Deep Fried Strawberry Cheesecake Wontons are crispy, golden pockets of creamy heaven filled with luscious strawberry cheesecake filling! These irresistible bites combine the richness of cream cheese with the sweet tang of strawberry jam, all wrapped up in a perfectly crunchy wonton shell.
Love More Desserts Recipes? Try My Strawberry Shortcake Sushi Rolls or this Fried Strawberry Cheesecake Sandwiches next.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Crispy on the outside and creamy on the inside, Deep Fried Strawberry Cheesecake Wontons are a dreamy dessert bite. Filled with sweet strawberry cheesecake filling and fried to golden perfection, these irresistible treats are finished with a dusting of powdered sugar for the ultimate indulgence.
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Deep Fried Strawberry Cheesecake Wontons
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 20-24 wontons
Description
Deep Fried Strawberry Cheesecake Wontons are crispy wonton wrappers filled with a creamy mixture of cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla, and strawberry jam. These easy-to-make treats are perfect for parties, dessert, or anytime you’re craving something sweet and indulgent. Ready in 30 minutes with just a handful of ingredients!
Ingredients
For the Filling:
- 8 oz cream cheese, softened
- 1/4 cup powdered sugar
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup strawberry jam or preserves
- Fresh strawberries, diced (optional, but highly recommended!)
For Assembly and Frying:
- 20–24 wonton wrappers
- Water, for sealing the edges
- Vegetable oil, for frying (about 3-4 cups, depending on your pot)
Optional Serving Additions:
- Powdered sugar for dusting
- Extra strawberry jam for dipping
- Whipped cream for dipping
- Chocolate sauce (my personal favorite!)
Instructions
Mix your cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla, and strawberry jam with a mixer for 2-3 minutes until it’s smooth. Get all the lumps out because they’ll make it harder to seal the wontons.
If you’re putting in fresh strawberries, dry them off with a paper towel first then fold them in. The filling needs to be thick – it should hold its shape on a spoon. Too runny? Stick it in the fridge for 10 minutes.
Put six wonton wrappers on your counter. Keep the rest covered with a damp towel or they’ll dry out and crack.
Drop about a teaspoon and a half of filling in the middle of each one. Don’t use too much – you need space around the edges to seal them. If any filling touches the edges, they won’t stick together.
Get your finger wet and run it around the edges of the wrapper. Damp, not dripping.
Fold it corner to corner to make a triangle. Press the edges together hard and squeeze out any air bubbles. Air inside makes them pop open in the oil.
Press the edges again, really mash them together. This matters more than anything else. Bad seal equals filling all over your oil.
Pour oil into your pot until you’ve got 2-3 inches. Heat it to 350°F and check with your thermometer.
Don’t skip this. Too hot burns them, too cool makes them greasy. You want 350°F.
Don’t fill the pot more than halfway with oil. Stay at the stove and pay attention.
Put 4-5 wontons in at a time. Give them space to float around.
They need about 2-3 minutes per side to get golden. Flip them halfway through with your spider strainer. When they’re golden, get them out fast – they burn quick.
Move them to a plate with paper towels to soak up extra oil. Wait 2-3 minutes before you eat them or you’ll burn your mouth – the filling gets really hot.
Dust them with powdered sugar if you want. Eat them warm. The shell cracks when you bite in and you get that warm filling – that’s the good part.
Notes
Assembly Line Method – Set up a little station with all your supplies in order: wrappers, filling, water bowl, empty baking sheet. You’ll work twice as fast!
Freeze for Later – Assemble the wontons, place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet, and freeze until solid. Then transfer to a freezer bag. Fry straight from frozen, adding just 1-2 extra minutes to the cooking time!
Common Mistakes to Avoid:
- Overfilling the wontons (less is more here!)
- Frying too many at once (patience, my friend!)
- Not drying fresh strawberries before adding them to the filling
- Letting assembled wontons sit too long before frying (the moisture will make them soggy)
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Deep Frying
Ingredient List
For the Filling:
- 8 oz cream cheese, softened
- 1/4 cup powdered sugar
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup strawberry jam or preserves
- Fresh strawberries, diced (I usually throw these in)
For Assembly and Frying:
- 20-24 wonton wrappers
- Water, for sealing the edges
- Vegetable oil, for frying (about 3-4 cups)
Optional Serving Additions:
- Powdered sugar for dusting
- Extra strawberry jam for dipping
- Whipped cream for dipping
- Chocolate sauce
Quick notes:
- Leave your cream cheese out for 30 minutes so it’s actually soft
- Wonton wrappers are in the refrigerated section near the tofu
- Regular vegetable oil is fine – it’s what I use
- Fresh strawberries make them better but you can skip them
Why These Ingredients Work
Cream cheese gives you that cheesecake taste and it holds together when it gets hot. Get the full-fat kind in the brick – whipped cream cheese is too airy and low-fat gets weird when you heat it.
