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I love satay sauce! So when the I ate Brisbane girls got together recently for some Thai style cooking I had no trouble choosing the entrée I would prepare. Satay sauce… Wait! I mean tung tong or, as they’re more commonly known, “money bags” served with, you guessed it, satay dipping sauce! In fact one of the most delicious sauces I’ve ever tasted! 

The preparation of these crispy little flavour bombs was actually much simpler than I’d originally anticipated. The chicken mince centre was quick and easy to prepare and the wonton wrappers were very easy to work with – much to my delight given I’ve had such a bad track record working with rice paper! In fact because the chicken is pre-cooked this would be a great dish to prepare earlier for a dinner party and quickly fry (or even steam) just before serving. 

Ingredients: Money Bags

• 1 tablespoon peanut oil
• 1 small brown onion finely chopped
• 1 clove of garlic crushed
• 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
• 100g chicken mince
• 1 tablespoon finely grated palm sugar
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped roasted unsalted peanuts
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh coriander
• 3 spring onions
• 24x 8cm square wonton wrappers
• vegetable oil for deep frying 

Method

1. Heat oil in wok; stir-fry onion, garlic and ginger until onion softens. Add chicken and stir-fry until chicken changes colour. Add sugar and further stir-fry for 3 minutes (or until sugar dissolves). Stir in nuts and coriander.
2. Cut the upper green part of each spring onion into four long slices. Submerge these strips into hot water for a few seconds to make them more pliable.
3. Take a wrapper and place another wrapper over it on a diagonal (to make a star shape). Place a teaspoon of the filling mixture in the centre of each star. Gather the corners to make the pouch shape and pinch. Wrap a green onion slice around the neck of the pouch to hold it closed and secure with a toothpick. 
4. At this point, make the dipping sauce (recipe below).
5. Just before serving, heat oil in a wok and deep-fry the moneybags, in batches, until crisp and browned. Drain on some paper towel and serve with the peanut dipping sauce

Ingredients: Peanut dipping sauce

• 1 tablespoon peanut oil
• 2 cloves of garlic, crushed
• 1 small brown onion chopped finely
• 2 fresh small red chillies, seeded, chopped finely
• 1 stick fresh lemon grass, chopped finely 
• 3/4 cup (180 mL) coconut milk 
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 1/4 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
• 1/2 cup (140g) crunchy peanut butter
• 1/2 tablespoon curry powder
• 1 tablespoon lime juice 

Method

1. Heat oil in a small saucepan; cook garlic and onion until softened.
2. Stir in remaining ingredients; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, stirring, for about 2 minutes or until the sauce thickens.

I must admit  I was originally quite sceptical about the peanut dipping sauce included in this recipe. The addition of crunchy peanut butter to the recipe seemed just a bit like cheating. However, this satay sauce did not disappoint. It was absolutely, undeniably delicious. I’m a little embarrassed to admit that the moneybags soon became a mere vehicle for the delivery of satay sauce to my mouth!

Makes 12 Money bags and 1 1/2 cups of dipping sauce.

Recipe from Women’s Weekly Beginners Thai.