Chinese Crispy Spring Rolls Recipes

SPRING ROLLS RECIPE

Steps:

• To make the Filling, heat the oil in a skillet over high heat. Ad the pork and stir fry until the surface turn white. Add the cabbage, stir a few times before adding all the ingredients in Seasonings. The filling is ready when the cabbage becomes somewhat dry and not wet. (Wet filling will make the spring rolls soggy and not crispy.) Transfer the filling to a big bowl, let cool.
• To wrap a spring roll, place a piece of spring roll wrapper on a flat surface. Spread about 2 tablespoons of the filling lengthwise onto the center of the wrapper. DO NOT OVERFILL. Using a small brush or your index finger, dab the beaten egg around the outer edges of the wrapper.
• Fold the bottom part of the wrapper over the filling.
• Fold the left and right sides of the wrapper over the filling. Make sure the filling is packed tightly. Roll the spring roll over until it reaches the other end of the wrapper. Make sure the spring roll is sealed tight and there is no leakage. Repeat the steps until you use up the filling.
• Heat 2 to 3 inches of oil in a wok or a small sauce pan to 350°F (176°C) for deep frying. Gently drop the spring rolls into the oil and deep fry in batches. Deep fry until golden brown. Remove the spring rolls using a strainer or a slotted spoon, draining excess oil on a plate lined with paper towels. Serve immediately.

CRISPY SPRING ROLLS (CHA GIO)

Steps:

• Combine the bean thread noodles, mushrooms, onion, carrots, and green onions in a mixing bowl. Set aside.
• Beat the eggs in a large bowl. Mix in the fish sauce, garlic, salt, sugar, and black pepper. Add the chicken and pork and using a fork, break up the meat, so it is thoroughly mixed with the seasonings. Add the noodle mixture and mix well. Set aside.
• Combine the cornstarch and water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over low heat and stir often to prevent sticking. If mixture seems too thick, add more water. This will be the "glue" to seal the edges of the wrapper.
• Cut the wrappers in half diagonally. You will have two equal triangles. Starting with the longest side toward you, place about 2 tablespoons of filling on the bottom area of the triangle. Using your fingers, mold the filling into a cylinder 2 inches long and 1 inch wide. Fold the two pointed ends of the wrapper in and roll to enclose. Dab a little cornstarch mixture along the edges (do not use too much "glue") and seal the roll. Set aside while you finish making the remaining rolls. Do not stack them.
• To fry, preheat a large wok or fry pan. When hot, pour enough oil in to completely cover the spring rolls. Heat to about 325 degrees. Carefully place the rolls into the oil. Do not crowd the pan or place the rolls on top of each other. Fry the spring rolls until filling is cooked, about 5 to 6 minutes on each side, turning often until they are nicely brown and crisp. If they brown too quickly, reduce the heat as the oil is too hot. Remove the cooked spring rolls from the pan and drain on paper towels. Serve immediately with dipping sauce and table salad .
• To enjoy a spring roll the Vietnamese way, put it on a lettuce leaf, top with cucumber and mint, and wrap it up. Then dip in Vietnamese dipping sauce.

AIR FRYER SPRING ROLLS

Steps:

