a bowl of soup
22 May 2025

WONTONS AND DUMPLINGS| CLASSIC CHINESE EATS EP1

All of you reading this post might have heard of dumplings and wontons. You might know how they look and even how they taste, but do all of you know exactly how they are different? In honor of these two classic Chinese delicacies, we want to dedicate the first episode of Inspirlang’s Classic Chinese Eats Series to discuss the differences between dumplings and wontons. Of course we will end this blog with some best places to get dumplings and wontons in NYC so you can try them out yourself. Foodies always share the good eats. Okay foodies, let’s get into it!

Origination

Wontons, 馄饨 (hún tún) or 云吞 (yún tūn; wan4 tan1) in Chinese, originated from Hunan, China. Its origin can be traced back to the Han dynasty. Many mistakenly thought that wonton originated in Guangdong. Although Guangdong province is known for its delicious delicacies, wonton was actually spread into Guangdong during the Tang/Song Dynasties. In the Song dynasty, a martial arts fiction novel 群居解颐 (qún jū jiě yí; kwan4 geoi1 gaai2 ji4) written by Gao Ze, has mentioned the Wonton, whereas wonton noodles did not appear in Guangdong until the Qing Dynasty. The most primitive version of wonton is just pork wrapped in dough.

silhouette of man jump on seashore

Adding egg into the flour dough of the wonton skin and creating the famous Guangdong-style wonton did not come to be until the 1920s. Filling options increased as well adding different types of meat and shrimp in the mix. Mak Woon Ki is known as the person to introduce wonton noodles to Hong Kong. Mak’s noodle house, one of the first restaurants to sell wonton noodles, opened in Hong Kong after the Mak family moved in 1945.

 

 

It is unclear who actually invented wonton, but there are several different legends told about how the wonton came to be. One said that the wonton was created by the people of the northern border of the Han empire when they were getting terrorized by the Huns. The leaders of the Huns were two men named “Hun” and “Dun”. As a hope for victory against them, the people ate boiled meat wrapped in dough that they named Hundun. Another legend suggests that Hundun was created by one of China’s four great beauties, Xi Shi. In the ancient Chinese period of Spring and Autumn, the Wu and Yue kingdoms were at war. Xi Shi belonged to the Yue kingdom. When the Yue King Goujian was defeated and imprisoned, he initiated a revenge plan where he sent beautiful women to the Wu King Fuchai. During a feast, King Fuchai was unhappy with the choice of food since there was nothing new. Xi Shi made wonton and successfully pleased the King. When asked what the dish was called, she said Hundun which was similar to the Chinese term Hundun, meaning chaos. This was her subtly mocking him for being an incompetent king. No matter which legend is the true origin story, a delicious delicacy was invented and became a classic in many parts of China.

 

Dumplings, Jiaozi, originated during the Eastern Han (25-220 CE). It was said to be invented by the legendary physician Zhang Zhong Jing. After retiring and returning to his home in Nanyang, Zhang noticed many people by the white river. The cold air causes frostbite to their ears. The people were freezing, starving, and weak. Being a physician, Zhang could not stand the sight. He ordered his apprentices to set up stands where they distribute medicinal soup. They used dough to wrap pieces of lamb and cold-repelling herbs into an ear shape. They called it “娇耳”(jiāo ěr; giu1 ji5) saying that eating the can warm up the body and heal the frostbitten ears. Zhang distributed medicine until Lunar’s New Year Eve. On Lunar New Year, the common people began replicating the dish on their own and calling it Jiaozi 饺子(jiǎo zǐ; gaau2 zi2). This was the most famous legend of how the dumpling (饺子) was invented.

 

Shape/Composition

If you ask me to tell you the biggest difference between wontons and dumplings, I would definitely say the appearance. Ok fine, they are both meat wrapped in a thin dough skin. However, the way they are made, from wrap to filling, is very different. 

 

Wonton

There are many ways to make wontons. Different areas of China have their own version of wonton(馄饨). For example, in Sichuan their wonton is called 抄手. It is boiled wonton mixed in with a chili oil sauce. Since we are trying to show you the difference between wontons and dumplings, we will focus on the most traditional Cantonese style wonton. Wonton skin comes in the shape of a square and is yellowish in color. The filling is made with a mix of both fat and lean meat, most commonly pork. Adding in oyster sauce, egg, salt, soy sauce, starch, pepper and baking powder to give it that umami taste. Many like to add in shrimp to take the flavor and texture to the next level. Wrapping a wonton is much easier than wrapping a dumpling because there is no exact shape you need to achieve. The steps are simple. Fold a corner to its diagonal corner (use some water to help the edges stick if necessary). Grab the two sides and pinch it towards the center to finish the job. Wontons can be boiled, deep fried, or steamed. Since wonton wrap is relatively thin, it is not suitable for pan frying. Add it into your favorite soup or eat it with chili oil sauce and you got yourself a warm comforting meal.

Dumpling

Dumplings have a variety of filling options. The most common ones are corn with pork, pork with cabbage, chicken with mushroom, and pork with chives. Dumpling wraps come in the shape of a circle and are white in color. It is thicker than wonton wraps. This makes it more suitable to make different shapes as it will not rip as easily. There are many ways to wrap a dumpling.

 

 

person holding white ceramic plate with food

It can look like this…

Or this…

Or even this…

The most common way is to apply the filling, fold it in half, and pinch to make little folds on one side to seal the dumpling.

A dumpling can be steamed, boiled, and pan-fried. As far as I know, there is no deep-fried dumpling. 

 

Best places in NY

Dumplings (all the good cheap eats)

 We went there for our very first food tour video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p0L3Dgeic84&t=587s 

Aside from dumplings, there are many other delicious fuzhou delicacies available for your choosing.

We initially wanted to go there for our food tour video but it wasn’t open. If you guys have a chance to try their dumplings, share with us your scoring by tagging us on Instagram #InspirlangDumpling. One star being the worst and five stars being the best. Same goes to all of the recommended dumpling places.

It is a bakery but they have frozen dumplings available. All you have to do is pan-fry or boil them yourself at home. 

 

Wonton: 

Dumplings and wontons are both well known Chinese dishes. Our purpose is to show you the difference. We have no intentions in convincing you that one is better than the other because they are completely different. Of course, everyone has their own preferences. Personally, I like both equally. My favorite way to eat them is pan-fried dumplings eaten with black vinegar and wonton soup with red vinegar. Hmm… maybe we should talk about the different types of Chinese vinegar in our next episode. 

 

Sources

追本溯源：云吞面 (michelin.com)

Legend of Wonton (visitbeijing.com.cn)

THE HISTORY OF DUMPLINGS – Dumpling 100

饺子 – 维基百科，自由的百科全书 (wikipedia.org)

https://pupswithchopsticks.com/how-to-make-wontons/

 

Food is a big part of any culture. The same thing goes for language. To have a deeper understanding of a culture, getting to try the traditional dishes and learning the language is a must. For those interested in Chinese culture, especially the culture of the food city Guangzhou, you might want to learn a few Cantonese phrases. It will make it so much easier when you place your food order. Inspirlang has a variety of resources available for you to learn Cantonese effectively in a short amount of time. We will help you build the best foundation while making sure your learning journey is still fun and enjoyable. Check out our resources below!

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