Powdered sugar mixes in smooth without any grainy texture. Regular sugar doesn’t dissolve as well and it adds moisture you don’t want when you’re working with thin wrappers.
Half a teaspoon of vanilla doesn’t sound like much but you’d miss it if it wasn’t there. It just makes everything taste better.
Strawberry jam brings the fruit flavor without making things too wet. Preserves with chunks of strawberry are even better. Fresh strawberries on top of that give you real fruit pieces.
Wonton wrappers are these thin wheat squares that get super crispy when you fry them. Way easier than making dough yourself and they puff up nice and golden when they hit the hot oil.
Essential Tools and Equipment
You need:
- Mixing bowl
- Hand mixer (or a whisk if you want the arm workout)
- Spoon or small cookie scoop
- Small bowl of water
- Deep pot or Dutch oven
- Thermometer for checking oil temperature
- Spider strainer or slotted spoon
- Paper towels
- Baking sheet
The thermometer matters most here. Guessing at oil temperature is how you burn the outside while the inside stays raw.
How To Make Deep Fried Strawberry Cheesecake Wontons
Step 1 – Make the Filling
Mix your cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla, and strawberry jam with a mixer for 2-3 minutes until it’s smooth. Get all the lumps out because they’ll make it harder to seal the wontons.
If you’re putting in fresh strawberries, dry them off with a paper towel first then fold them in. The filling needs to be thick – it should hold its shape on a spoon. Too runny? Stick it in the fridge for 10 minutes.
Step 2 – Prepare the Wontons
Put six wonton wrappers on your counter. Keep the rest covered with a damp towel or they’ll dry out and crack.
Drop about a teaspoon and a half of filling in the middle of each one. Don’t use too much – you need space around the edges to seal them. If any filling touches the edges, they won’t stick together.
Step 3 – Seal the Wontons
Get your finger wet and run it around the edges of the wrapper. Damp, not dripping.
Fold it corner to corner to make a triangle. Press the edges together hard and squeeze out any air bubbles. Air inside makes them pop open in the oil.
Press the edges again, really mash them together. This matters more than anything else. Bad seal equals filling all over your oil.
Step 4 – Heat the Oil
Pour oil into your pot until you’ve got 2-3 inches. Heat it to 350°F and check with your thermometer.
Don’t skip this. Too hot burns them, too cool makes them greasy. You want 350°F.
Don’t fill the pot more than halfway with oil. Stay at the stove and pay attention.
Step 5 – Fry the Wontons
Put 4-5 wontons in at a time. Give them space to float around.
They need about 2-3 minutes per side to get golden. Flip them halfway through with your spider strainer. When they’re golden, get them out fast – they burn quick.
Step 6 – Drain and Serve
Move them to a plate with paper towels to soak up extra oil. Wait 2-3 minutes before you eat them or you’ll burn your mouth – the filling gets really hot.
Dust them with powdered sugar if you want. Eat them warm. The shell cracks when you bite in and you get that warm filling – that’s the good part.
You Must Know
Keep the oil at 350°F the whole time. It drops when you add wontons so wait for it to heat back up between batches. This is what makes them crispy instead of greasy.
Soft cream cheese or nothing. If it’s cold it won’t mix right and you’ll have lumps everywhere. Leave it out for 30-45 minutes.
Press those edges together like you mean it. Weak seal means exploded wonton. Check them twice.
Personal Secret: Make extras. Some will disappear before they hit the plate. That’s just how it goes in my house.
Pro Tips & Cooking Hacks
No thermometer? Toss a piece of wonton wrapper in the oil. If it sizzles and pops up right away, you’re good to go.
Line everything up before you start – wrappers, filling, water, empty pan. You’ll work way faster.
Make a bunch ahead and freeze them. Put them on a baking sheet, freeze until hard, then bag them. Fry from frozen – just add a minute or two.
Don’t:
- Overfill them (you’ll see why when one explodes)
- Fry too many at once (they need space)
- Use wet strawberries without drying them first
- Let filled wontons sit around (they get soggy)
Cookie scoop portions out the same amount every time so they all cook the same.
Flavor Variations / Suggestions
Try these:
Chocolate – Mix 2 tablespoons cocoa into the cream cheese, use chocolate chips instead of strawberries. Top with chocolate sauce.
Mixed berry – Use raspberry, strawberry, and blueberry jam together. Throw in fresh blueberries.
