ONE OF THE GREAT THINGS ABOUT COOKING FOR YOURSELF IS THAT YOU CAN HAVE ANYTHING ON THE MENU WITHOUT A CARE AS TO WHETHER IT REALLY MAKES A “MEAL,” OR WOULD SATISFY SOMEONE ELSE’S APPETITE. YOU CAN ALSO SLOW-WATCH IDRIS ELBA ALL NIGHT IF THAT’S WHAT YOU WANT TO DO! IF YOU HAVE AN URGE FOR CRAB RANGOON, THEN HAVE CRAB RANGOON FOR DINNER. ON A SATURDAY NIGHT WHEN I WAS WATCHING AN IDRIS ELBA MARATHON, I DID NOT WANT A BIG MEAL. BUT IT WAS FUN TO PUT TOGETHER THESE POLYNESIAN APPETIZERS WHILE I BINGE WATCHED “HIJACK,” ON APPLETV. THE WONTONS FRIED UP PERFECTLY – CRISP AND GOLDEN AND CRUNCHY! THEY WERE BETTER THAN ANY RENDITION AT ANY CHINESE RESTAURANT I HAVE EVER HAD. ALTHOUGH THEY WERE WONDERFUL WASHED DOWN WITH ROSE CHAMPAGNE, A FRUITY RUMMY TIKI DRINK WOULD HAVE BEEN EQUALLY APPROPRIATE! OH, WELL, NEXT TIME!

According to Wikipedia: Crab Rangoon was on the menu of the “Polynesian-style” restaurant Trader Vic’s in San Francisco since at least 1956. Although the appetizer has the name of a Burmese city, the dish was probably invented in the United States by Joe Young working under Victor Bergeron, founder of Trader Vic’s. A “Rangoon crab a la Jack” was mentioned as a dish at a Hawaiian-style party in 1952, but without further detail, and so may or may not be the same thing. Although cream cheese was a staple of 1940s and 1950s American cuisine, it is not found in Chinese or Burmese cuisine.

I love Polynesian style restaurants and tiki bars! Generally, the focus is on exotic rum based drinks in colorful mugs or communal bowls. See, for example, the rum punch called Marilyn in Jamaica on this web site. That would be a fun drink to have while preparing and consuming these little savory and sweet Polynesian inspired crab puffs.

AND JUST BECAUSE I WAS WATCHING IDRIS ELBA WHEN I MADE THESE, HERE IS A PICTURE OF HIM. HE IS NICE TO LOOK AT, ISN’T HE?

SOMETIMES IT ISN’T THAT AN ACTOR OR ACTRESS IS THAT HANDSOME OR BEAUTIFUL… IT’S MORE BECAUSE THEY HAVE SOMETHING, A SWAGGER OR AN ATTITUDE, THAT MAKES THEM SO INTERESTING TO WATCH. IDRIS ELBA IS ONE OF THOSE ACTORS. (WELL, HE IS INCREDIBLY GOOD LOOKING). HE SAVED “HIJACK” FROM AN OTHERWISE RELENTLESSLY BORING SEVEN HOUR ORDEAL OF A MINISERIES. I WOULD WATCH HIM IN ANYTHING!

Directions

You can serve these with hot mustard and duck sauce. Or make a sauce by combining the following: oil, garlic, ginger, ketchup, pineapple juice, white vinegar, sugar and salt. See proportions above.

Step 1

Prepare the filling: Combine the softened cream cheese, cheddar cheese, crabmeat and scallions, chives, garlic powder,, sugar and pepper and Worcestershire sauce in a bowl. Mix and mash with a fork. Add the minced fake crabmeat last. Refrigerate if necessary, meaning if you are not going to make the wontons immediately.

Step 2

Assemble the wontons: Take one wrapper at a time and lay on a dry surface. Brush the edges with beaten egg. Put a teaspoon of the filling in the center of the wonton. Make a triangle and press the edges to seal the filling. Then fold up the edges to make a "crown" shape. Make sure the filling is sealed inside the wontons so they won't open when you fry them.

Step 3

Put the filled wontons on a cookie sheet and put them in the freezer for at least an hour. This step is optional but it helps. And you can freeze the wontons here and keep them in the freezer for days!

Step 4

Fry the wontons: Heat the oil in a big Dutch oven to almost 400 degrees. Watch this carefully. This is really hot oil, and you can't walk away from it for a leisurely Scrabble game or to watch Idris Elba in Hijack. Because Idris Elba is very distracting, and you don't want to burn down your house.

Step 5

Remove the wontons from the freezer and fry about 2 minutes for each batch until they are golden brown. Drain on paper towels.

Step 6

Serve the wontons with hot mustard and store bought duck sauce or the sauce accompanying this recipe.