These crispy homemade Chinese-style cream cheese wontons have a creamy sweet filling that practically melts in your mouth. You only need 5 ingredients to make the popular restaurant appetizer.
No need to order takeout when you can make these delicious Chinese cream cheese wontons at home.
The wontons are crispy on the outside, creamy on the inside with a hint of sweetness and spice.
Serve the cream cheese wontons with this savory wonton dipping sauce or dipped in homemade sweet and sour sauce.
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If you’re a fan of Chinese food like I am, be sure to try these better-than-takeout pork fried wontons, these crispy air fryer wontons and my crab rangoons recipe. Or feast on one of these 30+ homemade Chinese takeout appetizers.
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❤️ Why You’ll Love This Recipe
A lot of cream cheese wonton recipes call for sugar or powdered sugar. But with my recipe, the sweetness comes from hot pepper jelly.
The combination of the cream cheese with the pepper jelly results in a mellow sweet and spicy flavor.
You can buy pepper jelly at the grocery store and food specialty stores, but homemade is better! Try my homemade pepper jelly recipe using a mix of sweet and hot peppers from your garden or the farmer’s market this summer.
Want to see a brief overview of the process before diving into the recipe? Watch my web story on how to make cream cheese wontons.
🥟 Ingredients for Cream Cheese Wontons
- Cream cheese – I recommend using full fat cream cheese for the creamiest filling
- Green onions or scallions
- Hot pepper jelly
- Wonton wrappers
- Oil for frying – Use vegetable oil, peanut oil or another oil with a high smoke point
See recipe card for quantities and a how-to video.
How to Make Cream Cheese Wontons
This recipe will make 20 fried appetizers and should only take about 20 minutes. It can easily be doubled.
To make the filling:
- Place the softened cream cheese, hot pepper jelly and chopped green onion in a bowl.
- Beat until well mixed and creamy.
Folding Cream Cheese Wontons
You can opt for a more intricate fold, like a 4-pointed star, for these cream cheese wontons.
But the triangle shape, also known as samosa fold, is the easiest. Just make sure the wontons are well sealed to prevent the filling from leaking out when you fry them.
- Open the wonton wrappers and wrap the stack in a dampened paper towel to keep them moist.
- Separate wonton wrappers and lay them out on a large cutting board or other nonstick surface.
- Add a teaspoon of filling to the center of the wonton wrapper. Be careful not to overfill.
- Dip your fingertip in a glass of water and moisten the edges of each wrapper before folding in half to create a triangle. Try to press out any air, creating a pocket of cream cheese in the center, before sealing.
- Transfer sealed wontons to a baking sheet lined with wax paper or parchment paper for frying.
Hint: Look for wonton wrappers in the produce section of the grocery store. They’re usually near the tofu and egg roll wrappers. You may find them in the freezer section of some Asian markets.
Frying the Cream Cheese Wontons
- Fill a large deep pan or cast iron dutch oven halfway with vegetable oil.
- Heat oil over medium heat to 350 ℉ and fry the wontons in small batches until golden brown.
- Use stainless steel tongs or a spider strainer to remove the hot fried wontons from the oil and drain on paper towels.
- Serve warm with your favorite sauce.
📖 Variations
You can add additional vegetables to the cream cheese filling. Try shredded carrots, finely diced bell pepper, chopped jalapeno peppers or minced garlic.
Air Fryer Cream Cheese Wontons
These wontons can be made in the air fryer if you don’t want to deep fry them.
- Preheat the air fryer to 375 ℉.
- Spray cream cheese wontons with cooking spray on both sides or brush on both sides with vegetable. oil.
- Place the wontons in a single layer in the air fryer basket. Don’t overcrowd them. You may have to cook in batches.
- Air fry for 5 minutes, then flip and cook for another 5 minutes until golden brown and crispy.
Cooking times may vary depending on the type of air fryer you have. I use a 5-in-1 Ninja Foodi Grill.
Storage & Reheating Instructions
Store leftovers in the refrigerator for 3 to 5 days.
