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Your favorite Chinese restaurant appetizer in a dip! This crab rangoon dip uses cream cheese, crab meat, sesame oil, green onions, and soy sauce. Plus crispy fried wontons for dipping.
Crab rangoon is one of my all time favorite appetizers. And the very best crab rangoon in my opinion is at the very best Chinese restaurant, China Doll, in the suburbs of New Orleans, LA. When I moved to Florida I had a really hard time finding good Chinese restaurants (still do). I was always telling Mike how I missed China Doll and nothing around our area really compared to it. When we went to visit New Orleans for the holidays, I finally got to take him to this local treasure. He loved it as much as I do. We even joked it may warrant a trip to Nola just to eat there. Craving those crab rangoon again, and the restaurants here not even coming close, I decided to work on making my own recipe.
How to make crab rangoon dip
This is a pretty simple recipe to make. Preheat your oven to 425°F while you prep your ingredients. Allow your cream cheese to soften at room temperature so it is easier to combine with the other ingredients. Mince the garlic, and mix it in with the cream cheese, worcestershire sauce, sesame oil, soy sauce, onion powder and white pepper.
A note about white pepper if you haven't used it before: it packs a punch and can be overpowering if used in larger quantities, so we use it sparingly in this recipe. Add in most of the cheese, reserving enough to sprinkle on top for baking. Mix all these ingredients together well, then gently fold in the crab meat and green onions.
Make sure your crabmeat is fresh! Do a smell test before adding it in with your other ingredients. Throw it out if it has a foul smell or is discolored! Spread out your dip in your baking dish of choice, just make sure it is oven safe. Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top and pop it in the oven for 20-25 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and bubbly and starting to brown.
While your dip is baking, it's time to make the fried wontons. You can use any chips you have, but I think the fried wontons really make this dish feel like the real crab rangoon you get in restaurants.
How to fry wontons
I used to be scared of frying anything, simply because I hadn't done it before. Also the thought of boiling hot oil can be a little intimidating if you don't know what you're doing. But frying your own chips at home can be so much better than store bought, so don't be scared to give it a try!
In a heavy sturdy pot, heat up 2-3 inches of canola oil over medium-high heat to 350 ° F. A candy thermometer is great for this purpose. Look for one that clips onto the pot. Cut the wontons into strips or triangles. Keep them covered with a damp paper towel until you are ready to fry so they don't dry out. Line a baking rack with paper towels to absorb extra oil.
When your oil is at temperature, gently lay the wonton on the surface of the oil, and hold it there for a few seconds, then let it drop into the oil. Use tongs to do this to prevent burning yourself. Holding the wonton at the surface of the oil first prevents it from curling in on itself too much or sticking to the bottom.
Let the wonton fry for about 1 minute, then flip it over to the other side. After about 1 minute on each side, the wonton should be turning golden brown. Remove with tongs or a spider strainer and put on the paper towels to drain excess oil. What is a spider strainer you ask? It is a type of metal strainer used for removing foods from hot water or oil. I like the all metal kind that you can throw in the dishwasher afterwards.
Repeat this for the rest of your chips. Depending on how big your pot is, only do a few chips at a time so you don't crowd them and you have room to work.
Keep an eye on the temperature of your oil. As you add more wontons to the oil, it will cool down. Keep it around 350° F. You may need to adjust the heat if your oil is heating up or cooling down too quickly.
Salt the wontons right away so the salt sticks while the chips are still hot and wet from the oil. Try not to eat them all in one sitting!
Important tips for frying food:
- Use the right pot - Use a heavy sturdy pot that is wide enough to work with, but not so large you need an excessive amount of oil.
- Remove hazards - Tie back loose hair and clothing. You don't want anything in the way that can move the pot while it's boiling.
- Monitor your temperature - A candy thermometer is very handy for this. Keep oil around 350°F.
- Pick the right oil - Use an oil with a high smoking point, like canola or peanut oil.
- Don't use your fingers - To avoid being burned by oil splashes, use tongs to put food into the oil .
- Don't overfill the pot - Give the oil enough room to boil without boiling over the pot.
- Keep away water - putting water or wet foods into hot boiling oil can cause cause steam and hot oil to basically explode, splashing hot oil on you.
You're ready to serve!
Once the crab rangoon dip is baked, sprinkle with the remaining green onions. Serve with hot wonton chips and enjoy! You can also serve this with a drizzle of sweet thai chili sauce.
Crab Rangoon Dip
Ingredients
- 8 oz cream cheese softened
- 2 teaspoon worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- 2 teaspoons soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon ground white pepper
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese shredded
- 1 cup parmesan cheese shredded
- ½ cup thinly sliced green onions plus some for topping
- 8 oz crab meat
- Salt to taste
- Canola oil for frying
- Wonton wrappers
- Optional - Finely diced jalapeno seeded
Instructions
- HEAT: Preheat oven to 425°F.
- MIX: Combine cream cheese, worcestershire sauce, sesame oil, soy sauce, onion powder, white pepper, garlic and most of the cheese together, reserving some of the cheese for sprinkling on top. Mix well. If you want it spicy, add in the jalapeno as well. Gently fold in the green onions and crab meat. Salt to taste. Add the rest of the cheese on top.
- BAKE: Bake for 20-25 minutes until cheese is bubbly and starting to brown.
- FRY: While the dip is baking, heat 2-3 inches of canola oil to 350° F and line a baking rack with paper towels. Cut wonton papers into triangles. Gently place the wontons into the oil 1-2 at a time and fry for about 1 minute on each side, until golden brown. Move fried wontons to paper towels to drain and cool.
- ENJOY: Sprinkle the rest of the green onions on top. Serve hot with wonton chips.
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