All Din Tai Fung fans know how good their Spicy Wontons are. Here’s my copycat! Wontons served in a spicy, savoury, homemade chilli sauce. Easy. Fast. OBSESSED.
Serve with fried rice and Ginger Bok Choy to create your own little restaurant experience. 🙂
Din Tai Fung’s famous Spicy Wontons!
Ahhh, wontons. I love those bite size dumplings with irresistible slippery flappy bits. I love them in soup form. One of my ultimate 10 minutes convenience meals.
But my favourite way is with a spicy chilli oil sauce. Specifically, the Din Tai Fung version, a global dumpling chain that declares itself makers of the best dumplings in the world (and many people agree!)
The Din Tai Fung chilli sauce for wontons is less oily, less vinegary and slightly less spicy than standard Chinese dumpling houses. Because of this, they are generous with the amount of sauce so you can eat each slippery, plump, juicy wonton with a spoonful of the sauce without blowing your head off with a chilli explosion.
Any other Din Tai Fung devotees reading this who can vouch for how good they are?? I LOVE ‘EM!
The spicy chilli sauce
The key, unsurprisingly, to the awesomeness that is the Din Tai Fung Spicy Wontons is their secret chilli sauce. Team RecipeTin is mighty proud that we cracked the code!
While easy recipes will use just chilli oil and maybe some chilli paste or chilli crisp, the reason Din Tai Fung’s sauce is so tasty it because it’s flavoured with garlic, spices and sauces. It’s also got a lovely savouriness to it, with more flavour than what you can get from just using salt or soy sauce.
I won’t say ours is a dead ringer but it’s very, very close. Actually, Team RecipeTin prefers ours to Din Tai Fung’s because it’s got fresher flavours, it’s less oily, and it’s not as sweet. Intentionally!
What you need to make the chilli sauce
Chinese chicken stock powder – The secret ingredient! It’s the tastier salt. It’s got a cleaner, less artificial flavour than Western chickens stock powders. In fact, when I run out of liquid chicken stock/broth, I use Chinese stock powder mixed with water, over western chicken stock powders.
I use Knorr brand, yellow can with a green lid. Get it at any Asian grocery store here in Australia, it’s so common, and good value, a little bit goes far. Substitute with any regular chicken stock powder, or crumbled bouillon cube.
Chilli oil – Any Chinese brand red chilli oil (check the label). Chili oils vary in spiciness between Asian countries, so best to stick with Chinese as in my experience, they are relatively consistent in spiciness between brands.
Alternatives – Chilli crisp will also work here but obviously adds lots more crispy “bits” into the sauce and less oil! For a non spicy option, substitute some or all with sesame oil (toasted, the brown oil, not yellow un-toasted). Obviously no longer spicy, but a lovely sesame-forward flavour!
Sichuan pepper – Whiteish pepper powder that has a “cold” spiciness to it, used in famous dishes like Kung Pao chicken. I use pre-ground for convenience here because it’s a small amount, just 1/4 teaspoon. Kudos to anyone who makes their own: toast, grind, sift, measure!
Chinese Five Spice Powder – Blend of (you guessed it!) five spices that is sold at regular grocery stores, in the dried spices aisle.
Chilli flakes (red pepper flakes) – Takes the sauce to “pretty spicy” range but very enjoyable for people who love spicy Asian food. Omit, or stir in at the end bit by bit, for less spicy.
Soy sauce – Use either light or all purpose soy sauce. But not dark soy sauce – flavour is too strong and the colour is too intense! More on which soy sauce to use when here.
Garlic – Fresh (don’t talk to me about jarred!), finely minced with a knife or use a garlic crusher.
Rice vinegar – For a touch of tang, to balance out the other flavours. Substitute with any clear vinegar, or Chinese black vinegar.
Sugar – Just a small touch to mimic the flavour of the Din Tai Fung chilli sauce. Though ours is less sweet than theirs, I actually find the Din Tai Fung one a little too sweet.
The wontons
You can use any wontons you want, homemade or store bought! Though there’s a hierarchy, unsurpsingly. 🙂 Homemade wontons trumps Asian store frozen wontons trump regular grocery store wontons.
