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Classic Chinese inspired wonton soup is made easily at home with store-bought wontons simmered in a warming soy sauce based broth. Add fresh flavor with ginger and garlic. Add color with charred baby bok choy. I like to finish each bowl off with an addicting toasted sesame chili oil spooned over top. Perfect for cold nights when you’re craving a wonton soup, but don’t want to leave home.
I hate to talk about the weather…but I’m going to talk about the weather…for just a second. Because it’s one of the reasons this recipe came to be. It’s been COLD here, I’m talking well below zero at night. Clear sunny skies during the day, bring cold, bone-chilling, temperatures at night.
The only thing I’ve been wanting to make is soup. I’ve had wonton soup on my “to make” recipe list now for months. Asher spurred on the idea with her newfound obsession over wonton soup, but I just hadn’t gotten around to making it until now.
To be honest, I’m not sure I’ve ever had wonton soup from takeout before. Well, maybe when I was a kid from this spot that we used to go to in Rocky River. But I don’t really remember wonton soup ever being a part of my diet. So to be fair, I can’t really say this is better than takeout. But I can say it’s really darn delicious and the easiest to put together.
A few months ago, Asher asked me if I could make wonton soup. When she asked, I was shocked she even knew what wonton soup was, and even more shocked that she had enjoyed a bowl. As far as kids go, Asher is what I would call an OK eater. She can be very, very picky, but if she’s in the right mood, I can get her to try new things…especially if there is a chocolate chip cookie in her future.
I will say that she’s not afraid of a vegetable, she actually really enjoys them, so that’s great! Maybe she’s more than an OK eater then, huh? When it comes to anything spicy, she usually will not try it. But the girl loves soup and she loves anything salty, so I guess it makes sense that she’d love wonton soup.
I made this one with her in mind, which is a first for an HBH recipe. I left the chili oil for serving so that everyone can use it to their taste.
The verdict? DELICIOUS.
I served this the other night for my mom’s birthday (along with cake…of course) and both Asher and mom enjoyed not one, but two bowls. Even my dad enjoyed a bowl, and he’s not one to love soup.
‘Twas a hit with the whole fam.
Here are the details, this one is quick.
All in all, most wonton soups are very simple and basic. The broth and wontons are the star, but I made the vegetables a little extra special too.
For the wontons, I recommend using store-bought to keep things quick and easy. Both Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s have a really nice selection, especially if you live in a larger city. I try to always keep frozen wontons in the freezer for quick and easy dinners. Every time I run out, they get added to my grocery list. We cook them up a lot. They’re great for busy nights when you just don’t feel like cooking.
Of course, if you’re feeling like making wonton soup completely from scratch, make a batch of either these ginger chicken dumplings, or a batch of these mushroom dumplings. They’re my favorite and easier than you’d think to make! You just need an extra half hour.
Once you have your wonton situation figured out, start in on the soup.
The one thing I like to do, that isn’t traditional, is to char my vegetables before adding in any broth. Most wonton soup recipes just toss everything right into the broth, but I think it adds so much more flavor to give things a little char first, especially the bok coy. It takes on a whole new flavor that’s so delicious. The char adds so much, so don’t skip this step.
Then everything else goes into the pot. I use lots of fresh ginger, garlic, and shallots, toss in some mushrooms, and then added the broth. To keep things easy I boiled the wontons right in the soup, then seasoned it with soy sauce and rice vinegar.
If you don’t plan on eating the soup all at once, I would boil the wontons separately to ensure they don’t get too soggy while sitting in the soup’s broth.
Now the toppings…
This soup is traditionally topped pretty simply with green onions. Sometimes chili oil and shrimp paste are used in the street style versions.
For my wonton soup, I did lots of green onions, homemade chili oil, and toasted sesame seeds.
I love a little chili oil on top of Asian inspired recipes. I’m always mixing them up and creating new combinations, but I think this chili oil will become a new go-to. The one secret ingredient? A splash of balsamic vinegar adds just the right amount of tanginess that balances the spice so well.
FAQ:
Can I use frozen store-bought wontons?
