Sichuan Wontons Recipe and Video

First posted February 3, 2011. Revised June 2, 2025

If you've never had Sichuan wontons before, and you're a big fan of spicy food, this is one dish that will surely go on regular rotation after you try it once. This is one of my favorite Sichuan dishes of all time, with a deliciously savory, tangy, and spicy sauce that is positively addictive. Unlike with Cantonese wontons, which usually goes into a soup with or without noodles, you just boil the wontons and drizzle a chili oil mixture over them.

I adore this sauce: chili oil (store-bought or homemade), dark or balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, Sichuan pepper, and garlic, just mixed together.  It's spicy and numbing and tart and sweet. And you can easily make a big batch to share with family and friends, should they happen to stop by.

And the folding is pretty easy once you get the hang of it. The name for Sichuan wontons in Mandarin, chao shou, literally means "crossed hands".  The wontons themselves are folded in a way in which the tips cross each other like arms.

In Sichuan, I've seen the wontons folded two ways. In the first one, you start by folding the wrapper into a triangle and then crossing the tips ("arms") over the belly of the wonton. The second method, the "boat" method is to fold the wrapper into a rectangle; then, crunching the belly a little, you overlap the bottom edges of the two sides, as shown in the photo above. The second method is trickier at first, but more impressive once you get the hang of it.

Here is another video that that did back in 2013 as a special collaboration with Sydney from The Crepes of Wrath.

So give these a try! Just be aware: in the words of a student who recently attended one of my dumpling classes, the sauce "is so good I can drink just it straight."

Also see: Sydney on learning to make Sichuan Wontons, over at The Crepes of Wrath

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Sichuan Wontons

INGREDIENTS:

FILLING

  • 1 pound ground pork

  • 2 to 3 scallions, thinly sliced, white and green parts separated

  • 1 teaspoon grated ginger

  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce

  • 1 tablespoon sesame oil

  • 1 pack of wonton wrappers

SAUCE

  • 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

  • ½ tablespoon sugar

  • 2 tablespoons chili oil

  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce

  • 1 tablespoon rice vinegar

  • ¼ teaspoon ground Sichuan pepper

  1. Keep the extra wrappers covered with a barely damp towel until ready to use, to prevent them from drying out. Have a small dish of water at hand’s reach for sealing the wontons.

  2. Angle a wonton wrapper so that it faces you like a diamond. Place one tablespoon of filling in the center of the wrapper. Add water along edges with your fingertips, fold into a triangle, and seal. Use your fingertips to work out air bubbles. Hold the wonton so that the obtuse angle is on top and the two acute angles are on the bottom. Dab a little water on one of the acute angles. Fold the opposite side over the wet side, and pinch to seal.

  3. Place the finished wontons on a baking sheet or plate lined with parchment paper.

  4. Prepare the sauce: In a medium bowl, mix together the garlic, sugar, chili oil, soy sauce, vinegar, and Sichuan pepper. Stir until the sugar is fully dissolved and set aside.

  5. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Put in the wontons and boil until the wontons float to the top, or about 5 minutes after the water comes back or a boil. Remove them with a slotted spoon and transfer to a serving dish. Drizzle the chili sauce over the wontons, garnish with the scallion greens, and serve.

RecipesDiana KuanAppetizers, Chinese, Dumplings, Pork, Recipes, Video, Favorites34 Comments