Lemon – Swap jam for lemon curd, add a teaspoon of lemon zest.
Nutella – Replace jam with Nutella, add mini chocolate chips.
Cinnamon sugar – Roll hot wontons in cinnamon sugar instead of powdered sugar.
Tropical – Pineapple or mango jam with toasted coconut in the filling.
Cookies and cream – Crushed Oreos in the cream cheese, skip the jam.
Make-Ahead Options
Filling keeps in the fridge for 3 days in a sealed container. Stir it before you use it.
Fold wontons up to 4 hours early. Put them on a pan with parchment, cover with plastic wrap, refrigerate. Don’t let them touch each other.
Freezing works best. Make them, freeze on a pan for 2 hours, then bag them. Good for 2 months. Fry straight from the freezer.
You can prep everything the night before too. Filling goes in the fridge, wonton wrappers stay ready.
Fried ones need to be eaten right away or within a few hours. They get soft if they sit too long.
Recipe Notes & Baker’s Tips
Cover unused wrappers with a damp towel. They dry out in minutes and then they crack when you fold them.
You need at least 2 inches of oil. If wontons are sitting on the bottom they won’t cook right.
This makes 20-24 wontons. Cut it in half if you’re feeding just a couple people.
Filling should be thick like frosting. Too thin? Add more powdered sugar or cream cheese.
Golden brown is what you want – not light, not dark. Like French toast.
Want them extra crispy? Fry for 2 minutes, let them sit for 1 minute, fry again for another minute.
Serving Suggestions
Put them on a plate, dust with powdered sugar, set out some dipping sauces. Jam, chocolate, caramel, whipped cream – whatever you’ve got.
They’re great for parties. Put toothpicks in them so people can grab them easy. Game day, movie night, whatever.
Add them to brunch with fruit and coffee. Fancy enough for guests, easy enough for Sunday morning.
Make them for date night. Way better than going out, costs less, tastes better. Pour some wine.
Put them next to vanilla ice cream while they’re still warm. Hot and cold together is really good.
Top with:
- Fresh strawberry slices
- Mint leaves
- White chocolate drizzle
- Whipped cream
- Berry sauce
I make these all the time now. Someone always wants the recipe. The crispy outside breaking into that warm filling – it just works. Hope you like them.
How to Store Your Deep Fried Strawberry Cheesecake Wontons
They’re best right away but they’ll keep at room temperature for 2-3 hours. Leave them uncovered so they stay crispy.
Leftovers go in a container in the fridge for 2 days. They lose crunch but they’re still good. Some people like them cold.
Uncooked ones freeze great. Single layer on a pan until frozen solid, then into a bag. Keep for 2 months. Fry from frozen – add 1-2 minutes.
Don’t freeze cooked ones. They get soggy when you reheat them.
Reheat: Oven at 350°F for 5-7 minutes. Won’t be as crispy as fresh but better than microwave (which makes them soggy). Or re-fry in 350°F oil for 30 seconds to 1 minute – watch them close.
Allergy Information
Has:
- Dairy (cream cheese)
- Wheat (wonton wrappers)
- Maybe eggs (some wonton wrappers have them)
Swaps:
No dairy: Dairy-free cream cheese like Kite Hill or Miyoko’s. Check your jam for hidden dairy.
No gluten: Gluten-free wonton wrappers at Asian markets or health food stores. Rice paper works. So do gluten-free egg roll wrappers cut smaller.
Vegan: Vegan cream cheese and egg-free wonton wrappers (lots of Asian brands are).
Less sugar: Use 2 tablespoons powdered sugar and sugar-free jam. Not as sweet but still good.
No nuts: This recipe doesn’t have nuts but check jam labels – some are made in facilities that process nuts.
Questions I Get Asked A Lot
My wontons are exploding in the oil – what am I doing wrong?
Bad seal. Press edges together really hard with no air inside. Don’t overfill them. Make sure no filling is on the edges where you’re sealing – it stops them from sticking.
How do I know when the oil is hot enough without a thermometer?
Drop a wonton wrapper piece in. Sizzles and floats right away? Good to go. Just sits there? Wait longer. Browns in under 10 seconds? Too hot.
Why are my wontons greasy?
Oil wasn’t hot enough. Cool oil means they soak it up instead of getting crispy fast. Keep it at 350°F and let it heat back up between batches.
Can I use Cool Whip or frozen strawberries in the filling?
Cool Whip makes it runny – use cream cheese. Frozen strawberries need to be totally thawed and dried really well or they add too much water. Fresh is better.
💬 Tried this recipe? Leave a comment and rating below! Tell me how they turned out! Different jam? Special sauce? Let me know!