Yes—add them straight from the freezer and simmer gently until translucent and floating. Taste the broth after they cook; some brands are saltier.
How do I keep wontons from falling apart?
Maintain a gentle simmer (not a boil) and stir occasionally to prevent sticking. Add greens at the end so you’re not over-cooking the pot.
Can I make this vegetarian?
Use vegetable broth and veggie-filled wontons (or mushroom-ginger wontons). A splash of soy and a little white pepper helps mimic depth.
What’s the best way to freeze for later?
Freeze uncooked wontons on a tray, then bag. Store broth separately; when ready, simmer broth and cook wontons from frozen so they stay tender.
Looking for more Better Than Takeout Style recipes? Here are a few favorites:
Better Than Takeout Dan Dan Noodles
Better Than Takeout Szechuan Noodles with Sesame Chili Oil
Lastly, if you make this 25 Minute Wonton Soup with Sesame Chili Oil, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
25 Minute Wonton Soup with Sesame Chili Oil
Servings: 4
Calories Per Serving: 327 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons sesame oil or extra virgin olive oil
- 4 baby bok choy, halved, or 1 bunch kale
- 2 medium shallots, chopped
- 1 cup sliced shiitake mushrooms
- 2 cloves garlic, minced or grated
- 1 inch fresh ginger, peeled and grated
- 6 cups low sodium chicken or vegetable broth
- 3 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce or tamari
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 20-30 fresh or frozen wontons/dumplings, or potstickers (they all work!)
- green onions and toasted sesame seeds, for serving
Chili Oil
- 1/4 cup toasted sesame oil
- 1-2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 teaspoon low-sodium soy sauce or tamari
- 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
Instructions
- 1. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the bok choy and cook 3-4 minutes until charred on the edges. Transfer to a plate.2. To the same Dutch oven, add 1 tablespoon oil, the mushrooms, shallots, garlic, and ginger. Cook 3-5 minutes, until fragrant. Stir in the broth and bring to a boil over high heat. Add the wontons and cook until they float, 2-3 minutes. Stir in the bok choy, soy sauce, and rice vinegar. Remove from the heat. 3. To make the chili oil: combine everything in a small bowl. 4. Divide the bok choy between bowls, then ladle the soup over. Top each bowl with green onions. Serve the chili oil on the side.
This post was originally published on January 13, 2021
Our family loves this recipe! We’ve been making it for years and always come back to it. Thanks for sharing it with us. 🙂
Hi Rebecca,
Amazing! Thank you so much for making this recipe so often:) Love to hear it was enjoyed!
Its okay, kinda bland but this is what you would expect from a wonton soup. My family likes bold flavors which is why we absolutely LOVE your Thai soup recipe and we’ll have to just stick with that!
Hey Lindsay! Thank you so much for your input, I really appreciate it! Always feel free to add more seasonings and spices to your taste! 🙂 xT
This is a go to recipe in our house, it’s a part of our regular rotation especially when it’s bok choy season. Even my 2 yr old son loves it. W like to add carrots for some extra veggies.
Hey Laura,
Wonderful! Thank you so much for making this recipe so often, love to hear it is always a hit! Have the best weekend:)
This was excellent! So flavorful and delicious!
I followed the recipe but added shrimp cut into bite sized pieces and used chicken cilantro wontons. I always use Better than Bullion for my broth and it has such an amazing flavor. We also used Chili crunch oil because I had it. So easy. Definitely a keeper!
Hey Genevieve,
Thanks so much for making this recipe! Love to hear it turned out well for you:) Have the best week! xxT
This was so good that my husband got mad when I told him we had to save the leftovers for our daughter who is coming home from college. Okay, not actually mad. But certainly not happy! Thanks for the delicious recipe!
Hi Keely,
Love to hear this! Thanks a lot for making this recipe and your comment! Have a nice day:) xxT
I was looking for a recipe for a broth that would transform my leftover stir fry into a nice soup. I used this recipe to make the broth and the chili oil and it was fabulous! I will use this recipe again, but next time, if using leftovers, I will put the leftovers into the individual bowls and ladle the hot broth over them. By simmering the already cooked stir fry in the broth, the veggies and rice noodles got a bit too soft.
