Thin & Chewy Homemade Wonton Wrappers (Using All-Purpose Flour)

Seriously, when you see just how easy it is to make homemade wonton wrappers, you'll never again be disappointed when your local grocery store runs out (or just doesn't carry them). With just a few easy steps, you'll be filling these chewy, tender wrappers with anything you want.

GOOD TO KNOW: This all-purpose flour version is the one most people reach for, since it uses pantry staples you probably already have. If you keep bread flour on hand, there's also a bread flour wonton dough variation further down the post that I personally prefer for its sturdier, easier-to-roll texture. Both work great, so use the recipe based on whichever flour you've got.🤗

They're so quick and convenient to use when you're in the mood for homemade Chinese food. I love these premade wrappers, but like most of you, I've been in a situation where the grocery store was out of stock or didn't sell them at all.

Which is a bummer when you're really craving Chinese food and have no good takeout options. Making homemade wonton wrappers is not only necessary sometimes, but they also taste really good. 

Wontons are a style of dumpling that typically uses a square-shaped wrapper to enclose a meat or vegetable filling. Sometimes they include egg (which gives them a slight yellow hue, like in this recipe).

They're steamed, boiled, or fried (think crispy wonton strips in egg drop soup). In the Sichuan province where I lived for 4 years, wontons are often served on top of heaping spoonfuls of spicy wonton sauce, and then gently tossed to coat (see photos below) -- this is my absolute favorite way to eat wontons.

Dumplings vs. Wontons - What's the Difference

HINT: Prefer bread flour? There's a bread flour wonton dough variation below that I personally reach for. You can't go wrong with this all-purpose version, though, especially when bread flour isn't in your pantry.

The obvious difference is, of course, the shape. Dumplings are typically formed using round wrappers, and wontons using square wrappers. But there's a little more to it than that. Here are a few important factors that set these two styles of wrappers apart.

Ingredients

Standard dumpling dough is typically made using just 2 ingredients: flour and water (sometimes a little salt is added). And wonton dough is often made with the addition of eggs.

Thickness & Texture

Dumpling wrappers are usually thicker than wontons and have a little more "chew" to them. Whereas a good wonton (according to my Sichuan family and friends) must be paper-thin. 

No matter what, a good dumpling or wonton should have a pleasant chew to it.

Shape

Dumplings typically use round wrappers, and wontons usually use square, rectangular, or triangular wrappers. 

Both types of wrappers can be shaped into a multitude of different designs depending on the region, type, or style of the dumpling recipe being used.

Uses

Dumplings and wontons can be used interchangeably in some recipes, like potstickers, for instance, but for other recipes, like Shanghai Soup Dumplings, dumpling dough is the standard and much easier to use in my opinion. 

How to Make Homemade Wonton Wrappers from Scratch Step-by-Step

If you're curious about Chinese wontons or live in a place without a well-stocked Asian grocery store or takeout food options, you can still get your wonton fix by making your own. Here's how to make them step-by-step:

Step 1. Make the wonton dough. In a large bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment), add the flour and salt and stir to combine. Add the beaten egg and stir well to incorporate it (it'll be a shaggy mess at this point).

Slowly add the water, 1 tablespoon at a time, then, as it starts coming together, add only about 1 teaspoon at a time, until the mixture just forms a ball. This is a fairly stiff dough, so go slowly and stop adding water as soon as it holds together.

NOTE: If your dough is too soft, the wontons will lack structure and will be difficult to fold and hold their shape once you've filled them.

Step 2. Lightly knead the dough & rest it. If kneading the dough by hand, remove the stiff dough round from the mixing bowl and knead it for about 2 minutes. Place it back into the bowl, cover it, and allow it to rest at room temperature for 10 minutes (this helps the gluten relax and makes it easier to knead by hand).

If using a stand mixer with the dough hook attachment, you can skip letting it rest and begin kneading it right away.

Step 3. Fully knead the dough & rest it.  Knead the dough in the mixer using the dough hook attachment on speed 2 for 10 minutes (or by hand for about 12 minutes) until the dough is smooth and pliable. Cover the dough and rest it for at least 30 minutes.

Step 4. Roll out the wonton wrappers. Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces. Working with one piece at a time, on a lightly cornstarch-dusted workspace, roll the dough out into a rectangle or circle about ¼ inch thick (about the same as pie crust thickness).

Dust it with cornstarch and fold it like a business letter. Cover it with sustainable cling film while you roll the remaining three pieces of dough, repeating the same steps for each. Rest the covered dough for 30 minutes.

NOTE: This is a fairly stiff dough. If it feels too stiff or keeps curling and snapping back while you try to roll it out, the gluten just needs more time to relax. Cover it with sustainable cling film and let it rest even longer; it is fine to rest the dough for up to an hour before rolling.

