Vegetarian Chinese Appetizers

[JolokiaJen]

Are any of these things vegetarian on a chinese restaurant menu?

Fried or Pan Fried Wontons
Cheese Wontons
Fried or Steamed Dumplings

[will47]

If you are in a Chinese restaurant that serves "cheese wontons", you have bigger problems than whether or not they're vegetarian.

[Josh]

Thank you for reading my mind. :-)

[soytoy]

Always ask. Something that says "vegetarian" on the menu could very well be cooked with fish stock or lard.

[cheesecake17]

Definitely ask. Something that seems vegetarian may not be. The restaurant may be willing to make a substitution or suggest something that you can eat.

[weinstein5]

As others have suggested ask - but I have seen these on many Chinese and Thai menus available as vegetarian -

[Bacardi1]

Well yes - if it says "Vegetarian" on the menu, then it most likely is.

What the OP is asking is that if something is listed on a menujust as "Fried or Pan Fried Wontons", "Cheese Wontons", or "Fried or Steamed Dumplings", can it automatically be assumed that they're vegetarian? And the answer is no.

[weinstein5]

I agree with that always ask if it is not clearly stated -

[alc]

At least in NYC, the menu will always say "vegetable dumplings" if they are vegetarian. If it says "dumplings" or "wontons" without a modifier they will have pork.

[JolokiaJen]

Thanks. I googled cheese wontons and they seem to be made with just cream cheese.

[IndyGirl]

This can vary by the restaurant, so it's still a good idea to check. Just in our town, the varieties in labeling are somewhat mind-boggling.

[Bacardi1]

Uh - not necessarily. You need to ask what's in them unless it's specified on the menu. All three can easily have meat &/or seafood items in them.

You need to ASK.

[JolokiaJen]

Thanks. I was hoping the cheese wontons were like cheese ravioli, usually vegetarian. I wonder if I can request them to be vegetarian, has anyone ever tried this or are they always premade?

[Bacardi1]

No, more often than not, the "Cheese Wontons" (aka "Rangoon") has crabmeat or fake crabmeat (aka Surimi) in it.

[MplsM ary]

Not true in Minnesota, at least in my experience. The cream cheese wonton is a particular favorite of mine and is ubiquitous on Minnesota Chinese, Vietnamese and even Thai menus. I've never ever been served anything with crab in it.

As always though, best to ask if you are unsure.

[beachmouse]

Down here, the cheese wontons are often called that instead of 'Crab Rangoon' in order to get around Florida's truth-in-seafood state law. They normally still do have krab/surimi in them, and therefore can't legally be called crab.