Cheesecake Factory Crispy Crab Wontons

These copycat Cheesecake Factory Crispy Crab Wontons are crispy on the outside, filled with creamy crab, and served with a delicious sweet chili sauce. I've spent years perfecting this recipe and am confident it's even better than the original!

Can't get enough of the Cheesecake Factory? Try my Italian Lemon Cream Cake next!

🥡 About This Recipe

Crispy Crab Wontons are one of my FAVORITE menu items at The Cheesecake Factory! I've spent YEARS perfecting this recipe and I'm happy to finally share it with you.

If you're not familiar with them, they're basically wontons filled with crab meat and cream cheese and fried until crispy. They're the perfect crunchy appetizer, and they go great with a side of sweet chili dipping sauce!

I've tried crab wontons at many restaurants, but hands down, The Cheesecake Factory's version is the best. Most places use way too much cream cheese, which overpowers the taste of the crab, but they use the right amount.

I highly recommend making these as close to the serving time as possible, as the skin tends to lose its crispiness quite fast. From my testing, they stay crispy for about 10 minutes, but afterward, the bottoms start to get soft.

🧂 Ingredients

For the crab wontons:

• Wonton wrappers: You can buy these in the refrigerated section of most Asian grocery stores. Don't confuse these with dumpling wrappers, which are thicker.
• Canned crab: You'll need two cans for this recipe. I'm using the shelf-stable kind, but if you're feeling fancy, you can use real crab. It's super important to drain the crab well, otherwise the filling will be soggy.
• Cream cheese: Use full-fat cream cheese and make sure it's not the spreadable kind, which has unnecessary ingredients.
• Mozzarella cheese: I think mozzarella cheese gives the meltiest texture, but you can use other cheeses like cheddar or Fontina.
• Breadcrumbs: Helps absorb excess liquid in the filling. This will keep the outside crispier for longer.
• Green onions: Infuse a fresh and mildly oniony flavor.
• Water chestnuts: Mainly for adding a crunchy texture. You can omit them if you don't have them.
• Seasonings: Mayonnaise, dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce, and chili garlic sauce.

For the sweet and sour chili sauce:

• Rice wine vinegar: This vinegar tasted the best in my testing. It has a mild flavor that lets the flavor of the chili shine.
• Sugar: Use granulated white sugar.
• Sambal Oelek: My preferred chili paste, but you can substitute it with sriracha.
• Cornstarch: For thickening.

🔪 Instructions

STEP 1: Combine all the sauce ingredients and heat them over medium heat until they boil. Then, turn off the heat and set aside.

I like the sauce on the thinner side (like the version at the restaurant), but if you like it thicker, you can stir in a little bit more cornstarch (mixed with water so it doesn't clump)

STEP 2: Place the cream cheese, mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce, and chili garlic sauce into a mixing bowl and mix well until all the ingredients are blended and the cream cheese is smooth.

STEP 3: Add the crab meat, water chestnuts, and chopped green onions to the bowl. Fold the ingredients together until they are thoroughly combined. Try to be gentle so the crab meat doesn't disintegrate too much.

STEP 4: Finally, fold in the mozzarella cheese and breadcrumbs.

STEP 5: Lay a wonton skin onto a clean work surface or cutting board. Add a spoonful of filling to the center and wet the edges with a little bit of water.

STEP 6: Fold the bottom and top flat edges over the filling, then pinch the center sections of the top and bottom edges together. Do the same with the left and right sides to form a star shape. Pinch the edges tightly together so they don't open up in the fryer.

STEP 7: Heat the oil to 350°F, and fry 6-8 wontons for 3 minutes until they turn golden brown. Avoid overcrowding the fryer, as it can cause the temperature to drop too much.

Transfer them to a plate lined with paper towels, and then serve immediately with sweet chili dipping sauce.

🥡 Re-crisping Leftovers

You can either air-fry, deep-fry, or bake to re-crisp them. In my testing, air-frying works the best to restore the crispy texture. Air-fry at 400℉ for 2-3 minutes. You can also deep-fry at 350℉ for 2-3 minutes or bake at 375℉ for 7-10 minutes.

📋 Recipe