Easy Wonton Soup With Gluten-Free Wontons
by Easy Wonton Soup recipe with gluten-free wontons! These homemade wontons are filled with juicy chicken and shrimp and you’ll be surprised how easy it is to make them with rice paper! The recipe comes with step-by-step photos and a video. You’ll be making gluten-free wonton soup in no time!
Easy Wonton Soup (Gluten-Free)
First, I want to mention that this wonton soup recipe is gluten-free. It’s not a 100% Paleo recipe. This is probably the first time I shared a gluten-free recipe that doesn’t also fall into the Paleo category. Ever since I shared my Paleo Dim Sum – Shumai in 2015 (Keto and Whole30 friendly, using cabbage leaves) and Paleo Har Gow Dumplings, many readers have been asking for an easier and quicker recipe to make gluten-free dumplings without having to make the dumpling wrappers from scratch.
Similar to my Paleo Egg Rolls, made with store-bought coconut wraps. I went on looking for a shortcut to make gluten-free wontons with wrappers that people can easily find in stores.
Gluten-Free Wonton Wrappers
Store-bought wonton wrappers aren’t gluten-free because it’s made with wheat flour. There are a few homemade gluten-free wonton wrappers made with rice flour in Google search but you still need the time to make the wrappers before you can make the wonton soup. So this easy wonton soup recipe is a workaround for people who can’t have gluten and need a quick fix to satisfy wonton cravings.
Mom’s Low-Carb Wonton Fillings
Growing up with Chinese parents living in Taiwan, there is an abundance of wonton soup shops all over the city. Wontons come in various shapes, fillings, and soup broth. My favorite type is shrimp and chicken wonton soup or shrimp with pork wonton soup. Regardless of what flavors they are, I prefer thin wonton wrappers that just melt in your mouth. I can easily swallow 10 of them no problem!
Gluten-Free Wontons with Rice Paper
After many failed attempts, I realized that I couldn’t apply the traditional wonton-making method to gluten-free wontons if I were to use rice paper. The rice paper is not meant to be cooked/steamed because it melts easily once in contact with heat and moisture. So if you were to stuff the wontons with raw meat fillings, the rice paper would turn into a gooey mess before the fillings are cooked through.
So what’s the workaround?
To keep it easy and delicious, it turns out I need to cook the wonton meatballs first! Since rice paper can’t be in contact with heat, it makes a whole lot of sense to cook the meatballs separately.
If you are on Keto or are doing a Whole30, this is where you’d stop. The wonton meatballs are super juicy, soft, and absolutely delicious. Skip the rice paper wrapper and I guarantee you’d still be very happy about the wonton meatball soup!
How To Make Gluten-Free Wontons
- Cut a 9-inch rice paper in half and soak it in room temperature water until soft, about 45 seconds to 1 minute.
- Place the rice paper over a flat cutting board and add a cooked wonton meatball in the center on top of the wrapper.
- Bring a corner up to overlap with the meatball and use the other hand to create a small pleat and the hand that’s holding the wrapper to hold and pinch the pleat.
- Continue pleating, folding, and pinching until you almost go around the entire meatball. Finally, twist the wrapper to go around it to seal all corners.
- Use scissors to trim off extra dough at the top if preferred.
The gluten-free wonton rice wrappers are much softer and more slippery. It takes a few tries to get it right but I have confidence that you can absolutely do this! Watch the video tutorial below for a quick demo!
Wonton Soup Broth
Any homemade chicken bone broth or store-bought chicken stock will work perfectly for our wonton soup base. To keep it Asian flavored, add a few thin slices of ginger root and 2 whole scallions (including the tip end that we usually cut away) and dice them into 3 large sections to add to the soup. The wonton soup broth will be light and fragrant and it goes perfectly with our wontons!
More Paleo Chinese Dumpling and Dim Sum Recipes
- Paleo Har Gow Dumplings
- Low Carb Seafood Dim Sum
- Paleo Dim Sum – Shumai (Paleo/Whole30/Keto)
- Bok Choy Dim Sum
- Daikon Potstickers
- Rice paper dumplings (Crispy!)
Easy Wonton Soup (Gluten-Free Wontons)
Video
Ingredients
- 13 pieces rice paper wrappers , 9-inch (22cm) per wrapper
Wonton Meatball Fillings
- ½ lb shrimp, peeled and deveined
- ½ lb ground chicken or pork
- 2 whole scallions, finely chopped
- 2 tbsp finely chopped chives, plus more for garnish
- 1 tsp grated ginger
- 1 tbsp coconut aminos
- 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
- ¼ tsp coarse sea salt
- 2 tsp olive oil
Wonton Soup Broth:
- 2 Whole3 scallions
- 2 ¼ cups chicken bone broth
- 1 ½ cups water
- 0.1 oz. ginger slices, about 4 thin slices
Optional Seasonings/Ingredients:
- Salt to taste
- Small pinch white pepper
- 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
- Baby bok choy, halved, as much as you like
Instructions
- Use a kitchen scissor to cut the rice wrappers in half. The rice paper will be in a half moon shape. Set them aside.
Make wonton meatballs:
- Finely chop/blend the shrimp in a mini food processor until it becomes a sticky paste. Combine with the rest of ingredients from chicken to salt, except the olive oil. Stir in one circular direction until it becomes a sticky paste, about 3 minutes.
- To form the wonton meatballs, add the olive oil to the meat paste. This will prevent it from sticking to your hands. Form about 25 meatballs at 0.5 oz. per meatball. Repeat the process until you finish the entire paste. Set them aside in the fridge while preparing the soup base.
