Sunday, June 24, 2012

Rosie Makes Lobster Rangoon.

I love the ubiquitous crab rangoon
that is served at Chinese restaurants
even though it probably doesn't have 
a hint of crab in it.

I'm making my own rangoons today,
but I'm using lobster, not crab,
and I'm using lots of it.

Now, I'm sure you're wondering,
as I was,
about the name "rangoon."

Rangoon is the former official name (until 1989)
of Yangon, the capital of Burma (Myanmar).
Rangoon is the largest city, chief port,
and the most important commercial center of Myanmar,
officially superseded as capital by Nay Pyi Taw,
though still retaining some of the functions of government.

So how do we get crab rangoon? 
I don't really know.
Crab rangoons are deep-fried dumplings 
served in American Chinese and Thai restuarants.

 
They are stuffed with a combination 
of cream cheese, scallions, and crab meat,
but the crab meat is generally faux crab.

Food historians can't pinpoint the precise
birth of crab rangoon,
but it  has been on the menu of 
Trader Vic's in San Francisco since 1956.
Trader Vic's claimed the crab rangoon
came from an old Burmese recipe,
but more likely,
the dish was probably invented in the United States,
since cream cheese, like other cheeses,
is essentially nonexistent in Southeast Asian and Chinese cuisine.
It is doubtful that the crab rangoon is of Asian origin
and most credit the origin to Victor Bergeron, 
founder of Trader Vic's,
and grandfather of TV host Tom Bergeron,
who is also credited with the invention of the Mai Tai tropical drink
and the pupuu platter of appetizers.
Strike out the Tom Bergeron part.
I just wanted to see if you were paying attention.
If you look up crab rangoon in Urban Dictionary,
you will will find two definitions for it:
"1)  A senior citizen usually found in a temperate climate
who spends massive amounts of time at the beach, thus resulting
in their overall appearance being altered so greatly by the sun
in combination with age that they resemble a dark brown,
deep fried, crab rangoon.
I was down at the beach on Monday
and could hardly find an open area to lounge.
The whole place was taken up by a bunch of crab rangoons.
2)  Sexual intercourse.
I went out with Kelly last night and had me some of the crab rangoon."
See what you learn from reading my blog?
Who'd a thunk?

That said,
lets make some lobster rangoon.


My ingredients:
 8 ounces lobster meat
6 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 TB chopped red onion
1 TB chopped red pepper
1 TB chopped celery


That's some pretty lobster.
How do you like the bowls?
We picked those up in Taos.


Give the lobster a coarse chop.
I like to know what I'm eating.
I want chunks of lobster.

I decided to add a bit of heat in the mix.
1 dried hot pepper, minced

Mix until just combined.
You don't want to tear up the lobster meat.
You want chunks.

Place a tablespoon or so of the filling
on your wontons.


And fold.

Brush a little water around the edges to seal.


I'm folding the easy way - into triangles,
but if you want to be fancy and fold into little purses,
go right ahead.



Heat oil to 350 degrees.
Remember not to crowd the pot
when you fry.
You don't want to lower the temperature of the oil.


Fry until golden brown.

 

 
Drain on paper towels.


I served these with some duck sauce,
soy sauce, and hot mustard.

  That's some good lobster rangoon.

By the way, I had extra filling I didn't use,
so I filled up an ice cube tray and froze the lobster cubes.
I'll be saving those for another use,
perhaps a roasted red pepper soup
with a plop of lobster accent in the center.
Maybe some croutons and sliced scallions thrown in.
A sprinkling of fresh lemon thyme.
Sounds like a plan.




9 comments:

Marilyn said...

Mm, that looks good! And you didn't invite me!

Rosie Hawthorne said...

You have a standing invitation, Mar.

Lea said...

Oh,I am so glad you are cooking again!

Marilyn said...

Yay!

Anonymous said...

Please give me a heads up when you plan to make those lobster moreovers!
XKT

zzzadig said...

Right down my alley......yum!

Rosie Hawthorne said...

Lea, I'm so glad to be back in my own little kitchen.

Mar, whenever you want to stop by ...

Zzzadig, you and Mrs. Z. need to come by our alley some time so we can reciprocate.

XKT, let me know. I have the lobster mixture frozen in ice cube trays.

favjeans said...

Hah! I loved this. The whole history & plan at the end. Cannot wait to make these :)

Rosie Hawthorne said...

Thanks, Jeannie. Let me know how you like them.