WONTON SOUP

Steps:

• 1. Finely chop the pork and shrimp. Peel the water chestnuts and finely chop. Mince the ginger until you have 1 teaspoon. Combine the pork and shrimp with the water chestnuts, minced ginger, oyster sauce, soy sauce, rice wine or sherry or rice vinegar, sugar, sesame oil and white pepper.
• 2. To fill the wontons, lay one won ton skin in front of you. (Cover the remaining won ton skins with a damp towel to keep them from drying out). Moisten all the edges of the won ton wrapper with water. Place a heaping teaspoon of won ton filling in the center. Fold the wonton wrapper in half lengthwise, making sure the ends meet. Press down firmly on the ends to seal. Use thumbs to push down on the edges of the filling to center it. Keeping thumbs in place, fold over the wonton wrapper one more time. Push the corners up and hold in place between your thumb and index finger. Wet the corners with your fingers. Bring the two ends together so that they overlap. Press to seal. The finished product should resemble a nurse's cap. Repeat with remaining wontons.
• 3. Alternate method: Place the teaspoon of filling in the middle of the wrapper and twist to seal. The final result should resemble a money bag or drawstring purse.
• 4. SOUP: Heat chicken broth to boiling. Add wontons to boiling broth, do not crown pot and allow to return to a boil. When wontons float to the top they are done. Sprinkle scallions in each bowl and ladle soup over top. Garnish with char sui slices if desired. Serve immediately.
• 5. Small cooked shrimp, sliced cooked chicken, steamed snow peas, steamed baby bok choy, or other steamed greens maybe added when serving.
• 6. Boiling the wontons: Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the won tons, making sure there is enough room for them to move about freely. Let the wontons boil for 5 - 8 minutes, until they rise to the top and the filling is cooked through. Remove from the pot with a slotted spoon. Deep-frying the wontons: Heat oil for deep-frying to 360 degrees. Add wonton in small batches and fry, turning occasionally, about 2 minutes or until golden brown. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels.
• 7. Wontons can be prepared ahead of time up to the cooking stage and frozen. Thaw before cooking.