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TenPenh's take on Crab Rangoon
TenPenh's take on Crab Rangoon
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Where to Find Crab Rangoon In and Around D.C.

Here's where to enjoy the decidedly non-traditional dish

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TenPenh's take on Crab Rangoon
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Americans tend to go crazy over crab Rangoon at Chinese restaurants, but the crispy crab puffs have almost nothing to do with China. The dish is simple: cream cheese and crab folded up in wonton wrappers and deep-fried. It's named after the capitol city of Burma, where the dish supposedly originated.

However, that's almost certainly not true, since wonton wrappers are from China, and cream cheese is not a staple of Southeast Asian cuisine. Most attribute the creation of crab Rangoon to Trader Vic's, a popular Polynesian restaurant chain in San Francisco in the 1950s.

While real Chinese people probably don't eat them, that doesn't stop the dish from popping up on restaurant menus across the city. Here are 10 spots to enjoy crab Rangoon.

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Crab Rangoon is a little unexpected at a bourbon bar, but the menu at Barrel has just that ($12). They’ve been playing around with their recipe, which used to include lobster.

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China Jade

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This spot has a vast menu covering all kinds of Chinese fare, plus the decidedly American crab Rangoon (6 for $6.95).

Great Wall Szechuan

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Great Wall Szechuan House offers crab Rangoon for dine-in or takeout ($4.95).

Shaw’s new ramen hotspot serves an even more Americanized rendition of crab Rangoon as a side dish to accompany their Japanese noodles. It adds Old Bay to a filling of fried creamy crab and cream cheese (4 for $7).

Image: Lani Furbank

Hong Kong Palace

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The crab Rangoon offering at this Szechuan favorite is a steal: eight wontons for $5.95.

TenPenh Tysons

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Passion Food Hospitality recently revived their Asian-inspired restaurant, TenPenh, in a new home at Tysons Corner. Chef Jeff Tunks dreamed up an appetizer of deconstructed crab Rangoon. It’s a hot crab Rangoon dip that’s served with wonton chips ($11).

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The Source by Wolfgang Puck

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Taking a cue from a regional delicacy, Chef Scott Drewno at The Source has a Jumbo Lump Maryland Crab Cake “Rangoon” with crispy wonton and sweet chili sauce.

Tilt Side Bar swaps crab for lobster in their lobster Rangoon ($15). They’re stuffed with fresh-caught spiced lobster and cream cheese. Toppings include sweet and spicy chili sauce and cilantro.

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Peking Gourmet Inn

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This Falls Church favorite frequented by political and pop culture elites (think the Bushes, Robert Duvall, Psy of “Gangnam Style”) has crab Rangoon on the menu (4 for $8).

The Thai and Asian menu at Zabver includes a decked-out crab Rangoon. The Wasabi-Bleu Cheese Crab Rangoon is described as a crispy “stuffed cheese popper” with wasabi, Danish bleu cheese, and Japanese crab, wrapped in a wonton wrapper and served with sweet and sour chili sauce ($6).

Barrel

Crab Rangoon is a little unexpected at a bourbon bar, but the menu at Barrel has just that ($12). They’ve been playing around with their recipe, which used to include lobster.

Courtesy

China Jade

This spot has a vast menu covering all kinds of Chinese fare, plus the decidedly American crab Rangoon (6 for $6.95).

Great Wall Szechuan

Great Wall Szechuan House offers crab Rangoon for dine-in or takeout ($4.95).

Haikan

Shaw’s new ramen hotspot serves an even more Americanized rendition of crab Rangoon as a side dish to accompany their Japanese noodles. It adds Old Bay to a filling of fried creamy crab and cream cheese (4 for $7).

Image: Lani Furbank

Hong Kong Palace

The crab Rangoon offering at this Szechuan favorite is a steal: eight wontons for $5.95.

TenPenh Tysons

Passion Food Hospitality recently revived their Asian-inspired restaurant, TenPenh, in a new home at Tysons Corner. Chef Jeff Tunks dreamed up an appetizer of deconstructed crab Rangoon. It’s a hot crab Rangoon dip that’s served with wonton chips ($11).

Courtesy

The Source by Wolfgang Puck

Taking a cue from a regional delicacy, Chef Scott Drewno at The Source has a Jumbo Lump Maryland Crab Cake “Rangoon” with crispy wonton and sweet chili sauce.

Tilt

Tilt Side Bar swaps crab for lobster in their lobster Rangoon ($15). They’re stuffed with fresh-caught spiced lobster and cream cheese. Toppings include sweet and spicy chili sauce and cilantro.

Courtesy

Peking Gourmet Inn

This Falls Church favorite frequented by political and pop culture elites (think the Bushes, Robert Duvall, Psy of “Gangnam Style”) has crab Rangoon on the menu (4 for $8).

Zabver

The Thai and Asian menu at Zabver includes a decked-out crab Rangoon. The Wasabi-Bleu Cheese Crab Rangoon is described as a crispy “stuffed cheese popper” with wasabi, Danish bleu cheese, and Japanese crab, wrapped in a wonton wrapper and served with sweet and sour chili sauce ($6).

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