Wor-Wonton Soup with Sprouted Hokkaido Black Soy Bean Dumplings

This post offers another full recipe from my recently published book.

Around this time of year I like to use up the stores of dried beans from the garden to make 'stick to your bones' type meals and this recipe is one of my favorite ways to do that. We always loved Wor Wonton soup when we went out to Chinese restaurants in the past but finding a substitute after we decided not to eat meat anymore was virtually impossible.

Enter the creation of a vegetarian substitute for Wor Wonton. Our homemade version is not only filling, delicious and nutritious but also offers an opportunity for the avid home gardener to grow many of their own ingredients to make this meal.

This soup contains a wide spectrum of antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, offers rich umami flavors, a healthy amount of protein and contains many immune system-boosting superfoods.

Hokkaido Black Soy Bean plants are prolific producers in the garden. The bean pods can be harvested when young for an exquisite edamame or they can be allowed to mature, dried and stored for winter use. For this recipe I used mature dried beans which I soaked for 12 hours and then rinsed three times daily for two days until the beans sprouted. The sprouting process decreases 'anti-nutrients' (making the beans more digestible) and increases nutrient levels, making sprouts richer in protein, folate, magnesium, phosphorus, manganese and vitamins C and K.

Hokkaido Black Soy Beans (after being soaked until they began to sprout/germinate)

Ingredients:

Broth/Soup:

• 1 broccoli floret, chopped

• 1 large onion, diced

• half of 1 red pepper, diced

• half a cup of dry black rice

• half a cup of dry wild rice

• 3 large bok choy leaves (and/or Nettle or Kale)

• 2 large napa cabbage leaves chopped

• 2 large carrots, sliced

• 1-2 teaspoons ginger (diced)

• 1 medium potato, thinly sliced, then slices quartered 

• 1 small sweet potato, thinly sliced, then slices quartered 

• 1 teaspoon sesame seed oil

• 1 tablespoon olive oil

• 5-7 Szechwan pepper corns (ground)

• 2-3 tablespoons soya sauce or tamari

• 3-4 tablespoons miso paste

• 4 liters water

• broccoli stalks, diced

• shiitake mushroom stems, diced (optional)

• a pinch of Chinese five spice

• couple spoons full of the leftover wonton filler

• one 1x3 inch piece of Kombu (kelp) or a handful of some other green sea vegetable

building the broth for our vegetarian Wor-Wonton Soup

Fresh Produce Ingredients For Wonton filling:

• 1 bunch green onions

• 1/2 red pepper

• 1 bag of organic bean sprouts

• 2-3 tablespoons of finely diced fresh ginger 

• 2 large napa cabbage leaves (finely diced)

• 1 teaspoon sesame seed oil

• 1 teaspoon hot sauce 

• 6 large or 10 medium sized shiitake mushrooms (diced) 

•  1 or 2 packages of wonton wrappers

some of the ingredients that go into the dumplings in our Wor-Wonton Soup

Cooked mixture portion of wonton filling:

• sprouted black soybeans (2 cups cooked)

• onions (1 large or two small)

• bell pepper (half one large red)

• purple cabbage (at least one eighth of a cabbage, approx 2-3 cups diced)

• Sichuan peppercorns (approx one tablespoon hand ground, adjust to taste)

• soya sauce or tamari (a splash or two)

• ginger (one tablespoon diced)

• sweet potato (1 cup diced cooked)

• bok choy (1 cup finely diced)

• shiitake mushrooms (15 medium to large caps or 20 small)

• Franks hot sauce or sriracha to taste

• water as needed

• sesame seed oil

some of the ingredients that go into the dumplings for our Wor-Wonton Soup

Instructions:

Start by throwing a splash of oil in a large pot and frying the onions, half a red bell pepper, celery, ginger, the dry rice, kombu and shiitake stems (if using). Fry until onions are soft and beginning to get crispy edges and then add all the rest of the broth/soup ingredients except the broccoli floret and miso paste. Bring to a boil and then lower heat and simmer for 15-20 min on low. Check on the broth intermittently tasting and checking how cooked the potatoes and rice are. Once they are soft you can add the broccoli florets and take out some broth to mix with the miso paste to dilute before adding to the large pot.

While it is simmering begin to cut up and prepare the wonton filling. Start by adding some oil to a large pan and fry the onion, half bell pepper, purple cabbage, ginger and shiitake mushrooms until soft. Add the rest of the cooked portion of the wonton filling ingredients and a splash of water, allow the ingredients to simmer to infuse flavors (15-20min) mixing every couple minutes. Once the mixture is cooked through and well mixed set aside to cool and begin gathering the fresh wonton filling ingredients and add them to separate containers so they are easy to reach as you build each wonton. 

fresh ingredients ready for building the wonton dumplings for our Wor-Wonton Soup

Fill a small bowl with warm water which you can dip your finger in to moisten the edge of the wonton wrappers before sealing while building them. To build a wonton take one of the wrappers and lay it flat on a larger plate. Begin by adding about one teaspoon of the cooked mixture in the middle and then sprinkle a little of each of the fresh ingredients/sauces on top (to your personal taste). I like to wrap my wonton up like little envelopes but you can also wrap them in the traditional way so they appear to be “clouds” in your soup. As you build and seal up your wontons set them aside on a plate so they are not touching so they can dry. You can use what you need for this meal fresh and then the rest can be added to zip lock bags one layer thick and frozen until they are needed for future meals. As a fun way to 'stack dumpling functions' you can also deep fry the frozen dumplings in some healthy fat (like coconut oil) and serve them as a side with dips (instead of adding them to soup). They are delicious both ways! :)

close up of a wonton dumpling being constructed

wonton dumplings after being sealed up (ready for either freezing or cooking for adding to the soup)

When cooking the wontons use a medium sized pot and bring at least two inches deep of water to boil, drop the frozen wontons in one by one and move them around with a spoon for a few seconds when they first go in so they do not stick to each other. Cook no more than 10 wontons at a time. Boil for 2-4 minutes and then remove with a slotted serving spoon and add to the empty soup serving bowls. Add some diced green onions and then ladle in some of the soup and add soya sauce/tamari to taste. Enjoy!

a bowl of the finished vegetarian Wor-Wonton Soup

---

The recipe above is from my book (cover shown in image below).

For those of you interested in purchasing an Ebook copy of my book that option is now available through this link: https://payhip.com/b/6P5Ab?fbclid=IwAR1eIyc1hZU0q_KjJJDv2LGUfirxErNpey_jTpMV7vdVx4maB1ahZX2SNNM

For those interested in purchasing a physical copy of the book you can do so through this link:

https://recipesforreciprocity.com/shop/softcover/

---

I hope you will give making this recipe a try and let me know how it goes if you do!

Wishing you all bountiful autumn harvests and many joy filled nourishing meals shared with friends and loved ones.

---

---