Gluten & Dairy Free Fried Rangoons! (Chicken or Crab)
Crab Rangoons are an incredibly popular recipe!! I had never really had them before (at least not fried like this) because we don’t eat any seafood in our household. Not for any great reason.. we both just like it. If i’m being honest we don’t KNOW if we like it.. we both have never really tried fish, crab, lobster ect. But there is also no desire to try it..
SO I did a “strange” thing and made my rangoons with canned chicken!
But I studied a bunch of recipes & noticed that chicken and crab are completely interchangeable. So please feel free to use either! If using crab you’ll just want to chop it up to the consistency of canned chicken.
This filling is really quick to whip up & I found it really easy to work with. The cream cheese clings to the dough making the Rangoons even easier to seal up! If you need to be dairy free then I highly recommend using Tofutti’s vegan cream cheese. Its my favorite out of the brands I have tried (though there are a number of good options these days). I just really don’t enjoy daiya vegan cream cheese.. Unless they have changed the recipe I personally don’t think it tastes very good.
IMPORTANT TIPS For working with this wonton dough:
Always make sure to knead it until it is completely smooth and well combined! It will be a bit sticky when you do this and that is how its supposed to be. Don’t question it and start adding more starch or flour :) Follow the gram measurements exactly! I left the dough a bit sticky so that you can use a generous amount of starch when rolling it out. Sometimes you’ll need to gather the bits and rolls them out a number of times and each time more starch will be incorporated into the dough. The dough will allow for that and whatever you are making will turn out fabulous. BUT You can always add a little water if it gets too dry while working with it! Sometimes when I regather scraps of dough and knead them back together I wet my hands a little first! When it gets super dry- it gets harder to roll out!
DO NOT let the dough dry out in the fridge!! You can make it several days in advance or even make it and freeze it. It is essential to store it in wrapped tightly in plastic with no air exposure or in a well sealed Tupperware container!
If you are rolling out the dough fresh you will likely only need a tiny bit of egg wash or water to seal it around the inside edges when shaping it into various dumplings, egg rolls or rangoons. However- IF you have pre-rolled and cut the dough into wonton squares or circles ( I recommend storing them with a bit of starch in between them wrapped up well in the fridge). then you may need to brush the whole surface of the (INSIDE) of the dough where the filling goes with egg wash or water as I have in my step by step photos so that it seals up nicely!
Whenever frying wonton dough its extremely important to take the time to get it almost paper thin!! This can take a little practice but its very doable. This dough is forgiving and has great stretch. Just make sure to use enough corn or tapioca starch to prevent sticking and roll it out on parchment paper! For paper thin dough you’ll notice you are getting close to the right thickness when the dough starts to ruffle and wrinkle a little bit!
When rolling it out- I like to pick it up gently & swirl it around on the parchment often and or flip it to make sure that its not sticking! I often keep adding starch to my parchment/work surface as I go.
I recommend using this dough first for boiled/steamed applications like dumplings/postickers or wonton soup first! Its much easier and extremely forgiving. Working with ultra thin dough for frying requires more finesse and practice.
Dumplings, potstickers, egg rolls, wontons for soup, or Rangoons can all be assembled and then frozen before you cook them!! Lay them out flat on a starch covered baking sheet/pan and freeze them. Then once they are frozen they can be stacked in a freezer safe container! Add just a bit more time to cooking when cooking them from frozen!
TO MAKE IT EGG FREE please use “Just Egg” Egg replacer. Its possible that aquafaba would be a basic substitute as well but I have not tested that out to know for sure. IF you experiment please leave a comment and share how it goes!
Ingredients (Some of these are affiliate links that earn me a few cents if you shop using them! :)
Better Batter Gluten Free Orginal Blend
This flour blend continues to amaze me. It can do so many things better than most other blends that I have tried. As a result its extremely popular. Around the holidays it tends to sell out everywhere. Usually its available on Amazon and at Walmart. Lately I have been ordering it from the Better Batter website directly. When they sell out- they tend to restock pretty quickly. Check back within a day or two if they are sold out when you look. I buy it in bulk now (Up to 40 lbs at a time) as I cant risk running out. I use it in too many recipes that we love.
What if you cant get your hands on it? This may be the case if you live outside the US. My friend Nichole from Gluten Free on a Shoestring has figured out a mock recipe for better batter. Her version should work great in this recipe! The owner (Naomi) of better batter has confirmed that the mix is similar to the official version.
