“One of the common misconceptions about hunting is that every time a hunter goes out into the bush or the blind, they come home with food for the table. Although this is always our hope, the reality is that we often come home empty-handed or with barely enough to make a meal, as is sometimes the case when duck hunting. When a day of duck hunting only yields two ducks for dinner, a good solution is to use the meat to make wontons that can even stretch into more than one meal. Wontons can be frozen before cooking and make a great appetizer on short notice since they can be simply cooked straight from the freezer. Most of the ingredients in this recipe can be found at any large grocery store; if not, they will have a suitable substitute.”
Connor Gabbott, Backcountry Chef
Makes approximately 4-5 servings.
Chili Vinegar Sauce
½ cup Chili crisp oil
¼ cup Chinese Black Vinegar or white rice vinegar
¼ cup Soy sauce
¼ cup Sugar
1 tsp Sesame oil
Wonton Filling
1 lb Duck meat, cleaned of all connective tissue and finely chopped
1 Egg
2 Green onions, whites only, finely sliced (save tops)
1 Tbsp Ginger, peeled and finely chopped
1 clove Garlic, finely chopped
¼ tsp Ground white pepper
2 tsp Soy sauce
¼ tsp Sesame oil
½ tsp Salt
Other
1 pack Wonton wrappers
1 Egg, whisked
1 Tbsp Toasted white sesame seeds
Green onion tops from the wonton filling, finely sliced
Chili Vinegar Sauce
1. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl, mix, and set aside. Store any leftover sauce at room temperature.
Wontons
1. Combine all the filling ingredients and mix well.
2. Cook a spoonful of the filling and taste for seasoning. Adjust as needed.
3. Place a very small amount of the wonton filling into the middle of a wrapper and paint the edges of the wrapper with whisked egg.
4. Fold two opposite corners together, and working from the outside of the filling, squeeze the air out of the wonton and press the wrapper together. This will create some folds in the wrapper.
5. Press either side of the wonton together slightly and press hard to seal the wrapper.
6. Repeat with the remainder of the filling.
7. Boil the wontons for 3-4 minutes or until they are fully cooked. Break open a wonton to check for doneness.
8. Strain the wontons and arrange in a serving dish.
9. Drizzle sauce over the wontons, enough to coat them all.
10. Sprinkle the green onion tops and sesame seeds over the wontons and serve.