Wonton soup broth :
- Rinse/wash the scallions. With the scallion roots (the part where we usually discard), dice them to 3 large and equal sections.
- In a medium size soup pot, add the scallions, stock, water, and ginger. Cover with a lid and bring it to a gentle simmer over medium-low heat. Discard the ginger and scallions before adding the meatballs.
Cook the meatballs:
- Bring the soup broth to a gentle simmer, carefully slide the wonton meatballs one-by-one to the hot broth. Once the meatballs float to the top, simmer 30 seconds additional so they are cooked through. Set the meatballs aside to let cool.
Wrap the Wontons with Rice Wrappers:
- Soak one piece of the rice wrapper in room temperature water until it becomes pliable, about 45 seconds to 1 minute.
- Place the rice paper over a flat cutting board and add a cooked wonton meatball in the center on top of the wrapper.
- Bring a corner up to overlap with the meatball and use the other hand to create a small pleat and the hand that’s holding the wrapper to hold and pinch the pleat.
- Continue pleating, folding, and pinching until you almost go around the entire meatball. Finally twist the wrapper to go around it to seal all corners.
- Use scissors to trim off extra dough at the top if preferred.
Final Touch:
- Taste and season the wonton broth and see if you’d like to add more salt, white pepper, and toasted sesame oil.
- Place 4 meatballs per serving bowl. Add the broth and blanched baby bok choy. Garnish with chopped chives.
Notes
- The gluten-free wonton rice wrappers are much softer and more slippery. It takes a few tries to get it right. Be sure to watch the video tutorial on how to wrap wontons, using rice paper!
- If you are on Keto or are doing a Whole30, make the wonton meatballs and the soup broth without the rice wrappers. The wonton meatballs are super juicy, soft, and absolutely delicious. I guarantee you’d still be very happy about the wonton meatball soup!
- Can’t have shrimp? Check out my mom’s chicken meatball soup recipe!
- The nutrition label is calculated with 4 wontons per serving.
Nutrition
Looking for more homemade soup?
- Paleo Beef Brisket Pho
- Instant Pot Chicken Cabbage Soup
- Paleo Hot and Sour Soup
- Vietnamese Pho-Inspired Tomato Beef Soup
Pair The Easy Wonton Soup With
- Rice paper noodles
- Paleo Mongolian Beef
- Stir-Fried Beef In Oyster Sauce
- Chinese Chicken and Broccoli Stir-Fry
These we amazing! Very easy to come together! I made a double batch and just kept the final won tons in a sealed container in the fridge and used them throughout the week in broth for easy lunches! They don’t get slimy at all this way! Delicious recipe and super good idea!!
Lovely! What a fantastic great idea!
I saw someone asking about freezing these . I’m keto so not going to use the wrappers. I love to make meals or parts of meals and freeze them to make my life easier. Would you suggest that I freeze these raw or cooked? Thank you 😊
Hi Eve, You can freeze the meatballs raw. When you are ready to cook. add them directly from the freezer to the broth to cook through.
So delicious and such an easy hack for gluten free wonton wrappers! Absolutely love making these for an easy delicious dinner 🙂
I so love those types of soups for evenings. Time to start cooking them again. Yours is on my first to do dinners.
lol, do you promise it’s easy — I’ve always wanted to make a wonton soup, but only thought that using store-bought wonton would be the way for me — but now I am inspired, thank you!
Such a great post! I love that you explain it all with great pics and step by step instructions!
It’s easy to see that this dish would be delish as meatballs alone or with the rice wrappers.. Either way.. sounds and looks SO appetizing and I will make this one soon! Thanks!
I love wontons and this version with rice paper sounds so light, filling, and flavorful. Can’t wait to try this one!
I love the brilliant workaround you came up with to cook the meatballs first then use the rice paper. I always have issues with rice paper getting all gooey but after reading your directions I feel confident to try it!
One trick is to avoid over-soaking the rice paper. You can tell when it’s oversoaked in that when you remove it from the water, it may stick together to itself rather than maintain the shape it was when it went in to the water. Takes a little practice, but smooth sailing once you get it.
Wonton soup is one of those things I crave every now and then and I HAVE to have, but I usually end up ordering it from somewhere! I LOVE this easy way of making it myself!!
These are so adorable! And packed with flavor, too!
This looks so flavorful! Perfect for chilly fall and winter days!
I had no idea it was this easy to make delicious wonton soup! I loved every bite and slurp and will make it again!
This looks so delicious – can’t wait to try! If I wanted to make extra and freeze it, would the wonton wrappers be ok? Or maybe better to freeze the wonton meatballs unwrapped? Thanks!
Hi Steph! I would freeze the meatballs and only wrap them before serving. The rice paper turns hard and difficult to chew once it becomes dry and firm. Hope that helps 🙂
I can never get enough of wontons! These looks fantastic.
Those are gorgeous! I’ve never tried making wonton soup before, but this is definitely making me crave it!
Wonton soup is some serious comfort ford for e…and this did not disappoint! What a luxury to have this beloved food back from my childhood!
Such a fun way to make this dish faster and easier. The filling looks amazing!
Delicious and fun to make!
Thank you so much!
Totally trying this with my daughter. Thanks for making tit look doable to make these gluten free!
You are so very welcome! Quite a few people made them and shared the photos on my Instagram account. They look fabulous! It makes me so happy to see everyone’s happy smiling faces!