Better Batter so kindly offered me a 30% off promo code to share with all of you! This can be used as often as you would like for every single purchase made directly on BetterBatter.com Use the code: BakingAngell30
Expandex
This dough is truly only possible because of the magic of expandex. It is a modified form of tapioca starch that was formulated to improve gluten free baking. The word Modified tends to worry people- so let me explain further. Essentially they studied tapioca and removed portions of it leaving only the parts that would allow for it to cause amazing elasticity (aka its name) in gluten free recipes. This flour allows me to get an incredible rise with everything I use it in. It traps the air bubbles in the dough just like regular flour with gluten does! Its honestly incredible. If you eat any processed or store bought foods you have eaten many forms of modified starch. Its nothing new- its just semi new to the home baker. Its non gmo and I typically get it from the brand Judee’s on amazon. Under no conditions can you sub it out for another regular starch. For my wonton dough it is what is giving it the incredible stretch and versatility that it has!!
Outside of the US there is a product called Ultratex 3 I have not worked with it but from what I understand its comparable! I would use that in the exact same quantity as the expandex amount that I call for.
Tapioca Starch:
(Or corn starch is the second best option) Is fantastic for rolling out this dough!! It takes away all stickiness and aids in creating an awesome chewy or crispy texture when steamed or fried. Using better batter for rolling out does not work as well as it tends to dry the dough out since its highly absorbent. Tapioca starch/flour can be found in most grocery stores and on amazon. I typically buy the brand Bobs Red Mill.
My favorite tools for working with wonton dough:
Anytime I want to cut the dough into a square shape I use this set of cookie/biscuit cutters. The two largest square sizes work great for egg rolls. The two middle sized ones work perfect for Rangoons!
Anytime I want to cut the dough into a round shape I like to use this set of cookie/biscuit cutters. The circular shape is ideal for potstickers and dumplings!
Over the years I have had a lot of rolling pins. Once I got a simple French style one I got rid of the rest of them. You really don’t need anything clunky or heavy! This style allows for the best control of pressure to get a thin dough that doesn't rip! This is the one that I use.
While not essential using an Italian pasta crank machine is definitely really helpful! Its one of those kitchen tools that you don’t NEED but they are handy to have and making homemade pasta and in this case wonton dough is always fun. It will allow you to get ultra thin long rolls of dough that are quick to cut into squares for rangoons and egg rolls. Just make sure to use enough starch between each pass to get the dough thinner so it doesn’t stick to the machine.
Parchment Paper: Any brand will do! While I could roll dough directly out on the counter I prefer using a big sheet of parchment- it just makes it easier to avoid sticking issues.
To avoid any confusion the step by step photo guide below pictures how I shape Rangoons using egg roll filling… haha!
I completely forgot to shoot step by step photos until AFTER I ran out of rangoon filling. SO ignore the meat and veggies. Just pay attention to how I fold them up. :)
Gluten Free Rangoons
Ingredients
- 12.oz canned chicken breast. (Or you can use crab chopped up if you prefer)
- 8 ounces cream cheese (regular or dairy free/vegan)
- 1 Tsp Gluten Free Soy Sauce or Coconut Aminos
- 1 1/2 Tsp Garlic Powder
- 1/2 Tsp Salt
- 1/4 Tsp Black Pepper
- 3 Tbsp Finely Chopped Green Onions
- 1 1/2 Tsp of hot sauce
- 1/2 Batch of Gluten Free Wonton Dough
- 1 egg yolk + 1 tsp whisked together to seal the dough . For vegan/egg free Use "just egg" egg replacer or water.
- Tapioca Starch for rolling out the dough
Instructions
- In a small/medium bowl mix together all of the rangoon filling ingredients. Set aside.
- Add oil to heavy bottomed pot and set heat to medium allowing it to slowly heat up while assembling the Rangoons. The oil must be 360- 390 degrees for frying.
- Make the Rangoons: Line your counter with a piece of parchment & dust it liberally with tapioca starch. Roll 1/4 of your dough out paper thin! I like to move the dough around regularly to make sure its not sticking and adding more starch on the underside and top as often as needed. Getting the dough extremely thin is necessary to get your rangoons nice and crispy! Cut squares 3 inches X 3 inches in size.
- Brush the wonton squares very lightly with egg wash. Add about 1 heaping tsp of the filling to the center. Fold in all 4 sides sealing them together and pressing the air pockets out of the bottom to also help seal the filling in so it doesn't spill out while frying. (see the photo step by step guide for reference). Make sure there are no big cracks or holes. Set aside onto a tapioca dusted baking sheet and continue with the rest of the dough and filling. NOTE: Each time you re-roll out the dough make sure to knead the used scraps in extremely well with your new fresh dough. This dough is a bit sticky in nature so if you experience that you have made it correctly. It will get a bit more dry as you go since its gaining more tapioca starch from being rolled out. (I designed it to be able to handle that extra starch that gets added). If it gets too dry to handle from the starch feel free to wet your hands with a little water to add moisture back into the dough.
- Once the oil is hot - fry about 6 Rangoons at a time making sure not to overcrowd the oil. They will be done in about 8-10 minutes or fry until they are a dark golden brown and super crispy! Place on a paper towel lined plate to soak up excess oil and then serve!
