Eating wonton by itself, without the soup?

Wontons are very large. You kind of have to eat them separately; it isn’t like rice soup where you can eat both the broth and the solid matter at the same time.

As for actually removing the wontons from the bowl and setting them aside on a plate, in most circles this would not be considered impolite. I suppose some places it could be, but for general purposes, you can eat your wonton soup any way you’d like.

Eat it the way you like it. Life is too short to sweat the small stuff.

Why not? It’s like eating just the kneidelech and not the soup on Passover. There’s always been a traditional connection between the Jews and the Chinese: I think I just found it.

:-)

Fried wontons by themselves are often served. Eating steamed wontons is like any other steamed appetizer. I see no problem with it.

Wonton soup is just a variation on a theme, not a gastronomical directive.

@Marina Good point. Yeah, why not just go out for dim sum instead? Why order the soup with your won ton if you don’t want it? My preference is for the Soup Dumplings, if you can find them.

We like our wontons best when they are steamed, then lightly sauteed on one side, and served with a sauce that is a blend of soy sauce, vinegar, hot pepper oil, and ginger. They are called “Pot Stickers.”

@Zen: That and mah jong. :-)
@lalalime: I can’t think of any other way to eat wonton soup, so I don’t see a problem with it…

Yes, it may be a regional thing, but at our favorite Oriental buffet they serve them separately, side by side.

@Lala, I am SO with you on this. There’s a restaurant near me (buffet) that has the wontons SEPARATE from the soup! You’d love it!!!

@darwin yum! me too!

That is the way I like it. If I go to a Chinese buffet. I like putting the wantons in my hot and sour soup.

@bonus Shu mai, anyone? Or shrimp balls? Now I want dim sum.