• Take the spring roll wrappers out of the freezer and allow to come to room temperature for about 30 minutes. Another option is to place frozen spring roll wrappers in the refrigerator to unthaw for about 2 hours. Keep sealed and do not open package or otherwise they will dry out. (If your spring rolls wrappers have been refrigerated and not frozen, you can skip this step)
• Combine the 2 tablespoons of cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of water and stir well to make your cornstarch slurry. Set aside.
• In a medium bowl add your ground pork, chopped shrimp, white pepper and salt, cornstarch, sesame oil and Shaoxing wine. Stir well and set aside to marinate.
• Slice and chop napa cabbage. Finely slice green onions. Grate carrot or finely julienne cut. Cut bean sprouts into thirds. Set aside
• In your wok/frying pan add 1 tablespoon of oil and heat to a medium high heat. Add ginger and garlic until fry until aromatic. Add the shrimp and pork mixture, more Shaoxing wine, sesame oil, white pepper and soy sauce to taste. Stir fry until pork is no longer pink and the shrimp are no longer translucent, about 2 minutes. Add prepared cabbage, carrot, bean sprouts and green onions to cooked shrimp and pork mixture in the wok and cook just until the vegetables start to give out the juice or about 1 to 2 minutes.
• Strain cooked filling mixture in colander/strainer to remove the moisture and press down to remove the excess juice from the mixture. Set aside strained filling mixture to cool. (Save the strained juice for a soup or pitch)
• Remove the spring roll wrappers from the package. Carefully remove slowly and carefully peel away one spring roll wrapper and lie on your clean working surface. Place the rest of the unused spring roll wrappers under a damp clean cloth or tea towel so they do not dry out (very important step). Stir your cornstarch slurry mixture again and have it near you.
• Place the spring roll wrapper with one of the pointed edges towards you, like a diamond. With a brush or your finger paint the outsides with the cornstarch slurry to help the spring roll stick.Place one to two tablespoon of delicious pork, shrimp and veggie filling mixture on to the pointed edge. Then, holding the spring roll firmly but gently, roll the edge over the filling mixture once. With your fingers, dab a little of the cornstarch slurry on each of the edges to help seal the spring roll. (Remember to stir the cornstarch slurry first as the cornstarch has a tendency to fall to the bottom of the bowl.)Fold in the sides and keep the spring roll tight as you gently squeeze and roll away from you.Brush another thin layer of cornstarch slurry on the back half and continue to roll tightly until sealed. Continue the same process with the remaining spring rolls wrappers and filling. (Don't worry if the first few spring rolls you try to roll look like a disaster. Practice makes perfect and you have about another 15 or so spring roll attempts to get it right)
• Preheat your air fryer to 400 degrees F (204 degrees C)
• Spray air fryer basket with a little oil spray. Spray or brush oil on all sides of the prepared spring rolls.
• Place the spring rolls in the air fryer basket making sure they are not touching. Depending on the size and model of your air fryer, you may have to cook your spring rolls in batches.
• Air fry spring rolls between 15 to 17 minutes or until golden brown on all side. Turn spring rolls midway in the cooking process. Allow to cool for a couple of minutes before eating. Enjoy!
• Preheat your oven to 190 degrees C (or 375 degrees F)
• Place seam side down on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and a little spray oil.
• Spray or brush the spring rolls gently on both sides with a little oil. Bake seam side down for about 10 minutes. After the first 10 minutes turn the spring rolls over and brush on a little more oil and bake for an additional 10-15 minutes or until golden brown and crispy. Allow to cool for a couple of minutes before eating. Enjoy!
• In a small bowl add soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic, ginger, green onion, Chinese black vinegar (optional) and if you like it hot a little chopped bird chili. Mix well and serve as a dipping sauce for spring rolls. Also delicious with a little homemade Garlic Chili Oil, Sriracha sauce or plain.

VIETNAMESE SPRING ROLLS

Steps:

• Soak the mung bean vermicelli in water until soft. Drained.
• Cut the chicken breast meat, shrimps and onions into small cubes
• Cut the carrots and yam bean into fine julienne by hand or with a mandolin.
• Cut the scallion into small pieces
• Heat up the oil in a saucepan or wok, stir-fry the chicken meat until cooked.
• Add the shrimps, and continue to stir-fry until it is cooked. Remove from heat.
• Mixed the shrimp and chicken with all the remaining ingredients.
• Place the wrapper with one of the corners near you, like a diamond, on a clean and dry surface.
• Place about 20-25g of filling on the wrapper, slightly off center but near to you.
• Fold the corner nearest to you over the filling. Roll it tight.
• Fold the left and right corner to the center.
• Place a dollop of cornstarch slurry or egg liquid on the tip of the remaining corner.
• Roll the spring roll away from you like making a burrito. Let the cornstarch slurry or egg liquid to act as gum to secure the seal at the folding.
• Place a large piece of plastic sheet on a shallow pan.
• Place the spring roll seam side down on the plastic sheet.
• Cover it with another plastic sheet and keep it in the freezer until the spring rolls are frozen.
• Remove the frozen spring rolls and store it in a freezer safe container.
• Heat up the oil in the deep fryer or wok to 350°F/175°C.
• Deep fried the spring 5 minutes until they turn golden brown.
• Prepare the dipping sauce
• Mix all the ingredients in a small pot.
• Heat it up until the sugar is dissolved.

CHINESE SPRING ROLLS

Steps:

• Mix the pork with the marinade ingredients and set aside for about 30 minutes. In the meantime, prepare the rest of the ingredients. Cut all of the vegetables to approximately the same size. You want everything the same size so each ingredient blends together.
• Brown the pork over high heat in 2 tablespoons of oil, and add the garlic, mushrooms and carrots. Stir fry for 30 seconds, and add the bamboo shoots, napa cabbage, and Shaoxing wine. Continue stir-frying for a minute. Adjust the heat to simmer the mixture, as the napa cabbage will release a lot of moisture.
• Stir in the soy sauce, sesame oil, salt, white pepper, and sugar. At this time, you have the option of adding 1/4 cup of the decanted water from soaking the dried mushrooms. It strengthens the mushroom flavor, so this is purely according to your personal preference. You may also have to simmer the filling longer to reduce the additional liquid.
• Continue simmering the filling for another 3 minutes--until the napa cabbage is completely wilted--and stir in the corn starch slurry to thicken. How much slurry you add depends upon the wetness of the filling (this varies if your cabbage had more moisture or if you did add the optional mushroom water), but there should be no standing liquid at all.
• Transfer the filling to a large shallow bowl, and let cool. Place into the refrigerator to cool further-at least one hour. It's best to start with a cold filling for easier wrapping. The key to wrapping spring rolls is making sure that they're tight, yet not overstuffed. It's best to use fresh spring roll wrappers if you can, as freezing the wrappers can result in the spring roll skin being a bit too damp.
• Place the wrapper on a flat surface so that a corner is facing toward you. Use about two spoonfuls of the mixture per spring roll, and spoon it about 2 inches from the corner that is closest to you. Roll it over once, and, like you're making a burrito, fold over both sides. Continue rolling it into a cigar shape. With your fingers, brush a bit of the cornstarch water onto the corner of the wrapper that is farthest from you to seal it.
• In case you're wondering, we did try egg wash instead of the cornstarch mixture to seal the spring roll but the egg wash "stains" the spring roll, so it's best to use the cornstarch mixture.
• Place each roll on a tray. This recipe makes about 18-20 spring rolls. You can also freeze these spring rolls on the tray overnight, and transfer them to a zip-lock bag when they are completely frozen for future use. We usually fry some fresh and freeze the rest, unless we are hosting a party, in which case, these go like hot cakes!
• To fry the spring rolls, fill a small pot (which requires less oil) with oil until it's 2 to 3 inches deep. Heat the oil slowly over medium heat until it reaches 325 degrees. Gently add the spring rolls one at a time, frying in small batches. Carefully roll them in the oil so they cook evenly until golden brown and transfer them to a plate lined with paper towels.
• Prepare the dipping sauce by adding all ingredients to a small sauce pan. Mix and heat until just simmering and pour into a small bowl. Serve the spring rolls hot with the dipping sauce!

CHINESE CRISPY SPRING ROLLS

Steps:

• Shred vegetables to the same size and shape as bean sprouts.
• Heat 2 tbsp oil in wok and stir-fry vegetables for 1 minute.
• Add salt, sugar, light soy sauce, and rice wine.
• Stir-fry 2 minutes more; drain and cool.
• To make a spring roll, cut the wrapper in half diagonally.
• Place 1 tbsp of veggie mixture one-third of the way down the wrapper, then turn the wrapper so the small tip of the diagonal is pointing away from you.
• Fold the wide edge of the wrapper over the filling and roll over one time.
• Fold in the sides, and roll the wrapper away from you one time more.
• Brush the upper edge of the wrapper with cornstarch paste (to make cornstarch paste, simply mix 4 parts cornstarch to 5 parts cold water, and stir till dissolved).
• Finish rolling the spring roll, keeping it a bit tight.
• Sprinkle some flour on a baking sheet (to keep spring rolls from sticking), and rest the spring rolls there, flap side down, while you finish making the other rolls.
• To cook, heat the oil in a wok or fryer until hot, then reduce the heat to low.
• Fry the spring rolls in batches, making sure not to crowd, cooking until they are golden and crispy, about 2-3 minutes.
• Remove rolls from oil and drain on paper toweling.
• Serve hot with soy sauce, or sweet and sour and hot mustard, if desired.