Vegan Air Fried Cream Cheese Wontons
Crispy wonton shells encase the soft, flavorful, vegan tofu-based cream cheese, filled with scallions and seasoned with sriracha. They are dipped into a sweet, fruity, homemade duck sauce. Everything’s a little lighter with these vegan air fried cream cheese wontons- they’re fried in less oil, the “cream cheese” has less fat (and more protein!), and the duck sauce has less sugar (the second ingredient isn’t corn syrup!). The hearty vegan tofu cream cheese we made is a little less fatty than the original, and that does make a difference with the texture of the cream cheese- if you want something closer to the original, there are TONS of vegan options you can buy (such as Kite Hill, Tofutti, Daiya, Miyoko’s, GO Veggie) that will have more of that desired fatty texture.
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Chinese Food Nostalgia
My history with these vegan air fried cream cheese wontons goes back to my childhood, with a tasty little appetizer called “crab rangoon”. Featured on every Chinese menu, these fried little pockets were filled with cream cheese, scallions, and tiny bits of what was most likely faux crab. I was totally and completely in love with them, and found it really hard to give them up when I became a vegetarian. Yet, give them up I did, and I lived a sad, crab rangoon-less life for many years. The hardest part was that these little parcels had so little imitation crab in them, they were nearly vegetarian, yet a few fishy flakes made them technically not (as a side note, imitation crab is also a fish product).
East Coast Chinese vs. West Coast Chinese
It wasn’t until I went to college that things changed. I flew from the east coast to the west coast, and noticed that Chinese food was a little different in California. The main noodle dish was the crispy chow mein, instead of soft lo mein. And, much to my excitement, the crab rangoon was absent from the menu, replaced by an item called “cream cheese wonton”. It was everything I had been hoping for my entire life- vegetarian cream cheese wontons!
Of course, it wasn’t many cream cheese wontons before I went vegan, which really put a damper on my newly renewed friendship with the crispy, creamy, appetizers. At this point, other than a few vegan restaurants, cream cheese wontons are now up to me. So, air fryer in hand, I decided to once again reacquaint myself with an old friend, and developed this recipe for vegan air fried cream cheese wontons.
Looking For Vegan Chinese-Inspired Recipes? Check Out these!
- Air-Fried Eggplant in Spicy Garlic Sauce with Jicama
- Spicy Chinese-Style Stir-fried Sweet Potatoes
- Daylily Flower Vegetable Lo Mein
- Rhubarb Vegan Hot and Sour Soup
- Spicy Vegan Cold Noodles, Sichuan Style
- Vegan Brown Rice Congee with Jackfruit and Mushrooms
Homemade vs. Store-bought Vegan Cream Cheese
As I mentioned before, I made my own cream cheese for this recipe. My tofu cream cheese made about 2 cups, leaving me plenty for bagels the next morning as this recipe only requires a cup. The most important ingredient, that you might need to go on a little hunt for, are wonton wraps. Be careful, because many do contain egg, so scan the ingredients and find one with simple, non-eggy ingredients. I used these ones, which I found in the frozen section of my local Asian grocery store.
We had a little fun with a sweet version of this dish- check it out!
Making Vegan Air Fried Cream Cheese Wontons
Making these vegan air fried cream cheese wontons involves first mixing the filling (I add a little sriracha and scallions to the cream cheese for flavor), and then adding about a teaspoon to each wrapper. Water can be used as a glue, so by just adding a touch of water to the corner you’ll get them to stick together well. Take the opposite corners, and bring together to form a triangle. From there, the other corners will easily fold into themselves, creating a nice edge. I fried mine in batches of about 6 at a time, to make sure they had enough room, but if you have a larger air fryer you could do more. They only take about 8 minutes to cook completely. To make the duck sauce, simply whisk all the ingredients together, and voila! It’s time to eat.
Vegan Air Fried Cream Cheese Wontons
Ingredients
- 1 cup vegan tofu cream cheese (See recipe below)
- 1 tbsp. sriracha
- 1/3 cup scallions, chopped
- Around 24 defrosted wonton wrappers (find in the frozen section of your Asian grocery store)
- Cooking spray, as needed
- ¼ cup apricot jelly
- 1 tsp. soy sauce
- ½ tsp. finely minced ginger
- 1 clove of garlic, finely minced
- 1-2 tsp. water, to thin
- 1 15 oz. container of firm tofu, drained and pressed
- 3 tbsp. lemon juice
- 2 tbsp. white miso paste
- 1 tbsp. nutritional yeast
- 1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
- Salt, to taste
Instructions
- To make the vegan cream cheese, simply blend all the ingredients together until smooth. You can also use a store-bought version, if preferred. Place one cup vegan cream cheese, the sriracha and scallions in a mixing bowl, and mix until well combined.
- Before starting to fill the wontons, get a small bowl filled with water, and place it next to your work area. Place about a tsp. of the filling in the center of wonton wrapper, and then use your finger to lightly wet one corner. Take that corner, and bring it along with the corner across from it up, align them, and pinch shut. Wet the other corners a little, and bring them up to where the first corners meet, pinching it gently right below, and pinching the sides flat to close the package. Repeat until all the filling is used.
- Heat your air fryer to 350°F (175°C). Spray with oil, and add wontons in a single layer (cooking the wontons in multiple batches) and spray with more oil. Fry for about 8 minutes, until they are crispy and golden. Repeat in batches until all the wontons are cooked.
- While the wontons are cooking, whisk all the ingredients together for the sauce. Serve alongside the wontons.
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