There are easy dinners, and then there are stupid easy dinners. This is the latter. I’m not even kidding guys, you are 10 minutes away from incredible Asian wonton soup. Savory broth, tender wontons, crunchy cashews, and even some veggies for the healthy factor. Make this any time you want to feel nourished AND delighted. Originally published April 23, 2014.
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YOU. GUYS.
My sister Nikki sent this text to our family last week: “That agent, ____, offered me representation today. I’m so excited!!!”
Some of you may remember the post where I bragged about how Nikki’s novel won the Grand Prize for All Categories at a writing conference she attended. Well now she’s all growed up and has an agent of her own! She’s one step closer to getting published!!
I’ve been reading Nikki’s YA novel, Shatter, since it’s infancy, and I’m not at all a biased, adoring little sister when I say that I knew from the start that someday Nikki was not only going to be published, but launched into the fame and riches that comes with authorship. Writers have always made tons of money, right??
Her news induced an epic family texting war, a few of us mostly in the game to annoy the crap out of our siblings at work. The issue was who had texted Nikki back to congratulate her first (I’m in green):
(For the record guys, I was first.)
But anyway, back to Nikki’s awesome news. Getting signed with an agent is BIG. She’s been working hard for this for a long time. To share her excitement, this week she is hosting a $35 Barnes and Noble giveaway on her blog. Her novel is a mystery, so naturally you have to solve a (simple!) clue to enter. Click here for the clue to guess her agent’s name (and see naked people celebrating!) Congratulations Nikki!!!
You’ll love this easy wonton soup recipe
What’s NOT to love about this stuff?!? Let’s make a list of its best features:
- Ready in 10 minutes. See ya later 30 minute meals, we’re making dinner so fast it should be illegal (I’m kidding, please nobody make it illegal).
- Made with pantry ingredients. Your decently well-stocked Asian pantry comes to the rescue again, plus a couple things from a freezer and some baby spinach.
- So easy to modify. Don’t have spinach, but you’ve got carrots? Great, we’re in business. The same can be said for almost any leftover veggies hanging out in the fridge.
- Packed with flavor. Ginger, sweet chili sauce, soy sauce, sesame oil, rice vinegar. We are talking alllll the salty/sweet/spicy flavors your heart desires.
Wonton Soup Recipe with Frozen Wontons
Let me introduce you to My New Favorite Dinner. I have made this soup 4 times already since I discovered it a few weeks ago, and obviously I cook a lot, so that’s saying something. It’s amazing, and it literally takes 10 minutes. I got the recipe from the lovely Liz over at The Lemon Bowl. She calls it 5 minute Wonton Soup, but I’m knife-challenged and it takes me 5 minutes just to mince ginger, so I upped it to 10 minutes. But I promise it is super fast.
And adaptable! That’s the best part, besides the awesome flavor. Liz’s version has kale and mushrooms, I used spinach and peas. Take a look in your veggie drawer or freezer and throw in whatever you have. Add rice or noodles to beef it up if you want. Green onions, carrots, or sesame seeds would be great additions. You can add several dashes of sriracha or any hot sauce in lieu of sweet chili sauce. Or just leave it out. (I mean, if you’re a wuss.)
If I keep wontons in my freezer (which I most certainly will now!) I usually have everything on hand to make this soup. It’s an oh-crap-I-forgot-dinner-again lifesaver. (Forget is the wrong word. More like “I’m-in-denial-about-dinner-again.”) Check out Liz’s post on How to Stock Your Pantry for Asian Cooking if the ingredients don’t look familiar to you. Asian cooking is a flavorful way to eat healthy.
Easy Wonton Soup Ingredients
Here’s a quick list of the ingredients in this recipe so you can add them to your shopping list. Scroll down to the recipe card below for full ingredients and instructions!
- Chicken broth
- Soy sauce
- Rice vinegar
- Sesame oil
- Sweet chili sauce
- Fresh ginger
- Frozen wontons
- Frozen peas
- Baby spinach
- Cilantro
- Cashews (for garnish)
How to Make Wonton Soup with Frozen Wontons
This soup is sooooo easy, but I’m going to give you a quick overview anyway! Jump to the recipe card at the bottom of the post for complete instructions.
- Add your chicken broth, soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, sweet chili sauce, and the ginger to a large pot and bring to a boil.
- Add the wontons, frozen peas, and baby spinach. Warm through.
- Serve with cashews and cilantro, that’s it! Phew, dinner is DONE.
How long to boil frozen wontons
Frozen wontons make a FAST soup, because they only need to be boiled for 3 minutes. This is true even if you’re making them by themselves and not adding them to a soup.
What to Serve with Wonton Soup
Wonton soup makes a great complete meal, but you can also offer it as the first course of a fancier dinner or serve it alongside other tasty Asian-inspired choices. Here are some of my favorites!
Easy Sesame Noodles with Spring Veggies >> add any veggies you want, these noodles are so incredibly good.
Copycat P.F. Chang’s Lettuce Wraps >> just as iconic at home as they are at the restaurant.
Asian Pork Tenderloin (Slow Cooker) >> If you’re a carnivore like me this is where it’s at.
Marinated Asian Cucumber Salad >> fresh! Light! Ideal for your soup and salad combo.
Banh Mi Sandwich >> have you ever had a banh mi? One of my favorite sandwiches ever.
Sheet Pan Chicken Fried Rice >> I love fried rice, and I love how easy it is to make on one pan.
