Ingredients

makes 36 wontons

　　

Crab Filling

Peanut oil, for frying

　　1-inch piece fresh ginger, grated

　　1 shallot, finely chopped

　　1/2 carrot, finely chopped

　　12 ounces Dungeness crabmeat, picked through for shells

　　1 green onion, finely chopped

　　2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro

　　2 tablespoons mayonnaise

　　Juice of 1/2 lemon

　　1 egg white

　　1 teaspoon cornstarch

　　1/4 teaspoon sea salt

　　1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper

　　1 (12-ounce) package square wonton wrappers

　　1 egg white, lightly beaten

　　Cornstarch, for dusting wontons

　　Dipping sauces (Sweet Chili, Soy Sauce with Ginger and Shallot, Chinese Mustard)

　　

Step 1

Heat a skillet over medium heat and hit it with a 1-count drizzle of oil. Sauté the ginger, shallot, and carrot for 2 minutes to soften. Put the crabmeat in a mixing bowl and scrape in the ginger mixture. Fold in the remaining ingredients and season with salt and pepper. Be careful not to mash the crabmeat—you want that texture when you bite into the wonton.

　　

Step 2

Lay a wonton wrapper on a flat surface and brush with the beaten egg white. Drop 1 tablespoon of the crab filling onto the center of the wrapper. Fold the wonton in half, corner to corner, to form a triangle. Press around the filling to knock out any air bubbles and then press the seam together to seal so the filling doesn’t seep out when fried. Lightly dust the filled wontons with cornstarch to keep them from sticking and place them on a cookie sheet.

　　

Step 3

In a wok or heavy pot, heat 2 to 3 inches of peanut oil over medium-high heat. The oil should take about 15 minutes to heat up. Sprinkle a tiny bit of cornstarch in the hot oil; if it sizzles, you are ready to go. If you feel more comfortable checking the temperature of the oil with an instant-read thermometer, it should read 350°F. Drop 5 wontons in the pot, one at a time so they don’t stick together, and fry for about 5 minutes, until crisp, turning frequently. Remove with a strainer or slotted spoon and drain on a plate lined with paper towels. Let the oil come back up to temperature and fry the remaining wontons. These are dynamite with all 3 of the sauces on page 128!

　　Reprinted with permission from Tyler Florence's Real Kitchen by Tyler Florence. © 2003 Clarkson Potter