These Applebee's Chicken Wonton Tacos are the perfect copycat, filled with honey-garlic chicken and zesty slaw in a crispy wonton shell.
Ingredients and substitutions
Chicken
- Chicken breasts – if you prefer dark meat, you can use boneless chicken thighs instead.
- Hoisin sauce – if you don't have hoisin sauce, you can use bean paste or 2 tbsp honey and 1 tbsp soy sauce mixed together.
- Sesame oil – you can try using a neutral cooking oil like olive oil or avocado oil instead.
- Soy sauce – tamari or coconut aminos are the best substitutes for soy sauce.
- Garlic – freshly minced garlic is best but the jarred variety will work as well.
- Ginger – use 1 tsp. of ground ginger powder if you don’t have any fresh ginger on hand.
Asian-inspired slaw
- Coleslaw – chop up some red or green cabbage instead (although buying the bagged coleslaw is easier).
- Green onions – chives or shallots would be the best substitute here.
- Sesame oil – swap out for a neutral oil like avocado or canola oil.
- Rice vinegar – white wine vinegar or apple cider would also work.
- Soy sauce – tamari or coconut aminos are the best substitutes for soy sauce.
- Honey – try using agave syrup or brown rice syrup instead for a bit of sweetness.
Toppings
- Wonton wrappers – if you want to make these tacos low-carb, use lettuce wraps instead.
- Sweet chili sauce – make your own using a blend of hot sauce and honey.
- Chopped cilantro – leave this out altogether if you don’t have any cilantro.
- Sesame seeds – both white and black sesame seeds would work here.
How to make Applebee's chicken wonton tacos
Step 1: Make the coleslaw.
Mix ingredients for coleslaw together in a large bowl.
Step 2: Prep the wonton wrappers.
Preheat oven to 375 F. Spray wonton wrappers with cooking spray or brush with a bit of olive/canola oil, then drape over the side of a 9×13 baking dish.
Step 3: Bake until crispy.
Bake for 7-8 minutes, watching closely so they don't burn. Take wonton shells out of the oven, then gently pull them apart while they are still pliable so that they are more easily filled with toppings. Bake another 7-8 minutes until crispy.
Step 4: Marinate the chicken.
Mix diced raw chicken in a large bowl with hoisin sauce, sesame oil, soy sauce, garlic and ginger.
Step 5: Cook the chicken.
Heat a large skillet over high heat and saute chicken for 7-8 minutes, tossing frequently until cooked through.
Step 6: Assemble your tacos and serve!
Add chicken mixture to wonton shells, then top with coleslaw, drizzle with sweet chili sauce and sprinkle with cilantro and sesame seeds. Serve and enjoy!
Topping ideas for wonton tacos
These Applebee’s wonton tacos are appetizer-sized, but if you have a sharp kitchen knife and are good at mincing, consider adding some of these other toppings:
- Minced mushrooms
- Minced bamboo shoots
- Grated carrot or parsnip
- Kohlrabi (German turnip) cut into matchsticks
- Plum sauce
- Sriracha sauce
Frequently Asked Questions
There are just 350 calories per serving in this chicken wonton tacos recipe, significantly less than at Applebee’s! One serving is made up of four tacos so you’re looking at just 88 calories per taco. If you were to order the original dish at Applebee’s, you’re looking at 570 calories per serving – and the serving size is likely smaller.
If you shop at an Asian market, wonton wrappers will be easy to find for your wonton tacos. They are usually in the refrigerated foods section. At traditional grocery stores, they are typically in the refrigerated section of the ethic food aisle. Otherwise, look in the produce section. They might be near the spice roots (like ginger), or near the refrigerated salad dressings.
These Applebee’s wonton tacos have 33 grams of carbs per serving. The wonton wrappers are part of what make these tacos so delicious, but if you’re looking for a low-carb option, you can always swap out the wonton wrappers for lettuce wraps.
Storing and reheating
Anytime you combine hot and cold foods together, it can be tricky to reheat them without losing some flavour, texture or both. Because of this, these Applebee’s wonton tacos are best eaten on the day they are made.
If you do have leftover chicken that you want to keep to enjoy later, store it in a covered container in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days. You can always bake the wonton shells fresh again in the oven.
