Wonton: a salty broth and an old worry about MSG

Most of the worry around wontons is about monosodium glutamate, so start with what controlled trials of that seasoning measured. In a randomized trial on 58 healthy young adults, 3.8 g of MSG a day in broth for 4 weeks lowered the desire for savory foods by 7.7 units against a broth matched for sodium (95% CI -13.7 to -1.7). In a crossover trial on 22 adults, MSG added to a single high-protein test meal led to 0.64 MJ more eaten at the next course than the same meal without additives (SEM 0.20). Both trials used the seasoning in broth or a test meal, and we found no source that measured how much MSG a given wonton holds. The number that belongs to the wonton itself is salt. In US survey data one cup of wonton soup, 245 g, carries about 81 calories and 907 mg sodium, and restaurant broths vary widely.

As people eat it, per 3.5 oz (100 g)

How much is actually in it

• In US survey food data, a fried wonton, dumpling or pot sticker has 192 calories, 11.1 g fat, 8.8 g protein and 467 mg sodium per 3.5 oz (100 g). — Wonton, dumpling or pot sticker, fried (FNDDS 58111110) Evidence C source
  Per 100 g: energy 192 calories; fat 11.13 g; protein 8.76 g; sodium 467 mg
• One cup of wonton soup, 245 g, gives about 81 calories but 907 mg sodium in US survey data. — Soup, wonton (FNDDS 58408010) Evidence C source
  Per cup 245 g: energy 80.8 calories; sodium 906.5 mg; protein 5.9 g; fat 3.2 g

What a real portion looks like

• US survey coding sets one wonton or dumpling at 25 g, about 48 calories and 117 mg sodium fried or 28 calories and 92 mg steamed. — Wonton, dumpling or pot sticker, fried and steamed, 1 item Evidence C source
  1 item 25 g: fried 48.0 calories, 116.8 mg sodium, 2.8 g fat; steamed 28.2 calories, 92.0 mg sodium, 1.1 g fat

What your body absorbs

• In a crossover RCT on 13 adults, 2 g of MSG with a standard meal raised several plasma amino acids, including leucine, isoleucine and valine, early after the meal, without changing glucose or insulin. — 13 healthy adults, 6 days of 2 g MSG or NaCl, then 6 h postprandial test (n = 13) Evidence B source
  Higher leucine, isoleucine, valine, lysine and others in early postprandial phase; no change in glucose, insulin, GLP-1 or ghrelin

What cooking and storage change

• Steamed wontons carry 113 calories and 4.6 g fat per 3.5 oz (100 g) in US survey data, against 192 calories and 11.1 g fat when fried. — Wonton, dumpling or pot sticker, steamed (FNDDS 58112510) vs fried (58111110) Evidence C source
  Steamed vs fried per 3.5 oz (100 g): energy 113 vs 192 calories; fat 4.6 vs 11.13 g; sodium 368 vs 467 mg

What it does to your health

• In an RCT on 58 young adults, 3.8 g of MSG a day in broth for 4 weeks lowered desire for savory foods by 7.7 units versus a sodium-matched broth. — 58 healthy normal-weight young adults (42 women), 4 weeks (n = 58) Evidence B source
  Desire for savory foods -7.7 units (95% CI -13.7 to -1.7); umami intensity in women -8.4 units (95% CI -13.8 to -3.1)
• In a crossover RCT on 22 adults, adding MSG to a high-protein meal led to 0.64 MJ more energy eaten at the next course than the same meal without additives. — 10 men and 12 women, single test meals in random order (n = 22) Evidence B source
  +0.64 MJ (SEM 0.20) at second course with MSG only, P = 0.005; no change in satiety

Safety, limits and interactions

• A 1977 case report described a man with ventricular tachycardia 30 minutes after wonton soup and blamed monosodium glutamate. — One man aged 36 (n = 1) Evidence D source
  Ventricular tachycardia, converted with lidocaine; causal link to MSG assumed, not tested
• A systematic review of human MSG studies found no rise in headache in five of six studies where MSG was taken with food. — Human MSG challenge studies, 10 papers, 13 studies Evidence C source
  With food: 0 of 6 studies significant except one female subgroup; without food: 4 of 7 significant, blinding doubtful
• A 2026 systematic review concluded that MSG rarely acts as a true allergen and that double-blind trials rarely confirm Chinese Restaurant Syndrome at dietary doses. — Studies on MSG and allergic or intolerance reactions, mainly 2019 onward Evidence C source
  IgE-mediated reactions exceedingly infrequent; transient intolerance under high-dose, empty-stomach challenge
• FDA says symptoms linked to MSG appeared in some sensitive people only at 3 g or more without food, while a typical serving with added MSG has under 0.5 g. — General US population; self-identified MSG-sensitive individuals Evidence E source
  Threshold for transient mild symptoms 3 g or more without food; typical serving under 0.5 g

