Egg Rolls
Egg rolls
An egg roll is made by wrapping a combination of chopped vegetables (often mostly cabbage) and meat in a sheet of dough, then deep frying it. Pork, or a combination of pork and shrimp, is the protein most often found. As a standby on Chinese American takeout menus for decades, they are usually served with sweet duck sauce and Chinese hot mustard.
The origins of the dish are unclear and remain disputed. Egg rolls are closely related to, but distinct from, the spring rolls served in mainland China, and were first seen in the early 20th century in the United States.
When compared with its cousin, the spring roll, the egg roll is generally larger; has a thicker, puffier skin and has more filling than the spring roll. However, the terms "spring roll" and "egg roll" are often used somewhat interchangeably. The egg roll dough is wheat-based and is made with egg. Spring roll wrappers are made only with flour, water, oil and salt. See Difference Between Egg Rolls & Spring Rolls for more information.
Egg Rolls
Recipe Courtesy of Emeril Lagasse, modified
FMM: This is the recipe we have always used. The combination of pork and shrimp is quite good. Brian may have used more cabbage (as well as shrimp) in his, because when I made them I thought they should have more cabbage like those you get for Chinese take-out. I doubt we found Bok Choy and he probably used Napa cabbage, which is what I used and weighed it. The Woks of Life recipe to the right uses both savoy and green cabbage, Green cabbage may not wilt down as much as Bok Choy.
Here is a recipe for making your own Egg Roll Wrappers. Or, another option if you cannot find egg roll wrappers that are 6" square, is to use the 3" wonton wrappers made with eggs and glue them together with the egg wash used when rolling them up. See How to Roll Egg Rolls & Spring Rolls on how to patch a wrapper with a hole. This worked quite well for me. My package of wonton wrappers had 40 wrappers, enough to make 10 egg rolls, using 4 wrappers each.
I made 1/2 a recipe and got 9 egg rolls.
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 pound ground pork
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup minced yellow onions
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
1 pound Bok Choy, very thinly sliced [use more]
1/2 pound medium shrimp, peeled, deveined and chopped
Soy sauce, to taste
1/4 cup Sake [can substitute dry sherry]
1 tablespoon sugar
1 pound fresh bean sprouts, washed and patted dry
1/4 cup green onions, green part only
20 (6-inch) egg roll wrappers [recipe makes 16 wrappers]
1 egg, beaten
Oil for frying
1 cup Duck sauce [homemade or store-bought]
1/2 cup Mustard Sauce [homemade or store-bought]
[Prep the ingredients for the filling.]
In a wok heat the oil. When the oil is hot, add the pork. Season with salt and pepper. Stir fry for 3 minutes. Add the onions and garlic, continue to cook for 2 minutes. Add the cabbage and shrimp. Season with salt and pepper. Stir fry for 1 minute. Season with the soy sauce [2 tablespoons], sake and sugar. Add the sprouts and green onions and mix thoroughly. Remove from the heat and cool completely. Strain the mixture if need be.
[You can push the filling mixture to the size of the pan and boil off the liquid. As the mixture cools, the filling will reabsorb some of the juices. If the filling is too wet, you will have a wet filling and soggy egg rolls!
When ready to assemble the egg rolls, heat the oil over medium heat to 375 F (about 190 C). The oil should be about 2" deep — just enough to submerge the egg rolls. To tell if the oil is ready, dip a bamboo chopstick into the hot oil, and if some bubbles form around the chopstick, then the oil is ready.
Tip: Deep-fry the egg rolls within 30 minutes of wrapping them. Otherwise, the juice will seep out and the egg rolls will get soggy.]
To assemble*, spoon about 1/4 cup of the filling in a rectangular shape on the center of each wrapper. Fold in the ends toward the center about 1/4-inch. Then, beginning at the bottom, roll up the wrapper, like a jelly roll, using a little of the egg wash to seal the end tightly. [Set, sealed side down, on a wooden cutting board or a sheet pan lined with parchment paper.] Repeat until all of the egg rolls are done.
*See How to Roll Egg Rolls & Spring Rolls for better instructions and pictures.
Fry the egg rolls in batches until golden brown, stirring occasionally for overall browning, about 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from the oil and drain on paper towels.
Tip from https://thewoksoflife.com/: "My father used to tell me that frying egg rolls was a fool-proof task. You just slide them gently into the oil, and keep them moving while they are frying. When they’re done, they’ll “call” you with a slightly louder sizzling noise. That splattering noise is signaling that the filling is getting hot inside. The steam is escaping, causing the oil to bubble up. "
Serve warm with the two sauces.
Makes 20 egg rolls
Takeout Egg Rolls
from https://thewoksoflife.com/
Egg rolls are the quintessential Chinese takeout food. Here's our family's restaurant recipe—a 100% accurate, easy-to-follow egg roll recipe to make at home!
8 cups savoy cabbage
(shredded)
8 cups green cabbage (shredded)
2 cups carrot (shredded)
2 cups celery (shredded)
3 scallions (chopped)
2 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons sugar
1 tablespoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons peanut or vegetable oil (plus more, for frying)
1/4 teaspoon five spice powder (optional)
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
3 cups roast pork (char siu, shredded or diced)
2 cups cooked shrimp (chopped, optional)
1 package egg roll wrappers (about 24 pieces)
1 egg (beaten)
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Put the cabbage, carrots, and celery into the boiling water and cook for about 2 minutes. Transfer the veggies to an ice bath and drain. Thoroughly squeeze out all the excess water from the vegetables (you can put the drained veggies in a clean kitchen towel and squeeze out the water). This is a very important step because if the filling is too wet, you will have a wet filling and soggy egg rolls!
Once dry, transfer the veggies to a large mixing bowl. Add the scallions, salt, sugar, sesame oil, 2 tablespoons oil, five spice powder (if using), white pepper, roast pork, and cooked shrimp (if using). Toss everything together. The filling is ready to be wrapped!
To wrap the egg rolls, take a small fistful of filling, squeeze it a little in your hand until it is compressed together, and place it on the wrapper. The wrapping method is similar to that of a burrito. Just add a thin layer of egg to make sure it stays sealed. Line them up on a lightly floured surface, and continue assembling until you run out of ingredients.
In a small pot, heat oil to 325 degrees. You don't need too much—just enough to submerge the egg rolls. Carefully place a couple egg rolls into the oil, and fry them for about 5 minutes until golden brown. Keep them moving in the oil to make sure they fry evenly.
Cool slightly and serve! Freeze leftovers in freezer bags and reheat them in the oven at 350 degrees, until crispy.
TIPS & NOTES:
Makes about 2 dozen.