There is no shame in buying wontons. Frozen are pretty good these days! The classic is pork and prawns/shrimp (this is the filling in my wontons recipe). But feel free to use any type of wonton.
How to make Din Tai Fung’s Spicy Wontons
Ready to see how easy it is to make? Here we go!
Sauce flavourings – Put the spices and garlic into a metal or heat-proof bowl (garlic, red chilli flakes, Sichuan pepper, five spice powder, sugar and stock powder).
Heat oils – Heat the chilli oil and vegetable oil in a small pan until hot.
Sizzle! Pour the hot oil over the garlic etc. Enjoy the sizzle! But don’t worry, it’s not scary, it doesn’t spit. Then give it a quick mix.
Mix in soy and liquids – Next, whisk in the soy sauce, vinegar and a little hot water which we use to dilute the otherwise very intense flavoured sauce. Too intense to slop up spoonfuls with the wontons!
And that’s it! Just set aside until ready to use. It’s fine if it cools down, the heat from the wontons will reheat it.
Cook your homemade or store-bought wontons in boiling water. You will know when they’re done because they will rise to the surface (they sink to the bottom when raw). Freshly made non-frozen wontons will cook in 4 minutes and frozen ones will cook in 6 to 8 minutes. Don’t thaw, just plonk them in frozen!
Sauce them! Use a slotted spoon to transfer the cooked wontons directly from the water into a serving bowl. Then pour over the chilli sauce, sprinkle with a little green onion (if you want) and EAT!
(PS If you’re brave, add an extra drizzle of chilli oil. I like to be brave. 🙂 )
Scooping up a good spoonful of the sauce with every wonton is essential here. In fact, as mentioned earlier, the sauce is intentionally designed as such. Just shovel the whole spoonful in and eat in one mouthful!
This really is very similar to the Din Tai Fung spicy wontons. Though, as noted above, less sweet and less oily. Both good things!
Big shout out to my brother and our Chef JB for doing the legwork to crack the code! You’d be surprised how many iterations it took before we were all in agreement it was as good / better than Din Tai Fung’s. It’s not a hard recipe to make, but getting the ratios just right and figuring out the flavourings was a challenge. The Chinese stock powder was the final piece of the jigsaw puzzle. 🙂
Spicy Asian Food Lovers, rejoice! – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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Spicy Wontons – Din Tai Fung!
Ingredients
Wontons:
Chilli oil sauce for wontons:
- 2 garlic cloves , very finely minced
- 1 tsp caster / superfine sugar (sub regular sugar)
- 1/2 tsp red chilli flakes (red pepper flakes), OPTIONAL, for spicy food lovers (Note 2)
- 1/4 tsp sichuan pepper powder (Note 3)
- 1/4 tsp Chinese five spice powder (Note 4)
- 1/2 tsp Chinese chicken stock powder , or regular western stock powder (Note 5)
- 2 tbsp Chinese chilli oil (⚠️ Note 5), adj for spiciness (sub with sesame oil)
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil (sub canola, peanut or other natural oil)
- 2 1/2 tsp light soy sauce , or all-purpose soy (Note 6)
- 1 tsp rice vinegar (sub other clean vinegar)
- 2 1/2 tbsp hot water (just tap is fine)
Instructions
Chilli oil sauce for wontons:
- Mix spices – Put the garlic, sugar, chilli flakes, sichuan pepper, five spices and stock powder in a medium mixing bowl.
- Heat oil – Heat the chilli oil and vegetable oil in a small frying pan over medium heat until hot. Pour over garlic mixture. Enjoy the sizzle! (Don't worry, it doesn't spit)
- Add sauces: – Whisk in soy sauce, rice vinegar and hot water. The oil will remain a little separated on top. Set aside while you make wontons.
Serving:
- Cook wontons – Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil. Add wontons and cook until they float: 4 minutes for freshly made, 6 to 8 minutes from frozen.
- Assemble – Transfer to serving dish using a slotted spoon. Pour over sauce, add an extra drizzle of chilli oil (if you dare!), sprinkle with green onion. Serve immediately!