The bottom line

Frying is where most of the energy comes from. Per 100 g, steamed wontons carry 113 calories and 4.6 g fat in US survey data, against 192 calories and 11.1 g fat fried. That gap reflects frying oil in composite recipes, and nobody ran a cooking experiment to measure it. US survey coding counts one wonton as 25 g, about 28 calories and 92 mg sodium steamed or 48 calories and 117 mg sodium fried. One code covers wontons, dumplings and pot stickers together, so fillings vary. The idea that MSG gives people headaches was tested. A systematic review of human challenge studies found that in six studies where MSG was eaten with food, none showed more headache, except for women in one study. Without food, four of seven studies did find a difference. Across the review many studies used MSG solutions above 2 percent and were poorly blinded, and there was no pooled analysis. A 2026 systematic review concluded that double-blind, placebo-controlled trials rarely confirm Chinese Restaurant Syndrome at realistic dietary doses. The FDA says mild, short-lived symptoms appeared in some sensitive people only at 3 g or more taken without food, while a typical serving of food with added MSG holds under 0.5 g. The fear has a starting point. In 1977 a 36 year old man developed ventricular tachycardia 30 minutes after wonton soup, and the report blamed MSG without testing it. In a crossover trial on 13 healthy adults, 2 g of MSG with a meal raised several amino acids in the blood early after eating, among them leucine, isoleucine and valine, compared with salt, and did not change glucose or insulin. The abstract gives no effect sizes. Who should be careful. The safety cards on this page cover MSG only. We found nothing on allergy to the wrapper or the fillings, and nothing on children, pregnancy or medicines, so this page cannot clear anyone in those groups. If you are limiting sodium, the broth is the part that counts: 907 mg in a cup against 92 mg in one steamed wonton.

Sources

1. wtn-daily-r4-01 · composition dataset
   Wonton, dumpling or pot sticker, fried (FNDDS 58111110, fdc_id 2708705): Energy 192 KCAL; Total lipid (fat) 11.13 G; Protein 8.76 G; Sodium, Na 467 MG per 100 g
   USDA FNDDS, FoodData Central survey foods, code 58111110 (fdc_id 2708705) · checked 2026-09-30
2. wtn-daily-r4-03 · portion data
   Soup, wonton (fdc_id 2709160): 1 cup 245 g, Energy 80.8 KCAL, Sodium, Na 906.5 MG, Protein 5.9 G, Total lipid (fat) 3.2 G
   USDA FNDDS, FoodData Central survey foods, code 58408010 (fdc_id 2709160) · checked 2026-09-30
3. wtn-daily-r4-04 · portion data
   Wonton, dumpling or pot sticker, fried (fdc_id 2708705): 1 item, any size 25 g, Energy 48.0 KCAL, Sodium, Na 116.8 MG; Wonton, dumpling or pot sticker, steamed (fdc_id 2708708): 1 item, any size 25 g, Energy 28.2 KCAL, Sodium, Na 92.0 MG
   USDA FNDDS, FoodData Central survey foods, fdc_id 2708705 and 2708708 · checked 2026-09-30
4. wtn-daily-r4-09 · RCT (crossover)
   This early postprandial phase was also associated with significantly increased levels of circulating leucine, isoleucine, valine, lysine, cysteine, alanine, tyrosine, and tryptophan after MSG compared with NaCl. No changes to the postprandial glucose, insulin, glucagon-like peptide (GLP)-1, and ghrelin were noted between MSG- and NaCl-supplemented meals.
   Am J Physiol Gastrointest Liver Physiol, 2011 · checked 2026-09-30
5. wtn-daily-r4-02 · composition dataset
   Wonton, dumpling or pot sticker, steamed (fdc_id 2708708): Energy 113 KCAL; Total lipid (fat) 4.6 G; Sodium, Na 368 MG per 100 g; Wonton, dumpling or pot sticker, fried (fdc_id 2708705): Energy 192 KCAL; Total lipid (fat) 11.13 G; Sodium, Na 467 MG per 100 g
   USDA FNDDS, FoodData Central survey foods, codes 58112510 and 58111110 · checked 2026-09-30
6. wtn-daily-r4-08 · RCT
   Relative to controls, increased consumption of MSG for 4 wk diminished umami taste in women (8.4 units on generalized Labeled Magnitude Scale; 95% CI: -13.8, -3.1 units; P = 0.013). The desire for and intake of savory foods decreased after MSG treatment in both sexes with an ad libitum meal (desire: -7.7 units; 95% CI: -13.7, -1.7 units; P = 0.04; intake: -36 g; 95% CI: -91, 19 g; P = 0.04).
   J Nutr, 2018 · checked 2026-09-30
7. wtn-daily-r4-10 · RCT (crossover)
   Following the HP+MSG-only condition, 0.64 (SEM 0.20) MJ more energy was consumed compared with the HP no-additives condition (P = 0.005).
   Br J Nutr, 2009 · checked 2026-09-30
8. wtn-daily-r4-05 · case report
   A 36-year-old man developed severe weakness, palpitation, and diaphoresis 30 minutes after eating wonton soup. On admission to the hospital he was found to have ventricular tachycardia.
   South Med J, 1977 · checked 2026-09-30
9. wtn-daily-r4-06 · systematic review
   Of five papers including six studies with food, none showed a significant difference in the incidence of headache except for the female group in one study. Of five papers including seven studies without food, four studies showed a significant difference.
   J Headache Pain, 2016 · checked 2026-09-30
10. wtn-daily-r4-07 · systematic review
    Findings indicate that anecdotal reports concerning Chinese Restaurant Syndrome (CRS) primarily draw upon uncontrolled research or subjective accounts, whereas double-blind, placebo-controlled investigations rarely confirm consistent symptomatology when realistic dietary doses are administered.
    J Am Nutr Assoc, 2026 · checked 2026-09-30
11. wtn-daily-r4-11 · agency guidance
    The FASEB report identified some short-term, transient, and generally mild symptoms, such as headache, numbness, flushing, tingling, palpitations, and drowsiness that may occur in some sensitive individuals who consume 3 grams or more of MSG without food. However, a typical serving of a food with added MSG contains less than 0.5 grams of MSG.
    FDA, Questions and Answers on Monosodium glutamate (MSG), 2026 · checked 2026-09-30