How to Wrap a Wanton?

Photo: home-made wantons with mushroom and ham in carrot & soya bean

soup served with chinese cabbage and and fried ikan bilis (anchovies)

In the past, a common prejudice Malaysians have against Singapore food is how awful its wanton noodle tasted. Unlike the Malaysian version which comes with a thick black sauce, the Singapore version is seved with tomato ketchup! So, I avoided eating wanton noodles for many years. But I am glad to note that things have changed in the recent years. Increasingly, more and more stalls are selling the Malaysian version.

I can even recommend several stalls in Singapore that sell good wanton noodles. For example, Happy Wanton Noodle at Bt Timah Food Centre serves springy noodles with generous portion of well roasted and lean char siew (left photo). The pickled green chillies are also freshly made and crunchy. Another stall which my wife likes to patronize is in the Clementi Food Centre. However, we think the famous stall at Lavender Food Centre is overrated and expensive. The portion is really small.

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However, even with stalls that sell good wanton noodles, the accompanied dumplings (wantons) are usually measly. Also, the minced meat that goes into making the fillings tend to come from fatty parts of the pork. Each time when I crave for wantons, I will ask my wife to make some. Not only does her wantons are filled generously, they are wrapped nicely. Also, I can trust the fillings which are made of lean meat that we grind ourselves. And to give an extra "oomph" (flavor) to the fillings, she will add some dried fish (which is first toasted and pounded into powder) to the fillings.

Below is a video clip of my wife wrapping wantons: