Easy Homemade Wonton Soup

No need for takeout - make this incredibly easy wonton soup at home.

Just a few ingredients are needed for this rich and flavorful broth. The wontons also only have a few ingredients, and once you get the hang of wrapping them, you will put this together in no time.

One quick tip - make a big pot of broth and then only drop in the wontons you plan on eating that night and freeze the rest. The next day you can pull out your pot of broth, heat it up and drop the frozen wontons in. This worked much better for us than cooking all the wontons at once as they would be soggy the next day.

Enjoy!

Easy Wonton Soup
Adapted from: Spend With Pennies

The Broth 

Broth Ingredients

• 3 32 oz cartons chicken broth (not low sodium)
• 1 bunch green onions, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, peeled
• 4 slices of fresh ginger
• 3 Tbsb low sodium soy sauce

Broth Directions

• Add all broth ingredients to a large pot and bring to a boil.
• Reduce to a simmer for one hour.
• Once ready to cook your wontons, remove the garlic and ginger and increase to a steady simmer. 
• Drop wontons in and let cook about 6 minutes. Serve immediately. 

The Wontons

Wonton Ingredients
Note: I made 50 wontons with these ingredients. The broth will be able to cook 30 total; the rest of the wontons can be frozen for future use. 

• 1 package wonton wrappers (50)
• 1 lb ground pork
• 1 bunch green onions, finely chopped
• 2 tsp freshly grated ginger
• 3 Tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tsp sesame oil
• 3 tsp cornstarch 
• Other things needed: water, flour (about 2 Tbsp), parchment paper

Wonton Directions

• Mix the pork, green onions, ginger, soy sauce, sesame oil and cornstarch in a large bowl until combined. 
• Prep your area - put a small bowl of water and a small plate of flour near your wrapping station. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place a clean cutting board or other flat surface in front of you.
• There are several ways to wrap wontons and they all work! I used this process, but you could take a look at some videos online before choosing how to wrap yours: Place a wonton wrapper on the cutting board. Spoon 1 tsp of the filling onto the center of the wrapper. Wet the edges with water, and then fold the wonton wrapper in half to form a triangle, pressing the edges together tightly. Wet the 2 pointed ends and pull them together, pinching tightly. Dip the bottom in flour and place on your parchment paper lined baking sheet. 
• Continue until you have wrapped all of your wontons. 
• At this point, either place them in the freezer and once frozen place in freezer baggies, or drop into the broth to cook. Or do like I did - cook half and freeze half! 

Celebrating 10 Years with our Best Recipes

Today Mary Ellen's Cooking Creations turns the big 1-0!! Ten years of sharing recipes from my kitchen - I can't believe it!

It's funny to think back on how much has changed in ten years both with this blog and with me personally. When I look back through the blog year by year I can remember things happening in my life by the way I was cooking and the food I would make. Kind of like when you hear an old song and it brings back a memory. My food brings back so many memories of times in my life. Oh how things have changed! Ten years ago we were both in our early 30s -

Ten years ago I had never cooked risotto. I had never baked something that didn't come in a box. Believe it or not, I had never worked with bone-in chicken (except that one time I made chicken soup from scratch in high school). There were so many dishes and ingredients I hadn't heard of, or wasn't brave enough to try. I (thought) I loathed mushrooms and blue cheese and eggs. Things like homemade tomato sauce, pan sauces, homemade frosting and whipped cream did not exist in my kitchen. And my knife skills? None. I still used to put my index finger along the top of my cheap knives.

But then after being married for about three years, I took an interest in cooking, mostly because both my husband and I were getting sick of tacos, stuffed peppers, pepper steak, and cheese nip chicken. Sadly, that's about all we ate when we were both home... Thank goodness for work travel!

When I first jumped into really cooking, I immediately discovered that I did not enjoy measuring and preferred to go by taste, look, and smell. I soon started to read recipes and decide what I'd change before even trying the recipe. I had some failures and some successes, and learned a LOT along the way. Weekly I was trying at least 2-3 new recipes, and Saturday nights were dedicated to date nights at home where we'd cook something new and fancy together (yes, my husband is an awesome cook and loves being in the kitchen whenever he can!). I don't think we ate the same thing more than twice for at least 2 years because I was in love with experimenting and creating new recipes. That is when I decided to start this blog - it was really just a way to keep track of recipes. I had no idea where it would take me.

During those first few years, favorites were discovered and put on rotation, however I never lost that love of creating new recipes. Over the years my food has evolved to suit our lifestyle, and these days, instead of spending hours on one recipe, I focus a lot more meals to feed my family. Although every now and then I do get a full day in the kitchen and love it!!

Writing this blog has taught me and brought me so much more than just cooking.

Entertaining and planning menus is one of my favorite things to do. I love sitting with my notebook writing out ideas and I totally appreciate that my husband lets me run them by him a million times. Luckily he enjoys it too, and we love creating holiday menus together. We often start talking about Christmas months before the big day!

Photography has also become a hobby of mine. I know I still have a lot to learn and hope to find the time to take some classes soon, but on my own I can see much improvement. Those early food pics were pretty homely, as my husband would say! (so please, as I share some old recipes below, be mindful of that :)

And finally, it's crazy to think that I wasn't even on Facebook when I started this blog. There was no such thing as Twitter, Instagram, Yummly, Pinterest, Snapchat, Tumblr, etc. I could go on and on! It has been fun connecting with people through those platforms and learning the best ways to use them to connect with all of you (and meanwhile my 6 year old sees a logo and knows what social media platform it belongs to - it's like second nature to them!).

Since my life and this blog are completely entwined, I can't help but think of how my personal life has changed over the past ten years. Ten years ago I was in my early 30s, married almost 4 years and working in the corporate world, traveling the country (and world) for pharmaceutical and medical meetings. After the birth of my daughter I decided to move on from that life, and now I consider myself very lucky that I am able to work part-time for now so I can be there for the school bus, school events, and extracurricular activities with my amazing 6 year old daughter.  Ten years ago I wasn't even thinking of kids yet, and now this little one is almost 7! How awesome is it that she loves to get in the kitchen with me and we can pretty much get her to try (almost) anything. Most recently she tried mussels and loved them! She's an energetic little girl and keeps us on on toes - our little first grader who loves acting, dancing, cooking, singing, playing outside, reading, writing, making lists, playing games and telling jokes. Things haven't always been easy over the past ten years - although blessed to be in our forever home, it has been a continuous work in progress and it always seem like something is going wrong or breaking. We have both dealt with unemployment, secondary infertility, pregnancy losses, and the death of our first dog, Daisy Mae. During all of those times, I always turned to cooking as my therapy. Family and cooking have been my one constant through all of these ten years. 
So take a trip down memory lane with me as I share my most popular and/or favorite recipes. These are recipes that have been shared the most, liked the most, and recipes that have been favorites of my family. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

My top post of all-time comes from May of 2008 - Time for a Party. In this post I shared a menu for a party including this recipe for tortilla pinwheels, and now I see them pinned all over Pinterest. They are a hit! I take them to every party and get asked for the recipe several times at each party. Sometimes simple is the best! 

My husband has contributed several recipes, desserts, and wine reviews to this blog. Two of his recipes are in my top searched, pinned and shared recipes! He loves making this Maine Lobster Stew, has made it for the last 2 years on Christmas, and is always looking for excuses to make it again. I'll take credit for helping with the plating and taking the photos. 

Another recipe of his that sends a lot of people to this blog through searches is his Beef Negimaki. After ordering it several times at our local sushi place he decided to make it on his own. We both agreed it was even better than the restaurant's! Since this post is from 2009 the pic isn't great, but what I do love about this post are the step by step photo instructions for cutting and rolling the beef. 

My top breakfast post of all time, and one that I make often, is a grab and go breakfast - Egg Muffins for Breakfast-on-the-Go. 

I'm so happy that this next recipe is in my top ten of all time because it is one of my favorites - Jumbo Lump Crab Cakes with a Lemon-Garlic Aioli. "Too hot to cook" and "grilled chicken salads" are both so commonly searched, and lead my followers to this post for Yakitori Chicken with Cold Veggie and Soba Noodle Bowls. This is one of my top chicken recipes as well as a top salad recipe. 

With close to 200 chicken recipes in this blog, it was really, really hard to narrow it down to my favorite. I have so many, from this French Onion Braised Chicken and this Gruyere Chicken with Mushrooms, to Shredded Chicken with Chiles and Chicken and Dumplings. I finally chose a popular recipe, and it is fitting that it is a bone-in recipe - Garlic Herb Roast Chicken with Vegetables. 

Soups are cooked in my kitchen once a week over the cool and cold months, so with over 80 soup recipes in this blog it is hard to choose a favorite. This Potato and Corn Chowder with Bacon is one of my most popular, and it is one of my favorites because it is so hearty and well, bacon!

It's funny that ten years ago I had never made risotto, and now I have over 20 risotto recipes on this blog. Risotto is in my top ten search words, so I picked one of my favorites for this anniversary post - Three Garlic Risotto. I have been making this one for years (it was probably one of the first risotto recipes I ever made!) but finally just blogged it recently. 

Still, after ten years of doing this, I only use my crock-pot for shredded/pulled chicken, pork or beef. My top slow cooker and top pulled pork recipe is this amazing Guinness Pulled Pork. I'm so happy it gets so much love because it definitely gets a lot of love in this house! Korean Pulled Pork Tacos

My personal favorite pulled pork recipe is the pork for these Korean Pulled Pork Tacos. These are pretty popular on Pinterest, too! 

And sticking with the pork theme, this Stuffed Pork Loin with a Mushroom Wine Gravy is one of my most popular posts. It is a great recipe, perfect for holidays or entertaining, and the tutorial for cutting and rolling the pork is spot-on. This post, and the picture, are from 2008 - 

This is a newer recipe and it quickly became my second most popular appetizer - Cheesy BLT Stuffed Jalapenos, and it is easy to see why. Look how yummy! 

Let's finish this off on a sweet note! I don't bake that often - my husband is actually the baker in the house. This cake recipe has become a favorite of both of ours, and is my most popular dessert recipe on the blog - Philly Fluff Cake. 

Thank you to all of my readers and followers for making the last 10 years possible. I have enjoyed sharing and learning with all of you, and I appreciate all of your comments, likes and shares. I look forward to continuing this journey in my kitchen and with this blog, and hope you will be there with me! Thank you!

Pork Medallions with a Mushroom Pan Sauce

Tender pork medallions seared to a golden brown and served with an herbed mushroom pan sauce. And yes, this is a 25 minute meal! 

25 minutes for something this elegant? Yes! 
Slicing a pork tenderloin into medallions is an easy way to prepare this cut of meat. Often we will grill or roast it, but searing medallions brings something else to the table. 

Once the medallions are seared you are left with a pan full of brown bits. I never let those brown bits go to waste - they hold so much flavor! Bring on the deglazing for a flavorful pan sauce! 

For this dish I chose to use earthy flavors mushrooms and thyme, two things that go perfectly together. The color was so rich, too. Can you imagine the oohs and aahs you'd hear as you set this serving dish down at a dinner party? I love it - fancy enough for a dinner party but easy enough for a weeknight meal. 

Pork Medallions with a Mushroom Pan Sauce Original Recipe by Mary Ellen of Mary Ellen's Cooking Creations
Ingredients

• 1 small (1-1.5 lb) pork tenderloin
• Salt and pepper
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 Tbsp butter
• 6 large white mushrooms, sliced
• 1/2 sm onion, sliced
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/4 dry white wine
• 1/2 c low sodium chicken broth (note - you can sub beef broth for a richer sauce)
• A few sprigs of fresh thyme

Directions

• Slice the pork into 1 inch medallions and season generously with salt and peppers
• Heat olive oil in a large saute pan (I prefer a stainless pan as opposed to a non-stick pan). Add the pork and cook 4 minutes on one side; flip and cook for 4 minutes on the other side. Transfer to a dish. 
• Add butter to the pan. Once melted, add the mushrooms and saute for 4 minutes. Add the onions and saute for 2 minutes. Add the garlic for 1 minute.
• Add the wine to the pan and stir, scraping up all of the brown bits.
• Add the broth and thyme leaves from one sprig. Bring to a simmer for a few minutes. 
• Taste the sauce and adjust salt and pepper, if needed. Pour sauce and mushrooms over the pork and garnish with the remaining sprigs of thyme. 

Korean Pulled Pork Tacos with a Creamy Sriracha Slaw

This meal combines so many great flavors and textures - tender pulled pork slow cooked in sweet and salty ingredients. A crunchy slaw tossed in a creamy, spicy dressing with bright cilantro. A sticky, sweet and salty sauce to pull it together, and all wrapped in a soft corn tortilla.

As soon as I took my first bite I was in love. These tacos really do have everything. And once I was done eating I couldn't wait for the next night to have leftovers.

 It's a super easy dish to pull together since the pork cooks all day in your slow cooker. I bought a bag of broccoli slaw and tossed it with a homemade sriracha mayo at the last minute. And the sticky sauce can be made ahead of time and then warmed up when you are ready to eat. It doesn't get any easier!

Do yourself a favor and put these on your menu now!

Korean Pulled Pork Tacos with a Creamy Sriracha Slaw
Loosely adapted from: Eating Richly

Pork Ingredients

• 2 lb pork - I actually prefer to use a pork loin for pulled pork instead of a fatty shoulder or butt.
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 yellow onion thickly sliced
• 2/3 c Hoisin sauce
• 1/2 c soy sauce
• 1/2 c water
• 1/4 c mirin
• 1 Tbsp sesame oil
• 1 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
• 2 Tbsp worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp ginger powder
• 4 cloves garlic, minced

All other ingredients

• 1/2 bag broccoli slaw (mixture of broccoli, carrots, green and red cabbage)
• 3 Tbsp mayonnaise
• 1 Tbsp Sriracha sauce
• Handful of fresh cilantro, chopped
• Lime slices
• Optional: picked radishes or pickled red onions
• Corn tortillas

Directions

• Prep and cook the pork: Mix the hoison, soy sauce, water, mirin, sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, ginger and garlic. Place onions in the bottom of your crock pot. Season the pork with salt and pepper and place on top of the onions. Pour half of your cooking liquid all around the pork, reserving the rest of the liquid. Cook on high for 2 hours and turn to low for 4-5 hours. Flip the pork halfway through cooking. Shred with 2 forks. 
• Pour the rest of the cooking liquid into a small sauce pan. Heat over low heat for 30 minutes, stirring often, reducing it to a sticky sauce. Store in the fridge until ready to eat. Reheat slowly on the stove before serving.
• Mix the mayo and sriracha. Toss with the slaw. 
• Soften your corn tortillas by placing them in a hot, nonstick pan for 30 seconds per side.
• Layer your taco with the pork, sticky sauce, slaw, cilantro, and lime juice. 

Szechuan Pork with Bok Choy

This dish is everything you want in a weeknight meal. Easy, quick (less than 20 minutes!), yummy, and pretty much a one-pot meal. It's like healthier take-out fake-out with the flavors of soy and sesame, and some heat from the ground fresh chili paste.

When I was prepping dinner my 5 year old asked what I was chopping and then asked to try it. I know she has had bok choy before, but I guess she never really saw it in its whole form. I chopped off a piece of the white part and she asked what it would taste like. I explained that it was kind of like a cucumber. That's about accurate, right? And to me the greens are a mild cabbage. She put it right in her mouth (I'm so lucky that she will try anything without hesitation!!) and agreed - like a cucumber!

I came across this recipe by chance. Last month when I was getting my hair done I sat down and realized I forgot my book. I was so disappointed because I had a good half hour to sit there with my color on, and I was without my book. I reached for the magazines on the table next to me and ended up with the latest issue of Rachael Ray.

This recipe caught my eye and I put it on my list of things to make. I changed some things up based on personal preference, and we all really enjoyed this. Honestly, this dinner could not be any easier.

Szechuan Pork with Bok Choy Adapted From: Rachael Ray Ingredients

• 1 lb ground pork
• 1 head bok choy, chopped (cut off the bottom 2 inches of stem and the top 2 inches of greens and discard; chop the remaining bok choy)
• 1/2 sm onion, sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, sliced
• 1 tsp fresh ginger, grated
• 3 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp sesame oil
• 1 tsp ground fresh chili paste (like Sambal Olek); more or less to taste
• 1/4 - 1/2 c low sodium chicken broth 
• 8 oz cooked spaghetti or similar noodles
• 2 green onions, chopped

Directions

• Heat a non-stick skillet over medium high heat. Add the pork and cook, breaking it up with your spoon, until browned, about 8 minutes.
• Add the onions, garlic, ginger and bok choy; stir
• Add the soy sauce, sesame oil and chili paste and stir to combine. If you want more of a sauce, add the chicken broth and bring to a low simmer.
• Toss in the cooked noodles. Serve topped with the green onions.

Classic Pulled Pork with Rated X Sauce

A few weeks ago I went to a cooking demonstration that showcased products made by a local company, Offbeat Gourmet. Offbeat creates premium condiments using locally sourced and mostly organic ingredients.  At the demonstration we were able to try everything that they cooked as well as sample a bunch of Offbeat's other products. I ended up sampling and buying several products, including a sauce they call Rated X. 