Step 5. Cut the wonton wrappers. Remove one piece of rested dough onto a lightly dusted workspace and unfold it. Sprinkle it with a little flour and roll it out to ⅛ inch thick (paper-thin like the photo below), dusting with more flour as you need to keep it from sticking.

Using a pizza wheel cutter or a knife, cut the dough into 3-inch (8cm) squares. Repeat with the remaining dough. Save the scrap pieces to be used as noodles in soup, or fry them to make delicious crispy wontons, and Enjoy!

Hint: If your dough seems too soft or sticky, add more flour until you reach the right consistency. If your dough seems too dry, wet your hands and work the dough to incorporate a little water at a time until you reach the desired consistency.

Bread Flour Variation

This bread flour wonton dough (some cooks call the wrappers wonton paper or wonton pastry) has a bit more chew to it. Bread flour has more protein, so the wrappers come out a little sturdier and perhaps a little easier to roll, fill, and seal. You make it exactly like the all-purpose version above, just with these amounts:

• 2 cups bread flour (240g)
• 2 large eggs, lightly whisked (100g)
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt (3g)
• 4 to 6 tablespoons warm water (60g to 88g)
• bread flour or cornstarch for rolling out and dusting the wrappers

Everything else stays the same: mix, lightly knead and rest, fully knead, roll, fold like a business letter, rest, then cut into 3-inch squares.

The goal is a good dough-to-filling ratio that lets you seal the edges easily, pressing out any trapped air without the filling seeping out. From here, you can fold the wrappers into the traditional Chinese wonton shape (steps below) or leave them as flat triangular potstickers.

How to Fold Wontons

How to fold a wonton into the traditional Sichuan shape:

1. Place a small amount of filling just off-center on the wonton wrapper. The egg in the dough makes it slightly tacky and easy to seal, but if the edges feel dry, dab them with a little water.
2. Fold the wrapper over the filling corner to corner to make a triangle. Press out any trapped air, then press the edges firmly to seal so the filling stays put.
3. Bring the two wide corners of the triangle together around the tip of your finger, overlap them slightly, and pinch to seal, dabbing with a little water if they need help sticking. That overlap is what gives a Sichuan wonton its classic folded shape.
4. For flat triangular potstickers instead, stop after step 2 and leave the sealed triangle as is.

If you are making potstickers, you can usually get away with adding a little more filling, but remember, a little filling goes a long way.

How to Make Fun Wonton Shapes with Cookie Cutters

The traditional fold above is the classic, but it is not the only way to shape a wonton. Once you can roll and cut the wrappers, you can turn them into almost any shape, and a cookie cutter makes it easy. This is a fun one to do with kids or for a holiday like Valentine's Day. Here are a few of my favorites.

Heart-Shaped Wontons

Roll the dough thin and cut out hearts with a cookie cutter. Place a little filling in the center of one heart, top it with a second heart, and press the edges to seal, crimping with a fluted pastry wheel or the tines of a fork for a decorative edge. They seal like a tiny ravioli, which I love since I am rolling pasta all the time here in Italy.

Broken-Heart Wontons

For a broken heart, cut and fill a heart the same way, then run a fluted wheel straight down the center so it looks split in two. A fun anti-Valentine's or Galentine's touch.

Dumpling and Classic Shapes

You can also pleat these wrappers into classic dumpling shapes or use the traditional folded wonton from the steps above. Mix and match on one tray for a pretty spread.

Shaped wontons cook just like the standard ones. Boil them in soup or broth, steam them in a bamboo steamer, or pan-fry them into crisp-bottomed potstickers. Cook them to a safe internal temperature (see the food safety notes below).

Homemade Wonton Wrappers in Action (with Photos)

Recipes to Use Homemade Wonton Wrappers Plus More Tasty Dim Sum Dishes

If you're looking for a few other dishes to round out your takeout night in, below are a few of our favorites we think you may also enjoy.

Food Safety

Because this wonton wrapper dough contains raw flour and raw egg, a few safe-handling steps matter.

• Do not taste or eat the raw dough. Raw flour and raw egg can carry bacteria such as E. coli and Salmonella, which are only destroyed by cooking.
• Cook filled wontons fully. The wrappers themselves cook in a minute or two, but the filling is the thing to watch. Cook to a safe internal temperature of 165°F (74°C) for poultry fillings and 160°F (71°C) for ground pork or beef.
• Keep raw filled wontons cold. Refrigerate or freeze them promptly instead of leaving them at room temperature, and cook frozen wontons straight from the freezer.
• Wash your hands, utensils, and work surfaces after handling raw dough and raw fillings.

For current safe-handling and temperature guidance, see the USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) Safe Minimum Internal Temperature Chart.