In the old days, spring rolls were prepared mainly for Chinese New Year, which is the start of spring according to the traditional Chinese calendar… which explains their name: spring rolls! There are many versions of this typical Chinese appetizer: in this article, we have chosen the vegetarian version stuffed with cabbage, onion and carrots, but you can also add to the vegetables soy sprouts or chicken or pork for example. Stay tuned for the Chinese spring roll recipe.
Using the ready-made sheets, you’ll find that making spring rolls with your own hands is child’s play! Simply serve them piping hot with a hot or sweet and sour sauce and continue the evening with a choice of popular Chinese recipes such as Cantonese rice, steamed dumplings, soy noodles, almond chicken or baozi.
How to cook Chinese spring rolls
Spring Roll
Print RecipeIngredients
- Rolls (21.5 x 21.5 cm) 8 sheets
- Cabbage 300 g
- Carrots 60 g
- White onions 50 g
- Rice wine 30 g
- Peanut oil to taste
- Salt to taste
- White (or black) pepper to taste
- Egg whites to taste (for brushing)
- Peanut oil (or sunflower oil) to taste (for cooling)
Instructions
How to prepare spring roll
In order to prepare the spring rolls, first defrost the ready-made sheets and then cover them with a slightly damp cloth to prevent them from drying out. Clean and thinly slice the cabbage 1, onions 2 and carrots 3.
Put the wok over a high heat, then add the seed oil and onions 4. Fry for a couple of minutes, before adding the carrots and cabbage 5. Season with salt and pepper 6.
Then add the rice wine 7 and stir-fry the vegetables for 4-5 minutes: they must be cooked but still crunchy 8. Put the vegetables in a colander to remove the excess liquid, then spread them out a little with chopsticks to better preserve their color and texture 9.
At this point you can make the rolls: put one sheet at a time on the tea towel with one corner facing you and add a small handful of filling to the bottom half 10. Fold the bottom corner up and gently roll it up to cover the filling 11, then fold the corners at the sides towards the center 12.
Finally, roll the roll from the bottom up 13 and seal the pastry by dampening the edges with a little egg 14 white, using your fingers or a brush. Don’t press too hard or the pastry may break. Proceed in this way to form all the rolls 15.
Heat the wok again, then pour in plenty of seed oil 16 and bring to 180°. Once the oil has reached the right temperature, reduce the heat slightly and fry a few rolls at a time 17, turning them on both sides 18.
Once spring rolls are golden brown on both sides, drain the rolls 19 and place them on kitchen paper to absorb any excess oil 20. Serve your spring rolls still hot with a hot or sweet and sour sauce 21!
Storage
It is recommended that you eat the spring rolls as soon as they are ready; otherwise they can be stored in the fridge for up to one day. Do not freeze the spring rolls.
Also Read:
- How to Make Hollandaise Sauce
- Vegetarian Lasagna Recipe
- Spaghetti with Shrimps, Stracchino and Saffron Recipe
- Recipe 3 Bean Salad
Tips
You can easily find spring roll sheets online or in specialist ethnic food shops.
You can also make your own batter: in a bowl, mix 125 g of 00 flour, 70 g of cornstarch, 350 g of water and 2 pinches of salt until the mixture has no lumps. Let it rest for at least half an hour, then make very thin crepes by cooking them in a non-stick pan greased with seed oil; they must be almost transparent. Then proceed with the filling as per the recipe!
There are also versions with pork or chicken in addition to vegetables.
If you can’t find beef cabbage, use round cabbage, just a few minutes longer. Savoy cabbage is not recommended because it would become too soft.
For frying you use peanut or sunflower oil.
You can use white cooking wine instead of rice wine, but be aware that the result may not be the same.
What do you think about our spring roll review? Let us know in the comments section below.
