Traditional Chinese Egg Rolls with ground Pork, Beef, or Chicken. Made the same way as a Chinese restaurant for Old Fashion or Classic Egg Rolls.
Servings: 24 Egg Rolls
Equipment
- 1 Deep Fryer
- 2 Baking Sheets one for the Filling and the other for the cooked Egg Rolls
- 2 Mixing Bowls one for the Cabbage and the other for the Egg Roll Filling
- 1 Food Processor for the Cabbage and optionally the Carrot
- 1 Digital Scale
- 1 Small Bowl & Brush for the Egg Wash
Ingredients
- 1 pack Egg Roll Wrappers - Small 450 g - See notes
Cabbage Mix
- 1 lb. Napa Cabbage - or 454 g / Sliced thin
- 1 lb. Cabbage - or 454 g / Sliced thin
- 1 Tbl Kosher Salt
Egg Roll Filling
- 1 lb. Pork, Beef or Chicken
- 3 Cloves Garlic - Minced
- 2 Large Green Onions - Rinsed and Sliced
- 1 Inch Ginger - Peeled and Minced
- 1 C Bean Sprouts - Rinsed and strained
- 1 Carrot - Peeled and Shredded
- 2 Tbl Soy Sauce & Sake - each
- 1 Tbl Cornstarch
- 2 tsp Sesame Oil
- 3/4 tsp Sea Salt & Black Pepper - each
- 1/4 tsp White Pepper
- 1 Egg Yolk - from the Egg used for the Egg Wash
- 1/2 tsp MSG - Optional
Egg Wash
- 1 Egg White
- 1 Tbl Cold Water
Instructions
- Chop the Cabbage into quarters and remove the Core. Weigh out 1 lb. or 454 g. This will be about 1/4 of a Cabbage. Chop the thick Stem section off the Napa Cabbage towards the root and weigh out 1 lbs. Slice Napa Cabbage & Green Cabbage into thin strips, or run them through a Food Processor to slice thin. Add the Cabbage & Napa Cabbage to a Bowl and Salt with 1 Tbl Kosher Salt. Mix and squeeze the Salt into the Cabbage mixture. Let sit for at least 1 hour.
- Prepare the Egg Roll Filling by combining everything into another bowl. Add 1 Egg Yolk and reserve the Egg White to place into a small bowl with 1 Tbl of Cold Water for the Egg Wash. Mix the meat mixture well and refrigerate until the Cabbage is ready.
- Squeeze out really well the juice from the Salted Cabbage and add to the Pork Meat mixture to mix well. Discard the juices. Weigh out 45 g portions and shape into a cylinder. Lay them down on a baking sheet. Once you have them all portioned and shaped, set aside while you heat up the deep fryer to 340 F - 350 F and prepare the Wrappers.
- On a counter with lots of space, lay out each Wrapper in rows and with all edges in contact so that you are able to apply the egg wash to 2 egg roll wrappers at the same time all the way around.
- Brush Wrappers with Egg wash (1 Egg White & 1 Tbl Water, mixed until frothy) on all sides. Fill all the Wrappers with the Filling. Roll each one and gently flatten the Egg Roll out by pressing down on it to spread the filling out with the seam facing down. Then seal both ends with the palm of your hand on the counter edge. Repeat for each Egg Roll and place them all back on the baking sheet. You may need a few extra wrappers. For this reason, I always pick up 2 Packs just in case.
- Deep fry for 5-6 minutes, Flipping over halfway. For Egg Rolls that won't stay flipped over you will have to splash with hot oil or submerge them for a bit with Tongs to get pretty even browning. Lift the basket up and stand the Egg Rolls up to drain off any excess grease or if cooking these in a wok, remove and place on a wired rack. Let them rest for 10 minutes before serving with some Plum Sauce.
Notes
Egg Roll Wrappers: There are 2 sizes for Egg Roll Wrappers. Small at 450 g and Large at 454 g. The recommended one is the Small for Egg Rolls which are portioned at 45 g of Filling for about 24 Egg Rolls deep fried at 340 F - 350 F for 5–6 minutes. Pick up two packages because sometimes you will need just a few from the other package.
The large ones have a filling portion of 60 g for about 20 Egg Rolls, deep fried at 330 F for about 5–6 minutes.
Leftover Cabbage: Shred up all the Cabbage and make homemade Sauerkraut. The Salted Cabbage is the same process for making Sauerkraut. Just shred all the Cabbage and set aside 1 lb. for the Egg Rolls and use the rest to make Sauerkraut. Alternatively, use the Cabbage for Steamed Cabbage, Fried Cabbage or in Soups and Stews.
Freezing Egg Rolls: Place rested and cooled Egg Rolls on a baking sheet to freeze. Once frozen, transfer into a Freezer bag or container and freeze.
Reheating Egg Rolls: Egg Rolls can go straight from frozen to the oven at 350 F for about 20 minutes, flipping halfway through to reach an internal temperature of 165 F.
To minimize on the browning, you can microwave frozen Egg Rolls for 1 minute. This should just heat the filling warm, or you can defrost the Egg Roll. Then place into the oven at 350 F for about 10 minutes or so to crisp up.