Hi Michelle,
Happy New Year!🥳 Thanks so much for trying this recipe and sharing your feedback, love to hear it turned out well for you! xx
My soup turned out to be lacking in flavor… maybe needed more salt? Followed the recipe to the T. Loved that the bok choy is sauteed first to bring out its flavor. What really saved the soup was adding the chili oil to my serving. I will keep this recipe and give it another try by adding some additional ingredients as mentioned in other reviews.
Hi Amy,
Thanks so much for trying this recipe and sharing your feedback! So sorry to hear about the flavor, let me know if you try again and what helps! xx
A lot of these simpler broths are what you would reasonably what you would get in a restaurant. But to amplify the flavor, there are a few tricks many restaurant and home cooks alike use in the soup-making process:
– dried shrimp / dried scallop / dried flounder: each of these adds their own flavor to the broth; I especially like scallop but it’s a tad pricey, so I usually end up using shrimp instead.
– mushroom / chicken bouillon / MSG: yes, yes, cheater, cheater, pumpkin-eater. But flavor enhancers exist for that very reason–to enhance the flavor! You can find bouillon with other enhancers than MSG, but unless you’re actually allergic, just a dash won’t do you in.
– dried shiitake mushrooms: add these as part of your simmering ingredients. Whether you use them after they’re plump is up to you; I typically discard them since I never want mushrooms in my soup. But they do add a certain heartiness and meatiness (not to mention natural glutamates), so give them a try.
I just finished eating this and I’ll make it again. I always read reviews, but attempt to make a recipe exactly as written the 1st time, *but,* as an *experienced* home cook, sometimes I choose to add more of an ingredient, as I did with this one.
I love shrooms but shitakes are expensive. Therefore, I used one, 8oz, container of sliced button shrooms -most stems removed – and about 1.25-1.5oz shitakes, then removed the stems (this recipe doesn’t specify this, but it *should* bc they’re tough & inedible) then sliced. *Tbh, I’m not sure purchasing shitake shrooms is worth the cost for this recipe bc it’s hard to distinguish the flavor of the shrooms in the broth, along w/the other flavors.*
To veggify the recipe a bit more I added more bok choy. I couldn’t find the baby variety, so I bought reg sized bok choy & used the amt I wanted, which equates to approximately 1.5 reg/med sized stalks, AND 1 med carrot, thinly sliced.
I like more broth, so I used 2 (32oz) cartons of *low* sodium chicken broth (2 cups more than recipe indicates). This is *critical,* both if u are sensitive to salt, and bc u can control the salinity more if u use low/reduced/no salt added broth.
U can always add more salt, but u can NOT take it away later. And, bc this soup uses soy sauce, u DEF don’t want to think about adding salt until u taste it, after the last steps.
On that note, *always* use LOW sodium soy sauce bc, again, u can always add more salt later, but u can’t take it away.
Lastly, bc of my budget restrictions, I couldn’t afford to purchase toasted sesame oil on top of the bottle of regular sesame oil I needed for this recipe. Therefore, I didn’t make the chili oil garnish (I read several reviews stating they didn’t add this and it was good, despite that, and it was!).
I’m certain this soup could *only* be *better* with the chili oil garnish, *BUT,* it’s yummy without it.
So, hopefully my thorough review helps folks who want to healthily a recipe by adding more veggies, as well as those on a budget who may need to eliminate an ingredient/garnish and still end up eith a great dish.
Hey Natalie,
Wow! Thank you so much for sharing your detailed notes on what worked best for you with this recipe. Thank you so much for making it! Love to hear it was enjoyed! Have the best week! xT
Shittake mushrooms are not that expensive. Especially if you go to an Asian market.
Can this be frozen? Thanks!
Hi Sara,
I really would just freeze the broth and then add frozen wontons when you heat the soup up. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
Love this recipe! I’ve made it a few times now and it has such good flavor!!
Hey Rebecca,
Happy Thursday! Thanks so much for trying this recipe, I’m so glad to hear it was enjoyed! Xx
Omg this is fantastic!
Thank you Laura! xT