the best wontons and sauce I have EVER had. I changed nothing about the recipe EXCEPT I used store bought oil (Lao Gan Ma). This is a keeper that I will make again and again.
Thanks much for this,
Shawn
So happy to hear that Shawn! My great pleasure to share and I’m delighted that you and your wife enjoyed the dish.
This was fantastic! The flavors are very complex. Really glad I made the homemade chili oil. Can’t wait to try more of your recipes!
Yes, homemade chili oil makes a big difference. Very happy to know you’ve enjoyed the dish!
So delicious. Had a bit of trouble getting the wontons to stick together so i steamed them instead. The sauce was a standout. So easy to put together. Next time i will watch your video beforehand so that i can try to get them to seal properly.
Happy to know you’ve enjoyed the dish Annier! I’ve never steamed wontons before but why not! To seal well, you just need to wet the wrapper properly. Good luck on your next batches!
I couldn’t wait to write back. I think the main problem i had were the wonton wrappers themselves. I made more this morning and they were a breeze. This psckage was air tight compared to my earlier package. So happy to know that fir future purchases.
Yes, wrappers need to be in air-tight packages. Glad you’ve enjoyed the second batch!
This is the chili sauce of my dreams. Thank you! I did use the sesame paste, which adds a lovely richness, and the Sichuan pepper stands out very nicely among the other flavors. Last night we hoovered through the entirety of my last batch of wontons from the freezer so it’s time to make a LOT more of them.
So happy that you’ve enjoyed this dish!