Freezing this recipe
Unfortunately, fully assembled, chicken wonton tacos do not freeze well. However, you can definitely freeze the chicken by itself!
After cooking the chicken, be sure to allow it time to cool down before you transfer it to freezer-safe storage containers. Once frozen, the chicken will last in the freezer for up to 3 months. Let it thaw in the fridge overnight then reheat it in the microwave or in the oven before assembling your fresh tacos.
More Applebee's copycat recipes
Meal Prep Tools
- Grab some glass meal prep bowls if you plan on storing any leftover chicken.
- I get all my free-range chicken from Butcher Box, conveniently delivered to me frozen.
- **Get my full list of tools here**
Applebee's Chicken Wonton Tacos
Ingredients
Chicken
- 2 chicken breasts, finely diced
- 2 tbsp hoisin sauce
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp minced fresh ginger
Asian-inspired slaw
- 1 (397g) bag coleslaw
- 4 green onions, thinly sliced
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 1 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp honey
For tacos + toppings
- 16 Wonton wrappers
- Sweet chili sauce, to serve
- Chopped cilantro, to serve
- Sesame seeds, to serve
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 F. Spray wonton wrappers with cooking spray or brush with a bit of olive/canola oil, then drape over the side of a 9×13 baking dish. Bake for 7-8 minutes, watching closely closely so they don't burn. Take wonton shells out of the oven, then gently pull them apart while they are still pliable so that they are more easily filled with toppings. Bake another 7-8 minutes until crispy.
- Mix diced raw chicken in a large bowl with hoisin sauce, sesame oil, soy sauce, garlic and ginger. Heat a large skillet over high heat and saute chicken for 7-8 minutes, tossing frequently until cooked through.
- Meanwhile, mix ingredients for coleslaw together in a large bowl.
- Add chicken mixture to wonton shells, then top with coleslaw, drizzle with sweet chili sauce and sprinkle with cilantro and sesame seeds. Serve and enjoy!
Comments & Reviews
Helene Matthews says
Taylor, I just came across your recipe for Applebee’s Chicken Wonton Tacos. Wow, they look great and I can ‘t wait to try them. I get really excited when I see that the blog writer is from Canada and especially from my hometown of Toronto as I don’t find very many Canadian recipe writers online. Maybe I’m not looking in the right places. Now that I know you exist, I will be following your blogs and wonderful recipes. Thanks for everything.
Alyssa says
The flavor was really great. The wontons weren’t nearly wide enough to stuff with the filling though. We ended up having Wonton Nachos. With a few remaining ones, I made wonton cups in a muffin tin which were much better. We also talked about maybe making these as street tacos next time in the small tortillas. We’ll see! We’d make again for the flavor though!
Marilyn Hladysh says
We really enjoyed these. I recommend turning the wrappers 1/2 way and found some were not wide enough to stuff – we just had them openface – the muffin tins would likely work well – 2 wrappers in each spot. I’ve made others like that.
DeAnn says
This was awesome! A little pre-prep next time will make it so easier. BUT I can not for the life of me get the wontons right. Finally our tacos just became tostadas! Either way they were wonderful and my family can’t wait for me to make them again!
Liza says
Can I use muffin tins to bake the won tons?
Taylor Stinson says
Those should work, yes!
Terra says
If I have no hoisin sauce would it be terrible if I leave that out?
Taylor Stinson says
Hi Terra – you do need the hoisin sauce for some sweetness. If you don’t have hoisin sauce, you can use 2 tbsp honey and 1 tbsp soy sauce mixed together to replace it.
Diane says
These were amazing- 2nd week in a row I’ve made them!! I had a bit of trouble cooking the wrappers though on the pan so I just tucked them in muffin tins and used like a bowl. Perfect and love the flavors 😊
L says
These were great . I fried the wontons for a wider opening for the shells and I topped with Sriacha sauce.
Margaret Richardson says
Very good!
Keniona says
Super delicious! I substituted agave for honey and it was perfect! I also used egg roll wrappers instead of wontons, and made them into delicious egg rolls. Easier to construct and eat!
B says
Wonton wrappers are eggroll wrappers just smaller