- 20
Ingredients
- Spring Roll Stuffing:
- 6 ounces lean pork, finely shredded
- 1 1/2 teaspoons soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons peanut oil
- 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
- 4 ounces bamboo shoots, finely shredded
- 6 to 8 medium dried black mushrooms, re-hydrated
- 1 pound green cabbage, finely shredded
- Spring Roll Seasoning:
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons light soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon sesame seed oil
- 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon white pepper
- 2 tablespoons dry sherry wine
- 1/2 cup canned chicken broth
- 2 green onions, thinly cut on a bias
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch (dissolved in 2 tablespoons water)
- 20 spring roll wrappers
- 1 well-beaten egg
- 1 gallon peanut oil for deep frying
Preparation
Step 1
First, mix shredded pork with half-teaspoon of soy sauce and teaspoon of cornstarch for about 5 minutes.
Then preheat your wok or heavy aluminum skillet over high heat for about 2 minutes with nothing in it.
Then add peanut oil and marinated shredded pork and quickly stir-fry it for about 30 seconds. When it is cooked, remove it from wok with slotted spoon and allow excess oil to drain off.
Now immediately reheat wok to high and drop in garlic, bamboo shoots, black mushrooms, and cabbage and stir-fry mixture for about 2 minutes.
Then put shredded pork back into wok, shower in sherry wine, sprinkle in all seasonings, along with chicken stock, and stir-fry for another 2 minutes.
Then add green onions and cornstarch and stir mixture again until liquids in wok thicken (which should take only few seconds).
At this point, remove stuffing from wok, place it into colander to cool, and let it drain for minimum of 2 hours.
When you're ready to wrap your spring rolls, place wrapper squarely in front of you (not in the diamond shape you used for egg rolls). Then put about 2 heaping tablespoons stuffing just below center line of wrapper and spread it evenly crosswise. Now fold edge nearest to you over mixture and roll wrapper up tightly. After wrapper is rolled about 3/4 of way, fold over both edges and continue to roll away from you. To finish off the roll and seal wrap, brush edge with a little bit of beaten egg.
All that is left is to deep-fry the spring rolls to crispy golden brown in hot peanut oil set at 350 degrees. I suggest you drain rolls for minute or two on absorbent paper towels before you serve them. And like egg rolls, they should be served with hot mustard and Chinese plum sauces.
If you want to prepare egg rolls and spring rolls for party, go ahead and assemble them and partially deep-fry them. Then let them cool completely, wrap them in plastic film, and place them in refrigerator. Then when you are ready to server, take them from fridge, allow them to warm up slightly, and re-fry them at 325 degrees until they are crispy and crunchy. This considerably reduces your cooking time.
Spring roll wrappers, unlike egg roll wrappers, are extremely thin and flaky, almost pastry-like. For that reason, they tend to dry out quickly and become difficult to roll once package is opened. To prevent this from happening, I suggest you keep them covered with damp towel as you re rolling them. And they, too, like egg rolls, can be twice fried for an extra-crunchy texture.