This sauce tricks you in the best of ways - the first flavor you get is sweet and tangy from the oranges, but then that heat kicks in and man is that some heat!!! It's not a spicy burn your tongue kind of heat, but more like a slowly developing heat that hits you at the back of our mouth. It's a sauce that is complex and adds to the dish with its heat instead of just being spicy for the sake of being spicy. SO, so good. And just look at that thick consistency - 

I knew I'd have to use Rated X the next time I made pulled pork. And with the heat coming from applewood smoked ghost peppers, I knew Jon would love it.  I made a rub for the pork using smoky, sweet and slightly spicy flavors to complement the sauce. For liquid I chose an IPA beer, a touch of cider vinegar and just a tiny bit of the sauce since we'd be using more on our sandwiches. 

We put the sandwiches together on soft-on-the-inside, crusty-on-the-outside rolls with cole slaw and more of the sauce. I wish you could reach into the screen and taste this pork and the sauce. On its own the pork had just a hint of the heat, so adding that touch of sauce on the sandwich was perfect. Sticky, sweet and then hot all in one bite. 

Pulled Pork with Rated X Sauce Original recipe by Mary Ellen of Mary Ellen's Cooking Creations, inspired by Offbeat Gourmet's Rated X Sauce Serves 8-10 Ingredients

• One 2 lb pork loin or tenderloin; I prefer to use a loin or tenderloin instead of a butt or shoulder as there is less fat and gristle
• 1 Tbsp onion powder
• 1 Tbsp garlic powder
• 1/2 Tbsp paprika
• 1 Tbsp chili powder
• 1/2 Tbsp cumin
• 2 Tbsp light brown sugar
• 1 tsp Kosher salt
• 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• One onion, sliced
• 3 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
• 1 bottle of IPA (I use Goose Island IPA)
• Splash of cider vinegar (maybe 1/2 tsp)
• 1/2 tsp of the Rated X sauce (or more), plus more for serving
• Your favorite cole slaw and rolls, for serving

Directions

• In a bowl, mix the onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, chili powder, cumin, brown sugar, salt and pepper. Rub the mixture generously all over the pork.
• Put the onions and garlic in the bottom of your crock pot
• Pour in the beer and cider vinegar, and then add the Rated X sauce, stirring to combine.
• Place the pork in the pot and cover
• Cook on high for 5 hours, turning the pork once
• Turn to low and cook 2-3 more hours. In the last hour shred the pork with 2 forks.
• Keep pork on warm until ready to serve. 

Dijon-Garlic Pork Roast with Potatoes, Carrots and Green Beans

Roasting a large cut of meat with all of the veggies in one pan reminds me of childhood Sunday dinners. Dinners like these are the best - one pan, not much active prep time, and the prep you do have to do is pretty simple. You also get the bonus of the aroma of whatever you are cooking filling your house for a few hours.

I picked up a pork loin roast and decided to rub it with one of my favorite flavor combinations - Dijon mustard and garlic.

I roasted the pork with onions, carrots, potatoes, garlic, and mushrooms, and near the end of the cooking time I threw in some fresh green beans.

I used some chicken broth in the bottom of the pan would use it to baste the pork every 15 minutes or so. The pork stayed so tender and juicy, and the drippings mixed with the broth made a great base for a gravy.

Dijon-Garlic Pork Roast with Potatoes, Carrots and Green Beans
An original recipe by Mary Ellen of Mary Ellen's Cooking Creations

Ingredients

• 2 lb pork roast
• 2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
• 1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 3 large carrots, cut into 2 inch pieces
• 2 Russet potatoes, cut into chunks
• 1 large onion, roughly chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
• A few mushrooms, stems removed and  halved
• 1 Tbsp Olive oil
• 1 c fresh green beans
• 1 c low sodium chicken broth plus 1/2 c set aside 
• 1 Tbsp flour

Directions

• Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit
• Season your pork roast with salt and pepper
• In a bowl, mix the Dijon, Worcestershire, thyme and garlic. Rub all over the pork. Transfer pork to a roasting pan
• Toss all of the chopped veggies with the olive oil, salt and pepper. Pour veggies into the pan surrounding the pork and pour 1/2 c chicken broth into the bottom of the pan.
• Roast, uncovered, for 1 hour or until the internal temperature reaches 150 degrees. Note: use the juices in the bottom of the pan to baste the roast every 15 minutes.
• Transfer the roast to a cutting board and let rest for 10 minutes before slicing. Transfer the veggies to a serving platter.
• Place the roasting pan over a burner on your stove over medium heat. Whisk together the flour and 1/2 c broth until smooth. Whisk the mixture into the drippings in the pan and continue to whisk, scraping up anything on the bottom of the pan, until the mixture begins to thicken. Let simmer a few minutes before serving over the pork.