The name, Won Ton, 云 吞 means swallowing a cloud, and the won ton floating in this popular soup are thought to resemble clouds. This is one of the most popular soups in street stalls in southern China and also very popular in Chinese restaurants in the West. Soup won ton should be stuffed savoury dumplings poached in clear water and then served in a rich broth. Unfortunately, Chinese restaurants in the West especially, often serve with thick won ton skins with little fillings.

Our won ton soup recipe here enable you to make a healthy, simple but authentic won ton soup that is sure to impress your guests.

Serves 4, preparation time: 30 minutes, 20 minutes chilling, 10 minutes cooking time

Ingredients 225 g(8oz) won ton skins, thawed if neccessary 1.2 litres (2 pints) Classic Chinese stock or quality off-the-shelf stock 1 tablespoon light soy sauce 1 teaspoon seasame oil Chopped green spring onion tops, to garnish For the filing 225 g (8oz) raw prawns, peeled, de-veined and coarsely chopped 225 g (8oz) minced fatty pork 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1 1/2 teaspoons light soy sauce 3 tablespoons finely chopped spring onions (just retain the white part) 2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh root ginger 1 tablespoon Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry 1 teaspoon sugar 2 teaspoons seasame oil 1 egg white, beaten lightly

Procedure 1) For the filling, out the prawns and pork in a large bowl , add the salt and pepper and mix well, either by keading with your hand or stirring with a spoon. 2) Add all the other filling ingredients and mix thoroughly. Cover the bowl with cling-film and chill for at least 20 minutes. 3) To stuff the won tons, put 1 teaspoon of the filling into the centre of each won ton skin. Dampen the sides with a little water and close up the fillings with the wonton skin. Pinch the edges together so as to seal the filling inside the wonton skin. 4) Put the stock, soy sauce and seasame oil in a large pot and bring to a simmer. Meanwhile, bring a large pan of salted water to the boil and poach the wontons in it, in batches of 3-4, for about 1 1/2 minutes, or when they float to the top. 5) Remove the won ton immediately and transfer them to the pot of stock. Tip: Proaching them first to get a cleaner tasting broth. Simmer them in the stock for 2 minutes. Transfer to a soup tureen or individual bowls, garnish with the spring onions tops and serve.