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So last week I was on this Asian kick – chicken eggrolls, wonton soup, Asian lettuce ups and crab rangoons.
“Rangoon? Well that’s a funny word.” I mean I know what a goon is… lord knows I’ve called enough guys from my past goons but I didn’t get the correlation between the impish boys to a to-die-for dish.
Thus I went to Mr. Google. Yes, I think Google is a guy but that’s a whole other story.
Real quick history lesson here peeps…
Rangoon is the former capital of Burma. This incredible appetizer is allegedly derived from Burmese cuisine. However the history of crab rangoon is unclear, cream cheese, like other cheese, is essentially nonexistent in Southeast Asian and Chinese cuisine, so it is unlikely that the dish is actually of east or southeast Asian origin. Which leads to more than likely it was some person’s way to ‘Asian-ize’ an American appetizer.
Cool huh?
Yeah, I didn’t think so either…lol I mean really, fess up.. you only care about getting your hands on this incredible recipe so you can make 45 of them for yourself this weekend *wink* LOL Trust me, I’d be the same way! And if I were Mr. Fantabulous and you has this recipe, I’d be on your front door waiting for you to make them 🙂 He loves them THAT much!
Now when I first made these, I baked them as we almost never eat fried foods. But I wasn’t thrilled with out the wonton itself turned out. When they first came out of the oven they were golden brown and crispy but since you CANNOT eat these ‘tings straight out of the oven for fear of melting the entire roof of your mouth and tongue because the filling is volcano-hot, you have to let them cool slightly. Well the issue is as the wontons cool, they become hard. Like REAL hard to the point where you can’t bite into them. So I need to go back to the drawing board for these and I think I know how to fix this but I haven’t tested it and by now you know I never EVER put out a recipe unless I feel that I’ve perfected it. This is one area where my perfectionist personality is a true asset.
Anyway, while the filling was killer, the shell wasn’t. So the next night I deep fried them…
Well people let me tell you what… if I were not married to Mr. Fantabulous already he would have dropped to one knee, grabbed my hand, mouth stuffed full of these and mumbled “Whill eww mahrre mweee???” LOL (yeah… say it outloud.. you’ll get it) right in the kitchen after his first bite of these. Yes.. these are Proposal-Worthy! They are THAT good!
See that plate of what 16 crab rangoons??? Yeah.. I had to make this 1 hour AFTER we had a full dinner. My honey craves these! He ate all but 2 of them (only because I asked him to save me 2).
Oh yeah.. he did save me the ‘greens’ as he said “Honey, it’s always important to eat your veggies with every meal.” Gee thanks honey.. “Mmm… let me nosh on these minced green onions…” LOL
PrintBetter than any Chinese restaurant’s Crab Rangoon!!!
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Ingredients
- 8oz package cream cheese
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 cup sliced green onions (whites and greens)
- 1 cup of chopped crab, picked clean of shells (I prefer jumbo lump)
- 25 to 30 wonton squares or 8 egg roll wrappers cut into quarters
- A little water to seal the wontons together
- Canola oil for deep frying – enough to make 1 1/2″ deep in a heavy bottomed pot.
Instructions
- In a heavy bottomed pot, add enough canola oil to make it 1 1/2″ deep. Heat on medium high heat until the oil reaches between 360-370F. The oil needs to be fairly hot so that it cooks the wonton skins quickly. This results in less of the cream cheese seeping out while it fries.
- While the oil is heating up mix together the cream cheese, crab, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne, sea salt, black pepper and green onions.
- Lay out the wontons on a flat surface.Place a tsp of the crab mixture in the center of the wonton.
- Dip your finger in water and wet all four edges of the wonton. Fold it over, into a triangle. Pull the two bottom points down, wet the tips and press them together.
- If you want you can make 8 at a time but I would recommend covering the unfried ones with a damp paper towel to prevent from drying out. If they do crack from being dry, wet the crack lightly and you should be able to ‘stick’ it back together.
- CAREFULLY put in the hot oil and fry between 1-2 minutes or until golden brown.
- Using a metal slotted spoon or tongs, remove from the oil and drain on paper towels.
- Serve with your favorite sauce (I prefer duck sauce).
Lori
Do you think these can be made in an air fryer?The look yummy 😋
Hi Robin!
Absolutely! Assemble per the directions and place in a preheated 370F air fryer. Lightly coat them with oil and bake for about 10 minutes, open and carefully turn them and cook for another 3-4 minutes.
Best Kitchen Wishes!
AND… do you think you could put them together, put them in a cupcake pan (uncooked), and then pop them in the freezer? Only to bring out and pop into the oven at 10 o’clock at night? :o)
Yep but you don’t need a cupcake pan to hold them. Just take a cookie sheet, line it with parchment paper and place the shaped/filled rangoons on the pan, leaving a 1/2″ space between each (you don’t want them to touch). Pop the pan in the freezer for an hour (or until frozen solid) and then place them in a freezer bag or container and cook whenever… like 10pm at night 🙂 To bake them follow the instructions/temp for the baked version (http://www.thekitchenwhisperer.net/2012/09/23/better-than-any-chinese-restaurants-crab-rangoon-baked-version/) adding in a few extra minutes due to them being frozen.
Best Kitchen Wishes!
★★★★★
Do you think this recipe would work with imitation crab?
Oooh, my mind just went on a wander: bbq/pulled pork? or roast beef slivers, blue cheese crumbles and cream cheese?
Hi Jeannine!
Yes, you can use imitation crab. It’s all good!
And yes you can use the other flavor combos (well minus the cucka bleu cheese… LOL I hate that stuff).
Best Kitchen Wishes!
★★★★★