Better than takeout, these Crispy Spring Rolls are full of the flavors you love! Cabbage, carrots, and mushrooms come together in these traditional Vietnamese fried spring rolls, and are the perfect complement to any Asian dinner!
If you like to go all out on Asian dinners, these authentic Vietnamese Spring Rolls will fit perfectly into your menu! Not to be confused with fresh summer spring rolls, these fried vegetable-stuffed rolls are fabulously crispy whether they’re fried or baked. You can even get your air fryer into the game of you’re looking to cut the fat from the recipe.
CRISPY SPRING ROLLS
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Asian food is a constant in our household. My husband LOVES his boneless spare ribs and fried rice, and we find ourselves grabbing takeout every couple of weeks.
Sometimes when he starts yakking about his take out food cravings, I’ll get the jump on him and make something homemade – saving us some money and (usually) calories. He loves my 20-Minute Spicy Chicken Ramen and pork stir fry, but until recently I was too lazy to make my own spring rolls.
I picked up these spring roll wrappers at our local Asian market, Googled around a bit, and came up with a tasty, flavorful combo of veggies and seasonings that has him going wild for spring rolls now!
What Are Spring Rolls?
There are two different types of Spring Rolls, fried and fresh.
- Fried rolls, like the ones in this post, are made with a pastry-like dough wrapper that is meant to be fried. They can be found in the freezer section of any specialty Asian market and must be kept frozen until ready to use.
- Fresh rolls, on the other hand, are wrapped in a clear rice paper that can be found on the shelf at Asian markets and some grocery stores. They are usually filled with fresh, raw vegetables and sometimes shrimp.
Spring Roll vs. Egg Roll
Spring Rolls 春卷 (Chūnjuǎn) are made with a thinly rolled flour dough, filled with julienned vegetables, sometimes with a bit of noodles or minced meat. They are traditionally pan-fried or deep-fried, but can also be baked.
Egg Rolls are made with a thicker egg-based dough, though they are often filled with similar ingredients as spring rolls. Egg rolls are also usually filled with minced pork or chicken and are deep-fried.
How To Make Spring Rolls
- First, heat 1 tablespoon of sesame oil in a wok set over medium-high heat. Add the green onion and garlic and cook for 30 seconds, until it’s fragrant. Add the cabbage, carrots, and mushrooms and stir fry for 2-3 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Next, stir in the rice wine, soy sauce, Chinese five-spice, and remaining sesame oil. Remove the wok from the heat and allow the filling to cool completely.
- When you’re ready to make the spring rolls, lay out a spring roll wrapper on a work surface in a diamond shape, with a corner facing towards you. Brush a bit of water around the edges with your fingers to moisten the wrapper, then add 2 tablespoons of filling in the bottom quarter of the diamond.
- Then, roll the wrapper up tightly toward the middle, ensuring the filling stays inside. Moisten the two sides and top corner with a bit more water, then fold in the two sides and roll tightly the rest of the way, being sure to keep the entire roll sealed.
- Place the rolled spring rolls on a plate covered with plastic wrap to prevent drying while working.
- While you are rolling up the spring rolls, heat 2 inches of oil in a Dutch oven to 350 degrees F. Fry the spring rolls in batches of 4-5 until golden brown, about 2-3 minutes, flipping to get an even browning. Serve the finished Spring Rolls with Thai Chili sauce or Yum Yum sauce.
How To Freeze Spring Rolls
Sometimes almost two dozen Spring Rolls is way too many! Sometimes you want to work ahead to make a bunch for an event. The good news is that freezing Spring Rolls is super easy and efficient.
Place the rolled Spring Rolls, unfried, in a single layer in a plastic zipper bag. They can be frozen for up to 3 months.
When you’re ready to eat them, follow the frying instructions with the Spring Rolls straight out of the freezer – no thawing necessary.
Try some of my other favorite Asian food recipes!!
- Pot Stickers
- Chicken Lettuce Wraps
- Ramen Noodle Stir Fry
- Korean Beef Bowls
- Slow Cooker Thai Sweet Chili Chicken
- More appetizer recipes…
Tools used to make this Crispy Spring Rolls recipe
Wok: Perfect for high-heat and Asian cuisine recipes! This wok cooks everything to perfection and is a great addition to your kitchen!
Dutch Oven: This dutch oven is a kitchen essential for everything from dinner to desserts. I use mine all the time and with proper care, it’ll last for years and years.
Spider Strainer: This is my favorite kitchen tool for frying or blanching. This strainer makes it SO easy to get everything out of the pot in a just a couple swipes.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil divided
- 2 tablespoons green onion chopped
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 4 cups Napa cabbage shredded
- 1 carrot sliced thinly
- 5 shiitake mushrooms thinly sliced
- 1 tablespoon rice wine (mirin)
- 2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon Chinese five-spice powder
- 2 tablespoon cold water
- 18-20 9-inch spring roll wrappers
- Vegetable oil for frying
Instructions
- Add 1 tablespoon sesame oil to a wok set over medium-high heat. Add green onion and garlic and cook for 30 seconds until fragrant. Add cabbage, carrots, and mushrooms and stir fry for 2-3 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Add rice wine, soy sauce, five-spice, and remaining sesame oil and stir well. Remove the wok from the heat and allow to cool completely.
- Lay out a spring roll wrapper on a work surface in a diamond shape. Brush a bit of water around the edges with your fingers to moisten, then add 2 tablespoons of filling in the bottom quarter of the diamond, closest to you.
- Roll the wrapper up tightly toward the middle, ensuring the filling stays inside.
- Moisten the two sides and top corner with a bit more water, then fold in the two sides and roll tightly the rest of the way, being sure to keep the entire roll sealed. Place on a plate covered with plastic wrap to prevent drying while working.
- Meanwhile, heat 2 inches of oil in a Dutch oven to 350 degrees F. Fry the spring rolls in batches of 4-5 until golden brown, about 2-3 minutes, flipping to get an even browning.
- Serve with Thai Chili sauce or Yum Yum sauce.
Nutrition
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