Recipe Notes:
1. Homemade wontons trump Asian store frozen wontons, trump regular grocery store wontons. If I don’t have homemade wontons in the freezer, it makes me insecure so I’ll do an emergency run to the Asian store. Classic wonton filling is pork and prawns/shrimp (this is the filling in my wontons recipe). But feel free to use any type of wonton! 2. Chilli flakes – Takes the sauce to “pretty spicy” range but very enjoyable for people who love spicy Asian food. Omit, or stir in at the end bit by bit, for less spicy. 3. Sichuan pepper – Whitish pepper powder that has a “cold” spiciness to it, used in famous dishes like Kung Pan chicken. I use pre-ground for convenience here because it’s a small amount. Kudos to anyone who makes their own: toast, grind, sift, measure. 4. Chinese Five Spice Powder – blend of (you guessed it!) five spices that is sold at regular grocery stores, in the dried spices aisle. 5. Chinese chicken stock powder (photo in post) – Slightly cleaner, less artificial flavour than Western chickens stock powders. I use Knorr brand, yellow can with a green lid. Read in post for more info, I am a fan! It’s my go-to sub for liquid stock. 6. Chilli oil – Stick to a Chinese brand to be safe (unless you have one you know) as chili oils vary in spiciness between Asian countries. In my experience, Chinese chilli oils are relatively consistent in spiciness. Chilli crisp will also work here but obviously adds lots more crispy “bits” into the sauce and less oil! LESS SPICY OPTION: sub some or all with sesame oil (toasted, the brown oil, not yellow un-toasted). Obviously no longer spicy, but a lovely sesame-forward flavour! 7. Soy sauce – Use either light or all purpose soy sauce. But not dark soy sauce – flavour is too strong and the colour is too intense! More on which soy sauce to use when here. 8. Leftovers – Like all dumplings, wontons are best served freshly made but will last 3 days in the fridge. Microwave reheating is best, so they stay nice and juicy. Nutrition per wonton, assuming 12 wontons and all the sauce is consumed.
Nutrition Information:
Life of Dozer
Daily situation.
Oh yesssss! This is the stuff you need, it totally transformed (bottom tier) supermarket dumplings
Amazing!!!!! Soooooo good. Made them exactly as the recipe and promptly gobbled it up. Yet another easy tasty dish.
Nagi this is so perfect! Weirdly I was in Sydney last weekend and had this dish at DTF… the sauce blew me away and I spent the whole meal trying to work out what was in it to recreate it … then saw your email! Love that I can have it whenever I want now – thank you! I swapped the prawns in your wonton recipe for extra pork mince – delicious! You are the best 🙂
Dear Nagi
I have been cooking your recipes before you even released your first book. Biggest fan ever.. I have tried lots of different chefs but your recipes always come out to perfection and never fail on taste . I have not been disappointed yet. Every-time I try something new I pass it on to my friends who do the same. You and your team have made me less stressed as your comments on product and instructions are detailed. I also love that you are affordable to follow. Such an inspiration. Thanks
Hi Donna, your message is really hearth-warming. We will pass it on to the whole team. We are glad we are helping you to have fun in the kitchen and to enjoy delicious food!
So excited to try this but I don’t have Szechuan powder in the pantry, is there something I could sub instead for a similar effect?
Morning Anna-Mary! Another reader used the following sub and was very happy with the results: I used 1/8 teaspoon of allspice, 1/8 teaspoon of ground black pepper and a couple of heavy pinches of ground fennel and cinnamon. (See below for the full thread). Hope you love! N x
Nagi – you totally nailed it. Thank you for this recipe. I’ve been trying to replicate for years and the use of the stock powder really makes it. Also the Chinese chilli oil that I got from Woolworths was the perfect heat.
My add-ons from my constant scrutinising at DTF & googling is finely minced spring onions. I read somewhere that DTF include a very tiny amount of orange zest, so you might want to give that a try. Thanks again 🙂
YES!!! I’m so glad you enjoyed it! I read about the orange zest too, I couldn’t taste it so I didn’t use it 🙂 Interesting you read it too somewhere! N x
Excellent Spicy Wonton Sauce. Perfect heat with great flavor coming forth. I quadrupled all ingredients except for the chili flakes (1 tsp).
Saving the rest of the sauce for today’s wontons!
Thank you Tammy! so glad you enjoyed it! N x
Just wondering where you buy your sichuan pepper powder from.
