Chef John's Crab Rangoon

4.4
(78)

While not 'authentic,' these crispy crab and cream cheese wontons are one of the most addictive, delicious, and crowd-pleasing appetizers ever created. That is, if the filling has enough crab in it. I'm using a 1 to 1 ratio of crab to cream cheese.

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Prep Time:
30 mins
Cook Time:
3 mins
Additional Time:
1 hr 17 mins
Total Time:
1 hr 50 mins
Servings:
6
Yield:
60 wontons
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Ingredients

  • 8 ounces cream cheese

  • 8 ounces crab meat, drained well

  • cup chopped green onions

  • 1 clove crushed garlic

  • 1 teaspoon soy sauce

  • ½ teaspoon fish sauce

  • ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

  • ½ teaspoon salt, or to taste

  • ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

  • ¼ teaspoon sesame oil

  • 1 pinch cayenne pepper

  • 60 (3.5 inch square) wonton wrappers

  • Canola oil for frying

Sauce:

  • 1 cup ketchup

  • ¼ cup rice vinegar

  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar

  • 1 tablespoon sriracha hot sauce, or to taste

Directions

  1. Mix cream cheese, crab meat, green onions, garlic, soy sauce, fish sauce, Worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper, sesame oil, and cayenne pepper together with a fork until ingredients are blended thoroughly. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until chilled, 1 or 2 hours.

  2. Keep wonton wrappers moist by covering with a damp paper towel. Place a small bowl of water nearby on the work surface. With a wet fingertip, moisten surface of wonton. Place 1 1/2 teaspoons of crab filling in center of wonton. Fold 2 opposite corners toward each other over the filling but without touching tips together yet. Fold up the other 2 corners. Working gently from the bottom, squeeze out any air bubbles; pinch together the 4 seams from the bottom up to create a modified pyramid (or "warhead") shape. Place on a dry surface. Continue with remaining wontons.

  3. Heat oil in deep fryer to 350 degrees F. Fry wontons in batches until golden brown and crispy, gently moving them around in the oil with a strainer to brown each surface, about 3 minutes. Let cool about a minute before eating. Serve with the dipping sauce.

  4. Whisk ketchup, rice vinegar, brown sugar, and sriracha sauce together in a bowl for the dipping sauce.

    close up view of Crab Rangoon on a white platter, with white red sauce in a sauce cup
    Chef John

Chef's Note

You can fold these into triangles which is easier, but I prefer the "warhead" fold because you get more crispy goodness with the four crunchy edges.

215 home cooks made it!

Nutrition Facts (per serving)

590 Calories
30g Fat
63g Carbs
18g Protein
Nutrition Facts
Servings Per Recipe 6
Calories 590
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 30g 38%
Saturated Fat 11g 53%
Cholesterol 71mg 24%
Sodium 1512mg 66%
Total Carbohydrate 63g 23%
Dietary Fiber 2g 7%
Total Sugars 14g
Protein 18g 36%
Vitamin C 9mg 10%
Calcium 103mg 8%
Iron 4mg 21%
Potassium 429mg 9%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

** Nutrient information is not available for all ingredients. Amount is based on available nutrient data.

(-) Information is not currently available for this nutrient. If you are following a medically restrictive diet, please consult your doctor or registered dietitian before preparing this recipe for personal consumption.