Crab Rangoon (The Best Recipe!) - Rasa Malaysia (2024)

FAQs

Do Chinese restaurants use real crab in crab rangoon? ›

It consists of cream cheese, sometimes sweetened, plus, usually, very small bits of imitation crab, stuffed into a wonton wrapper and deep-fried, served with a syrupy, neon sweet-and-sour dipping sauce. It is, essentially, deep-fried cheesecake with fake crab in it—as sweet as any dessert, but served as an appetizer.

Rangoon is actually a Burmese city. Wontons filled with cream cheese and imitation crab are named after the city – crab rangoons, whereas wontons just filled with cream cheese are often referred to as wontons – but they are used interchangeably.

In a small bowl, gently combine crab meat, cream cheese, green onion, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce (if using), and garlic powder. Layout 3 wonton wrappers at a time. Place 2 teaspoons of the filling in the center of each. Dab the edges with water and fold the two opposite corners together to form a triangle.

Worst: Crab Rangoon

It's mostly cream cheese, wrapped in dough and deep-fried to create bite-sized calorie bombs. Because they're small, it's easy to eat more than one. Finish an order of 4, and you're likely to get more than half the calories and fat you should have in an entire meal.

Although crab Rangoon can be found in almost all the Chinese restaurant in the United States, again, this dish has nothing to do with Chinese food. The word “Rangoon” in the name “crab Rangoon” is really an old name of Yangon, the largest in Myanmar.

Although the appetizer has the name of the Burmese city of Yangon, the dish was probably invented in the United States by Asian American chef Joe Young working under Victor Bergeron, founder of Trader Vic's.

Cursory online research will tell you that a dish resembling present-day crab rangoon first appeared on the menu of legendary tiki bar and restaurant Trader Vic's, though some sources hypothesize these stuffed crab puffs emerged around the turn of the century in British-controlled Burma.

Crab Rangoon Ingredients

The cream cheese will be easier to mix if it is room temperature. Lump Crab Meat: You can use lump crab meat that is found in the refrigerated meat section of the grocery store, or you can also find canned lump crab meat! I recommend using real crab meat over imitation crab meat.

The military changed the English-language spelling of Rangoon, the nation's major city, to Yangon at the same time. The military government believes that the term Burma only covers Burman, the largest ethnic group in Myanmar, and does not include the other 134 ethnic minority groups.

It's really easy to fry crab rangoon, you don't need a lot of oil. I add about a 1 1/2 inch layer of oil (you can use vegetable or grape seed oil) and heat it for a few minutes on medium high. I fry them in batches, you don't want to over crowd the pan.

Are cream cheese wontons the same as crab rangoon? ›

While wonton filling can vary from pork to shrimp with seasonings like ginger, garlic, scallions, and soy sauce, crab rangoon always has cream cheese and crab filling.

A little salty, and a little briny. As far as real vs. fake, it's a toss-up. The real crab had a much more distinctly "fishy" flavor which might turn some people off.

Healthier choices include steamed brown rice, sautéed or steamed vegetables, spring rolls, or soups like egg drop soup or hot and sour soup. Veggie-based items like edamame, lettuce wraps, braised bamboo shoots, or cucumber salad are a few other great options you can try.

Steamed dumplings, steamed vegetables, or steamed fish are generally healthier choices. Lean Protein: Choose dishes with lean protein sources, such as chicken, shrimp, or tofu. Avoid fried meats or dishes with heavy sauces.

One of the biggest clues in the makeup of crab rangoon that this dish is American over Asian in origin is the cream cheese. Cream cheese was a staple in 1940s and 50s America but this is not an ingredient you'll have found in China or Burma or Polynesia.

Panda Express Cream Cheese Rangoon may seem like a Chinese restaurant favorite, but it is actually not the crab (or Krab) wontons you're used to. In this version, the flavor is mostly made up of cream cheese and crispy delicious wontons.

To make imitation crab, white fish is formed into the paste known as surimi. Binding ingredients such as egg whites, wheat, and starch, along with salt, vegetable oil, sugar, crab flavoring, and occasionally MSG are then added to the surimi.

Manufacturers add in some artificial flavoring and sometimes ingredients like starch, sodium, and MSG to the paste, then shape it to mimic the flesh of a crab. So imitation crab is considered pescatarian, but it is not vegetarian or vegan. It's often used in place of crab because of its affordability.