• If using pork shoulder that doesn’t look very fatty, you may substitute one 1/3 of the shoulder meat with ground pork belly to help fatten it up. This is what I do sometimes to help plump up the pork and make it even tastier. 
• Always stir the pork mixture (or any dumpling or wonton filling) in one direction only either clockwise or counterclockwise. This helps tenderize the protein and break down the fibers which allows the meat to better absorb the liquid resulting in very tender, juicy cooked wontons. 
• If you don’t have mushroom soy sauce, you may substitute dark soy sauce.
• Do not over-fill the wontons. It’s tempting to want to load up on the filling, but these are different than dumplings and should be filled with less pork mixture. One package of 16-ounce wonton wrappers has anywhere between 60-67 wrappers. You should fill each one with just about one teaspoon of pork filling. That said, if you want to add just a bit more filling, don’t add more than 1 1/2 teaspoons per wrapper which will yield about 40 or so wontons. 
• I like to use a cornstarch slurry to seal wontons, but you can also just use water. For the slurry, add 1 tablespoon (10g) of cornstarch to a bowl with 1 1/2 tablespoons (17g) of water, and stir. Do not wet more than one half of the wonton wrapper (the “L” shape) because it may become too wet and make them tear.
• When removing the cooked wontons from the hot water, be sure to leave them just slightly wet so that when you add them to the bowl with sauce, just a tiny amount of starchy water gets mixed into the sauce. Do not allow too much water to get added to the sauce or you’ll dilute the flavor which would be really sad because it’s delicious.
• A quick note about Chinese sesame paste versus Tahini. If you make hummus, you’re probably already familiar with tahini which is a paste made from hulled raw sesame seeds that have been ground. Whereas Chinese sesame paste is made using toasted hulled ground sesame seeds which gives it a particularly nutty roasted flavor and makes the paste darker too. Using tahini doesn’t yield the same roasted in the final wonton sauce, but it still tastes good. 

6 Traditional Sichuan Tips & Techniques for Making the Best Chili Oil Wontons (see photos in main post)

Here are the most important tips for making authentic Sichuan spicy wontons I learned from the locals. It’s not rocket science and none of these tips are difficult to accomplish but truly great (not just “good” or “ok” wontons) depends on whether or not you use these 5 techniques.

• Grind and mince the pork yourself. Instead of buying pre-ground pork, freshly grinding it and/or mincing it yourself creates a far superior filling. And it really only takes just a few minutes to mince a piece of pork collar or shoulder using two sharp knives or a cleaver.

• Make Ginger-water (or ginger-scallion water). Ginger and also sometimes scallions are sliced, smashed, and added to cool tap water to infuse the water. Infusing the pork with ginger water (or ginger-scallion water) is a local Sichuanese trick for getting all the delicious ginger and scallion flavor into these notoriously tender wonton fillings without ever having to bite down on an actual piece of ginger or scallion. Once I was taught this trick, I never looked back. I use this technique in all of my dumpling recipes. It’s brilliant and in some ways akin to how Italians often use smashed whole garlic cloves to flavor sauces and ragùs, but then remove the cloves before serving the final pasta.

• Stir the pork filling in one direction only. Whipping the pork mixture vigorously and quickly in one direction for a solid 10 to 12 minutes breaks down the proteins and muscle fibers and transforms the pork mixture into a bouncy, pasty, tender filling (or shàng jìn). 

• Never add the ginger-water (or ginger-scallion water) all at once. The purpose of adding infused aromatic water (besides adding extra flavor) and whipping it as if your life depends on it, is to hydrate the pork and make it tender and juicy after being cooked. This must be done in at least 3 stages so the meat absorbs the water and plumps up. If you add the aromatic water all at once, the meat will not absorb it properly and will expel the liquid, which will be a watery mess. 

• Allow the wonton filling to marinate and chill for at least 30 minutes before filling the dumplings. Resting the pork mixture for a bit before filling the wontons allows the flavors to meld together. Simply cover and refrigerate it which also helps firm up the filling making the wontons a little easier to fill. Give everything a good stir before filling. 

• Make your own homemade Sichuan chili sauce (Xiangla Hongyou 香辣红油). This chili sauce is super easy to make and it’s worth it because the roasted toasty fragrant oil is crunchy and delicious (and can be eaten on just about anything). If you don’t want to make your own, just buy the best Chinese brand available. 

How to Fold Wontons (step-by-step photos in main post)

1. Place a wonton wrapper in the palm of your hand and add a small amount of filling (about 1 1/2 teaspoons) to the center. Using water or a cornstarch slurry, lightly wet one entire L-shaped corner of the wrapper and fold the wrapper to form a triangle. 
2. Seal the wrapper closed pressing down gently right next to the filling all the way around the wonton to press out any air. *If you don’t press out the air, the wontons will open up while boiling and be ruined.
3. Make an indention in the middle of the wonton using your finger to crease it.
4. Bring one of the hanging “side flaps” over the top of the other “flap”, add a dot of water or slurry, and press the two “flaps” together to seal. Place sealed wontons on a parchment-lined baking tray lightly dusted with cornstarch so they don’t stick together. 

How to Freeze Extra Wontons For Quick & Easy 10-Minute Meals

You may be wondering if it’s possible to freeze wontons and you’ll be happy to know that it’s not only possible, it’s encouraged. This recipe makes just about 6 servings of 10 wontons per person which means you can freeze the wontons you don’t cook right away. To freeze wontons, place them onto a parchment-lined tray sprinkled with a little cornstarch and pop it into the freezer. Freeze the wontons completely (this takes about 45 minutes). When they are frozen solid you can add them to a freezer bag and store them in the freezer for up to 3 months.

When you want to eat wontons simply add them frozen directly to boiling water or broth and cook for 6 to 8 minutes, or until cooked through. Do not thaw frozen wontons first before cooking them because this will cause them to break and tear open because of the moisture.