How to Store this Wonton Soup Recipe
Wonton soup can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Don’t add the chopped cashews until you’re garnishing individual bowls or they’ll get mushy.
I don’t recommend freezing this soup – you’d have to re-freeze the wontons and peas. Fortunately, this is a ten-minute soup, so just keeping the frozen wontons and peas on hand ensures a quick meal when you need it.
Frozen wonton soup FAQs
Wonton soup can be made of any broth you want. Here we’re using chicken broth but you could totally use beef broth, or vegetable broth. I always like using Better than Bouillon because it’s so high quality and easy to store in the fridge (they make beef, chicken, and vegetable bouillon bases, so anything is possible).
Wonton soup is packed with peas and spinach in a hot and hydrating broth. Depending on the wontons you use, they may contain more or less sodium. They’re processed, but they can also be low fat and high protein. Life is a balancing act and this soup is a fast, homemade dinner with veggies in it. I call that a solid win.
If you cook your wontons too long they’ll fall apart. They only need 3 minutes! Once that 3 minutes is up, take the soup off the heat so you don’t overcook them.
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Easy Wonton Soup
Ingredients
- 6 cups chicken broth, regular or low sodium
- ¼ cup soy sauce, regular or low sodium
- 3 tablespoons rice vinegar*
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon Sweet Chili Sauce
- 1 tablespoon ginger, fresh, minced
- 2 cups frozen wontons, like the ones sold at Costco or Trader Joe’s**
- 1 & 1/2 cups frozen peas
- 2 cups baby spinach, packed
- 1/2 cup cilantro, fresh, or more, chopped
- cashews, roughly chopped, to garnish each bowl
Instructions
- Add the chicken broth to a medium-large pot and set over high heat. Add the soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, sweet chili sauce, and the ginger. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally.
- When it is boiling, add the wontons, frozen peas, and baby spinach. Continue to cook over high heat for about 3 minutes until the wontons are warmed through.
- Remove from heat and stir in cilantro (or sprinkle it over each bowl). Serve the soup with chopped cashews.
So unauthentic but oh so divine: I unfortunately had to tamper with your recipe to go with I had. Subbed spinach with tiny bok choy, frozen peas with canned tiny peas, sweet chili sauce with spicy chili crisp and wontons with pot stickers. Made a Charlatan out of me and added roasted ground Sichuan peppercorns, 3 huge cloves garlic, 2 almost hard boiled eggs. Fabulous. And YES, your recipe is (still) very much present. Thank you. Again and again. ALL your recipes are wonderful!
Thank you Karen for being with me all year. I have made many of your wonderfull recipes. Fudge being the latest. Took the fudge across the country with me. Since I was only 2 pounds over. the baggage lady let me get by. Fudge is very heavy. All family members loved it.
Is there a quick and easy way to make ho t n sour soup? All recipes I have found are very labor intensive
Fantastic recipe! I added some grated carrot and baby bok choy
How can you go wrong there Julie! Great twist! Thanks so much for reviewing and sharing your notes :)
I’ve made this twice now and feel confident that it will be a staple! So so easy for an honestly lazy cook like me! Haha. I used sriracha instead of sweet chili sauce (since I had it on hand), skipped the peas, and tossed in some chunks of avocado before chowing down. Oh, and we couldn’t find wontons, so potstickers work fine for anyone wondering. I just let them boil in the broth for as long as it said on the packaging.
Thanks for a yummy meal!
Oooh you can never go wrong with chunks of avocado! Delicious! Good idea with the potstickers too. Thanks for commenting Andrea!
Wonderful recipe! My husband and I were home sick with colds and last night I whipped this up and it really hit the spot! It’s hearty enough to feel satiated but light and bright flavor-wise to comfort a head cold. I didn’t have spinach but I happened to have some pre-washed baby kale which worked beautifully. My husband loves pho but we were too lazy/sick to go out to eat it, so I added a little bit of dry rice noodles (the thin ones that cook up almost clear), which cooked up in the broth super quick. It always takes me a few minutes to mince ginger too, so I buy a tube of prepared ginger from an Asian market–it’s shelf-stable unopened but should be refrigerated upon opening. It’s neither salty nor sweet so it’s very handy to have on hand for many quick-fix Asian recipes that only require a small amount of ginger– I even squeeze a pea-sized amount into hot green or black tea (along with honey) when I’m under the weather. Anyway, thanks again for the great recipe!
I love your idea of putting a little ginger in your tea when you’re sick! I’ve used that tube kind too, it’s golden, especially when you’re in a hurry or sick. I’m so glad this soup hit the spot for you and your husband! Nothing beats a quick soup when you are under the weather (and who wants to chop forever). Thanks for your review Amy! Hope you two get to feeling better soon!
This was really, really good!
Thanks Deb! Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for the comment :)
All I could find at the grocery store was frozen crispy cream cheese wontons that are supposed to be baked for 10 minutes. I tried cheese tortllini in my soup (what is it with cheese at this store?) and they were way too small and flavorless. Is there any way you think the crispy wontons I have would work in soup?
Hmmm. I don’t know Jeanie. I’m not sure they will cook in the soup if they are meant to be baked. Maybe what you could do is bake them as directed and then add them last minute to the soup? Let me know how it goes!
If i dont want to use chicken as i hv vegetarian guest what else can i use
Hi Mishika! The chicken broth can be substituted with vegetable broth. And make sure you buy frozen wontons that are vegetarian! Or you could try making your own :) Enjoy!