Crab rangoon is a type of appetizer consisting of cream cheese, crabmeat, and seasonings wrapped inside a wonton. Thought to have originated in America as an Asian treat, crab rangoon is a popular dish to serve at parties and is a staple appetizer served at American Chinese restaurants, but it is not a common dish in China. There are certain consistencies necessary to prepare crab rangoon, but there are many variations of recipes, most of which involve deep frying the ingredient-stuffed wonton.

Most variations of crab rangoon recipes involve cream cheese and flaked or imitation crab meat along with scallions, or green onion, and seasoning. Seasonings vary to include garlic, steak sauce, soy sauce, season salt, and onion powder. In most recipes the ingredients are mixed together and then placed by spoonfuls onto prepared wonton wrappers. The wonton wrappers are then folded either into triangles or flower shapes and deep fried in vegetable oil until they are golden brown.

There are variations of the crab rangoon recipe that include omitting the crab meat and using only seasoned cream cheese, which makes the dish suitable for those with shellfish allergies, and baking the stuffed wonton instead of deep frying, which omits the grease. Typically, the baked version of crab rangoon utilizes a muffin pan to stabilize the wonton while baking.

Though crab rangoon is not an authentic Asian dish, this popular appetizer is almost always found on American Chinese restaurant menus and buffets. At parties, the crab rangoon is second in popularity as an appetizer to maybe the egg roll or the cheese tray. Crab rangoon is often served with a sauce for dipping. There is no standard dipping sauce, but popular options include sweet and sour sauce, soy sauce, and hot mustard. However, many people enjoy the crab rangoon served plain, especially when well-seasoned.

For a variety of recipes for crab rangoon, do a simple search for crab rangoon recipes. If you prefer to skip the fuss, many grocery retailers sell frozen prepared crab rangoon that you only need to heat in the oven before serving.