Vegetable Pho Broth With Stuffed Wontons/Potstickers.

 

I always have assorted homemade broths and consommées in my freezer, so a quick soup is never more than a thaw away.  Today, I'm pulling out a vegetarian pho broth I made and froze back in December and I'm making some shrimp-stuffed wontons/potstickers to go with it.

Here's the recipe for the VEGETARIAN PHO BROTH and a nice soup to boot.

If you're interested in a more traditional beef-based pho bo, here's my post Pho Who The Bell Tolls 

 which will give you the step by steps for creating that culinary delight.

I happen to have vegetarian/vegan/pescatarian offspring, so I came up with the vegetarian pho broth just for them.

This particular pho was made with my pescatarian in mind.

I started with my basic vegetarian pho broth and I'm adding in shrimp-stuffed wontons which I made potstickers out of and threw into my pho.  The wonton/potstickers would be just fine on their own as an appetizer, with appropriate dipping sauces, but they worked great as an added treat in the soup.

Shrimp-Stuffed Wontons/Potstickers

Marinade for shrimp:

1-inch knob ginger

1 garlic clove

3 TB soy sauce

1 TB rice vinegar

1 TB sugar

1 tsp toasted sesame oil

Finely chop the shrimp until it's almost paste-like.  You'll want enough shrimp for 1 cup. Run the ginger through a garlic press to extract juice and scrape some of the pulp to use.  Run the garlic through a press.

Whisk all ingredients together and pour over shrimp.  Let marinate at least 15 minutes.

Filling:

1 cup minced/finely chopped shrimp, marinated

1/2 cup finely chopped cabbage

1 TB finely chopped carrot

 Combine marinated shrimp, cabbage, and carrot.

Here are some step-by-steps:

This is a nifty little device that peels and de-tracks shrimp in one swift move.

And yes, I say de-tract, not de-vein.  That black line running down the back of the shrimp is the digestive tract, not a vein.

Just slip the point of the tool down the back of the shrimp, slide it down, and ...

... pull it up.  It pulls out the tract and pulls off the shell.

And now you have a nice little pile of shrimp.

You'll need a cup or so.

Mince 1/2 cup of cabbage and a tablespoon of carrot.

Finely chop up the shrimp so that it's almost a paste.

Marinate the shrimp.

Then mix with the cabbage and carrot.

Now get out your wonton sheets and start filling.

The key here is to not over-fill.

Brush water around the edges.

And press to seal.

Continue filling until you run out of ...  filling.

After a few of these, I got an idea.

Use the marinade, not water, to seal.

I had enough filling to make 18 wontons.

And yes, I know there are only 17 in the picture.

Made you count!

Now, for the potsticker part:

Pour in a film of peanut oil in a large skillet and turn heat to high.

Add wontons and fry on first side about a minute, until light golden.

Turn potstickers over and fry the other side about a minute

Then pour a little water in the pan, cover,and let cook/steam for a minute or two.

Now, you can serve the potstickers on their own, 

with a dipping sauce.

Dipping Sauce:

2 TB soy sauce

1 tsp chili garlic sauce

1 tsp sesame oil

1-inch chunk of fresh ginger

1 tsp sesame toasted sesame seeds

chopped scallions

Take the chunk of ginger, slice it into smaller pieces, then run it through a garlic press to extract the juice.  Scrape off some of the pulp to use too.  Combine with the rest of the ingredients.

For the soup, I thawed out a quart of my vegetable pho, heated it to a bare simmer,

and added in some shaved carrot, diagonally sliced celery, and a handful of frozen peas.  Heat through.  Serve with sliced scallions and toasted sesame seeds.  And a few stuffed wontons.

Some fresh cilantro is always nice.

Enjoy!