Reheat leftovers in an air fryer at 325 ℉ until crisp and heated through. You can also reheat them in the for 5 minutes at 350 ℉.
How to Freeze
This appetizer can be frozen and enjoyed later. You can either freeze the cream cheese wontons before or after frying them.
To Freeze Uncooked Cream Cheese Wontons
- Spread the wontons in a single layer on a baking sheet lined with wax paper. Make sure they’re not touching one another.
- Cover the baking sheet with plastic wrap and freeze for several hours before transferring the frozen wontons to a freezer-safe bag or airtight container.
- Fry from frozen.
To Freeze Fried Cream Cheese Wontons
- Freeze already cooked wontons in a single layer on a baking sheet.
- Transfer to a freezer-safe bag when frozen.
- Reheat, from frozen, in the oven or in an air fryer at 300 ℉ for about 10 minutes, or until heated through.
Frequently Asked Questions
While the two Chinese appetizers are similar, there are a few differences.
Crab rangoons contain crab meat or imitation crab meat, and they tend to be more savory. (I have a delicious recipe for crab rangoons made with real crab.)
Cream cheese wontons have a sweet cream cheese filling and no meat.
Both are deep fried and served warm with dipping sauce.
More Wonton Recipes
Try these other savory and sweet wonton recipes.
- Apple Butter Wontons
- Jam-Filled Wonton Envelopes
- 100+ Recipes Made with Wonton Wrappers
- Cream Cheese Pepper Jelly Wonton Cups
- Better than Takeout Pork Fried Wontons
- Crab Rangoons
Pin This! Homemade Cream Cheese Wontons
🎥 Recipe Card & Video
These crispy homemade Chinese-style cream cheese wontons have a creamy sweet filling that practically melts in your mouth. Serve them hot with a savory soy dipping sauce or homemade sweet and sour sauce.
- 4 ounces cream cheese softened
- 2 Tablespoons finely chopped green onions
- 20 wonton wrappers
- 3 Tablespoons pepper jelly
- 3 cups vegetable oil for frying
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Combine cream cheese, green onions and pepper jelly in a bowl. Mix until creamy.
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Put 1 teaspoon of cream cheese mixture in the center of a wonton wrapper. Moisten the edges of the wonton wrapper with water, and fold to form a triangle. Press out air and seal.
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Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet or cast iron pan over medium heat. When oil is 350° F, almost bubbling, add wontons in batches, being careful not to crowd the pan.
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Fry in small batches until golden brown on all sides, Remove from the oil using a strainer or tongs. Drain on a plate lined with paper towels.
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Serve appetizers warm with wonton dipping sauce or homemade sweet and sour sauce.
Recipe Video
- Serve as an appetizer with wonton dipping sauce or homemade sweet and sour sauce.
- Use vegetable oil, canola oil or peanut oil for frying wontons.
Where to find wonton wrappers
Look for wonton wrappers in the produce section of the grocery store, near the tofu, egg roll wrappers and fresh packaged herbs.
Storage
Store leftover cream cheese wontons in the refrigerator for 3 to 5 days.
Reheating
Reheat leftovers in an air fryer at 325 ℉ until crisp or in the oven for 5 minutes at 350 ℉.
Air Fryer Cooking Method
- Fill cream cheese wontons as outlined above.
- Preheat the air fryer to 375 ℉.
- Spray filled dumplings with cooking spray or brush with vegetable oil on both sides.
- Place in a single layer in the air fryer basket. Don’t crowd,
- Air fry for 5 minutes, then flip and cook for another 5 minutes until golden brown and crispy.
How to Freeze
Can be frozen before frying or afterwards.
- Place filled wontons in a single layer on a lined baking sheet.
- Cover with plastic wrap and freeze for several hours before transferring to a freezer-safe bag.
Fry uncooked cream cheese wontons from frozen, adding more time as needed.
If the frozen wontons were previously cooked, reheat them in the oven or in an air fryer at 300 ℉ for about 10 minutes, or until heated through.
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