The holidays are here and that means plenty of parties and cocktail food. Whether you are hosting your own festivities or are invited to a friend’s house to partake in a celebration, these wonton hors d’oeuvres make the perfect cocktail snack! A bit different from regular wontons, these are open baked wonton cups that are filled with pork and topped with sour cream and scallions. They are quick and easy to make, can be made ahead of time, and make the perfect party appetizer!

If you are planning to make these ahead of time, simply cook both the meat and the wontons. Refrigerate the meat and keep the wonton cups at room temperature. Right before you are ready to serve, or before you’re headed out the door to your friend’s soiree, fill the cups and top with sour cream and scallions. Be sure not to fill them the day before otherwise they will get quite soggy. Enjoy!

Cooking spray
20 wonton wrappers
1 lb ground pork
1/3 cup diced scallions (for the meat mixture)
1 tsp ground ginger
½ tsp salt
1 chicken bullion cube
¾ cup boiling water
2 tsp cornstarch
¼ cup sour cream
¼ cup diced scallions (for garnish)

1. Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.


2. Using 2 twelve-cup muffin pans, spray each cup with cooking spray.


3. Push each wonton wrapper into a cup. The wrappers will not fill up the whole cup. Just press it into the bottom and around the edges as best as you can. Then bake both trays for about 8 minutes or until the top edges of the wontons are brown.


4. Remove the wontons from the trays and let them cool on a cooling rack for about 15 minutes.


5. Prepare the filling by mixing the pork, scallions, ginger and salt in a large mixing bowl. Then transfer the mixture to a non-stick pot or wok.


6. Cook the pork mixture on high with out using any oil. As the meat starts to cook, stir frequently to break up the large pieces. Once the pork mixture has been broken into small pieces, stop stirring and let it sit on high for 3 minutes. This will allow the meat to brown.


7. Then stir again and let it sit for another 3 minutes. Once the meat has browned, remove the pan from the heat and set it aside.


8. In a small cup, mix the boiling water and the chicken bullion cube. Stir until it completely dissolves, then add this broth to the pork.


9. In the same small cup, stir together 2 teaspoons of cornstarch with a little warm water.


10. Reheat the pork until it boils. Then add the cornstarch mixture and stir until very thick. Remove from heat and let cool.


11. Once both the wonton cups and the pork has cooled, fill each wonton cup with about 1 to 1 ½ teaspoons of meat. Top with about ½ teaspoon of sour cream and a pinch of scallions.


12. Serve as an appetizer. Makes 20.

For more Chinese appetizers click here.