Wow! I had leftover frozen wontons in the freezer and been wanting to use them up. Nagi — you read my mind! This was the perfect recipe for my late night wonton eats. I used a fly the the jiang schezuan chili crisp oul. Delicious!!!
Excellent to hear Ava! Glad you loved it! N x
Any recommended frozen wanton?
The more you pay the better the quality of the meat filling 🙂 I’m not loyal to any brand at Asian markets but I used to buy cheap ones but once I spent a little more I couldn’t go back. When I say “expensive”, I’m talking $3.50 v $5.50 for a Chinese takeaway container of frozen wontons (12 or so). I do only get them from Asian markets though because the ones at general grocery stores are more western brands, I find. 🙂 N x
I think you mean two servings not twelve! 😂
Actually, ONE me! 😂 Fixed. thanks Paula! N x
Re Empanadas – was shocked to hear you say egg as a topping. Tucuman (where BEST empanadas are made) always have egg inside. – and NO olives.
I just made this with wine gluten free dumplings! I was in heaven!
So long since I had dumplings and this sauce made them soooo good!
So quick and easy too. I just used regular chicken stock powder that is gluten free till I check out the Knorr brand to see if I can have it.
WHOOT! so glad you enjoyed it Jacqui!! N cx
So, each serving is ONE wonton? lolol; love to know who could do that!!
Hi Nagi,
Would you have a replacement recommendation for the 5 spice powder? I can’t tolerate the “numbing” effect of the szechuan pepper in it.
Hi Lisa, sorry to hear you can’t tolerate Szechuan pepper, it’s definitely a key ingredient here. Best substitute would be allspice powder. Please let us know if you like it!
Thanks for your quick response Chef JB! I made the sauce this evening. I used 1/8 teaspoon of allspice, 1/8 teaspoon of ground black pepper and a couple of heavy pinches of ground fennel and cinnamon. Probably not as delicious as yours, but I was very happy with the results. I’ll definitely make this again!
Years ago, before cooking and eating were such global pleasures, I was eating at a Chinese restaurant and enjoying myself enormously. Suddenly my lips went tingly and then my tongue. I whispered to one of my table companions who immediately jumped up, grabbed my hand and shouted ” Oh my God, its a stroke!”
I was rushed to emergency, weeping and terrified, where it was established that I had not had a stroke but an allergic reaction. The hospital called the restaurant to find out what was in the food I had eaten. I heard a great deal of laughter from the nurses station and the doctor came in an told me I had a strong but perfectly normal reaction to something called “Chez Youon” pepper.
Now, thirty years later everyone is talking about the best brand of 5 spice and where to get the best pepper shrimp!
Except me.
Gotta love that Dozer!!
He ain’t too bad … 😂
Can’t wait to make this but I have a question. The recipe says it serves twelve… but only calls for 10-12 wontons. What am I not understanding? Surely that is not just one wonton per person?
HA HA HA!!! I meant 12 pieces 🙂 Serves one me or two normal people!!! N x
Yaaa, that really only looks like one serving; all for me!
I think the reason is because if you look at the nutrition, it’s for 1 wonton with the allotted sauce, so you know how naughty you are when you eat the whole bunch yourself. Or maybe when you just share one (that ain’t happening.)
Wendy! I love you! A girl after my own heart!
😊 Enjoy!
Ajinomoto Japanese powder is all I could find is this a good supplement ??
YES! Smart idea Joseph 🙂 N x
Guessing we use your mother’s dumpling recipe in the cook book for filling? Would love to have the shrimp filling mentioned in your post as well, please.
Thank you, Nagi
The recipe in the book is the same as the one one she links to in her post. It has shrimp and pork in it and she mentions in the post for the homemade wonton recipe that it is NOT her mother’s recipe.
Mum doesn’t make my recipes 😂
Hi Nagi,
I’m so excited to make this!!! I had asked you for a recipe to make these and I’m so happy you shared one! 🙂 I absolutely love your recipes !!
Just one question – which brand of chili oil do you use? I am in the US now (used to be in Singapore) and not sure what brand to look for.
Thank you again Nagi!
xxx
Where’s the filling recipe?
Jacque, in note #1, the word “homemade wonton” is a link. The recipe for the filling is part of her wonton soup recipe.
Best photo of Dozer ever!😂😂😂😂😂😂