My husband and I have some good friends that we get together with regularly for an appetizer and cocktail competition night. I made this appetizer and it was a huge hit! In fact it was considered to be the best overall appetizer of the evening!!
The recipe makes a lot, and depending on how many people you are planning to feed you can save the rest for the next night’s dinner and serve over a bed of rice.
They’re easy to make and the perfect healthy party recipe!
Please be advised that this recipe uses peanuts – so if you have nut related allergies – please look at my ingredient replacement options or skip this one.
Thai Peanut Salad Wonton Cups
Ingredients:
- package of ground chicken (or crumbled tofu)
- knob of ginger (½ inch to 2 inches of fresh ginger)
- 1-2 cloves of garlic
- splash of tamari or soy sauce
- (optional: tsp of chili garlic sauce)
- 24 wonton wrappers
- vegetable oil cooking spray
- 1/4 cup all-natural peanut butter
- 2 tbsp rice vinegar
- 2 tbsp fresh lime juice
- 3 tsp vegetable oil
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp honey
- 2 cloves garlic finely minced
- 1 tbsp grated ginger
- 1/4-1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes chili flakes
- 450 grams shredded cabbage and carrots
- 1-2 tbsp sliced green onions
- 2-3 tbsp crushed peanuts
Sauté a package of ground chicken in a bit of coconut oil and when it is nearly cooked through grate in a knob of ginger and a clove or two of garlic. Sauté for another 2 minutes, then add a splash of tamari or soy sauce, and if you like it spicy, add a teaspoon of the chili garlic sauce. (*I’m a vegetarian, so for myself I cook up a cube of tofu instead of the chicken that I crumble and cook up the exact same way.)
Meanwhile preheat oven to 350⁰F. I spray a muffin tin with cooking spray and place a wonton wrapper in each cup, then spray again with cooking spray. Bake for about 5 minutes until lightly brown.
Combine the peanut butter, rice vinegar, lime juice, oil, soy sauce, honey, minced garlic, grated ginger, salt and red pepper flakes in a small bowl and whisk very well until combined. Set the dressing aside (or if you’ve been cooking all day (like me) you can buy premade peanut dressing from Loblaws (but you didn’t hear that from me).
Add the shredded cabbage and carrots to a large bowl (I like to use a pre-washed bag of coleslaw mix for this recipe when I’m in a hurry and it always works really well — my favourite is a mix of green cabbage, red cabbage and shredded carrots because the colours are gorgeous and the flavour combination is perfect for this recipe. If you’d rather use fresh cabbage and carrots and shred them yourself, go for it!)
Pour the dressing over the cooked chicken (or tofu) and toss well to coat. You want it the perfect amount of saucy, but not too wet. Spoon the cabbage salad into the cooled wonton cups and arrange them on a serving tray or platter. Top them with the sliced green onions and crushed peanuts, then serve immediately!
Note: These are best served straight away, but if you wanted to make ahead do not assemble until last minute. Do not put the cooked wonton wrapper cups in the fridge.
If want to make it nut-free you can replace the peanut butter with sunflower or soy nut butter, and replace the crushed peanuts with some sunflower or pumpkin seeds on top for crunch.
Enjoy your parties this season!
Chef Tina
