Panda Express Cream Cheese Rangoon is a tasty appetizer available at Panda Express. These are the creamy and crunchy wontons you would often find at your favorite Chinese food buffet. With just a couple of ingredients, you can be making a whole batch of similar cream cheese wontons in no time.
Panda Express Cream Cheese Rangoon
These Panda Express cream cheese rangoons are tasty and very simple to make. If you have ever had that craving for crispy rangoons but didn’t want to pay for takeout, then make some yourself.
Cream Cheese Rangoon Ingredients
Here’s what in them:
- Cream cheese – This is the main filling. If you are making crab rangoons, you’ll need some crab meat to mix in.
- Sliced green onions – I added green onions (or scallions) to the cream cheese for a little more flavor. You can also sprinkle in some garlic powder too.
- Wonton wrappers – Look for them in the refrigerated section of the grocery store, near the pie crusts.
- Cooking oil or shortening – You just need a type of cooking oil to fry the rangoons in.
What Type of cooking oil is best for rangoons?
I made mine with shortening because I personally think you get a crispier fry when you use shortening. If you have plain vegetable oil, corn oil, or sunflower oil, all of these will work well. I have never tried deep-frying in olive oil, and since it is so expensive, it is unlikely that I will try to do that anytime soon.
How To Make Cream Cheese Rangoons
If you can fry something on the stove, you can make these rangoons! I have the entire recipe in the printable card at the bottom of this post.
The most difficult part of this recipe is folding the wonton wrappers around the filling. You’ll discover how much filling is too much when you can’t fold it correctly. Try it a few times and you’ll get a feel for it.
It only takes about a minute for the wonton wrappers to crisp up in the hot oil. After you get them all filled you can start frying about 4-5 of them at a time.
Dip Rangoons in Sweet and Sour sauce
I could honestly just eat them like they are. They also taste amazing when you dip the crispy fried shells into your favorite sweet and sour sauce. I have two recipes that you can try:
I love these little puffs. I just love biting into the savory filling and dipping this into a sweet and sour sauce. Whenever I go to the Panda Express for me, this is a must-have menu item. Enjoy making Panda Express Cream Cheese Rangoon wontons today.
Other Cream Cheese Rangoon ideas
You don’t have to stop here, you could also fill these with leftover taco meat for taco wontons, a little bit of spaghetti sauce and mozzarella cheese, the possibilities really are endless. These are simple to make and inexpensive, and we will save the crab puffs for another time.
Check out these other Panda Express copycat recipes
- Chow Mein Noodles Panda Express
- Broccoli Beef Panda Express Recipe
- Honey Cashew Shrimp
- Copycat Panda Express Firecracker Chicken
More tasty Chinese food recipes
- Chinese Spare Ribs Recipe
- How to Make Chinese Hot Mustard
- Chinese Crunchy Salad
- Chinese Buffet Crab Casserole with Cheese
- Chinese Hunan Chicken
- Chinese Almond Cookies Recipe
- Donut in Chinese Buffet
Find even more recipes for Chinese Food and restaurants appetizers.
Panda Express Cream Cheese Rangoon Wontons
Ingredients
- Vegetable shortening or oil, for frying
- 8 ounces package cream cheese, softened
- 1 1/2 tablespoons scallion thinly sliced
- Garlic powder (optional)
- 48 wonton wrappers
Instructions
- Heat enough vegetable shortening or oil to fill 2 to 3 inches in a medium pot to 350 degrees F. If you have an electric fryer, you can use that.
- In a small bowl beat together the cream cheese and scallions. If desired a touch of garlic powder may be added for additional flavor. Spoon about 1 teaspoon of cream cheese mixture onto a wonton wrapper. Fold the wonton by brushing a little water over all of the edges of the wonton skin. Fold the wonton diagonally into a triangle. Be sure to seal all of the edges completely; this will keep the filling from running out of the wonton when being cooked. Take the two opposite corners and press and twist them together. You may need to tack them together by brushing with a little water.
- When the shortening is heated, you can use a thermometer and test to see that it is 350 degrees F, or you may test with a small piece of wonton wrapper. If the wrapper bubbles immediately when dropped into the hot fat, it is ready. Drop only 4 or 5 pieces at a time into the hot fat. After about 1 minute, the wonton will begin to brown, then it will brown rapidly, so be careful to remove it when it is lightly browned. If your oil is shallow, you may need to flip over the wonton. Carefully remove the wontons and drain briefly on paper towels before serving.
Raine says
Living in Japan and been craving these. Thank you for an easy to follow recipe that hit the right taste I’ve been looking for. Can you also do Panda Express’ Mushroom Chicken, I can’t get the sauce to taste right 🙁
Patricia says
I like adding minced water chestnuts to my wontons….yummy!
Teddie says
Made these tonight in COCONUT OIL!
OH MY … DELISH! ????
Stephanie says
I hope you like them.
Jeremy huller says
Just to address the comment about olive oil. Never use olive oil to fry things, the smoke point is too low, so you won’t be able to get it hot enough to fry without burning the oil
Teddie says
Correct!
No oilve oil, the heat (high) males the oil rancid.
Melissia Grimmett says
About 30 years ago I went to the same Chinese restaurant all the time for years and asked the guy that new my husband and I at this point about the recipe. I have made them the way he told me all this time which is Cream cheese, minced onion, sugar (I have always added chives for color). I change it up sometimes with minced crab meat. I love love love garlic, so I will be trying garlic!
Stephanie says
I love chives in there.
Fred Collinsworth says
I wonder if they could be friend in a air fryer? Just brush with oil and air fry at 400 for the same time as the recipe calls for.
Stephanie says
I have seen it done, the results aren’t the same, the wonton skin is crispy, but I don’t think it cooks through the same as it would if you fried it.
shari says
Would sesame seeds oil work well
Stephanie says
I think that would be very expensive to fry in.
shari allen says
Would sesame seeds oil work well
Nicole says
Sesame oil is primarily used for flavor. Could it be used for frying? Technically yes, but it has such a strong flavor you wouldn’t want to because it would completely overpower the entire dish and likely make it completely inedible. Also, sesame oil is super expensive! Just stick to vegetable/peanut/coconut oil!
Marisol Sanchez says
I tried this recipe, but I mixed in some ricotta cheese with the cream cheese and let me say it was amazing just like Panda Express!
Karen Sawyer says
Yumm! Adding Ricotta to the mix sounds delicious.
Karen S
Karen Hilton says
I, too, fell in love with these when I ate at Panda Express. I make these all the time, but I bake them.
Instead of green onions, I use dried minced onions, about 2 tablespoons +/- (I always have minced onions on hand!). You can use onion powder, too! I add a little salt to taste when mixing the cream cheese and onions together. Bake at 400 degrees about 8-10 minutes on a sprayed/oiled cookie sheet. Just watch them, when the tips of the wontons start to brown they are done. Happy Eating! ~LOVE~
Yammie says
Will def try the non fry way. Love these and was going to fry. Gkad to hear they can be baked. I will just or them in muffin tins like I do with my WW french dippers
LeeAn says
Where do you get the wraps at ? And what department.Never have bought any.Thanks/,
Jes says
You can usually find packages of them refrigerated in the produce section of your local grocery store/wal mart.