Spring Rolls (China)

World-Bites (2) / Spring Rolls (China)


Shuen Guen, popularly known world over as Spring Rolls, is a traditional Chinese snack, made with a round, thin dough sheet with fillings rolled inside and deep fried in oil. Spring rolls are usually eaten during the Spring Festival in China, hence the name. It is a very popular snack in several Asian countries, most notably China, Vietnam, the Philippines and Indonesia. The snacks are crisp outside and fresh inside, really delicious. Spring rolls vary slightly from place to place, with well-known types being Shanghai Spring Rolls and Fuzhou Spring Rolls.

Ingredients

20 medium frozen spring roll wrappers, 9in square, defrosted
1 egg white lightly beaten
2 cups vegetable oil for deep-frying
For the filling:
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1lb carrots cut into thin strips
1/4lb cabbage, finely shredded
7oz canned sliced bamboo shoots, rinsed and cut into thin strips
3/4lb snow peas or thin green beans, thinly sliced on the diagonal
8 shitake mushrooms, stems removed and cups thinly sliced
2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh ginger
3 teaspoons light soy sauce
6oz noodles, soaked in hot water for 5 minutes and cut into short lengths
8 scallions cut into rounds
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

For the filling, heat the oil in a wok. Add the carrots, cabbage and bamboo shoots and stir-fry for 2 minutes. Add the snow peas or green beans, mushrooms, the ginger and soy sauce and stir-fry for 3 minutes. Add the noodles and scallions and stir-fry rapidly for 2 minutes, until the liquid evaporates but the vegetables are still moist. Season to taste, remove from the wok and let cool.
Place one spring roll wrapper on a flat surface. Put about 2 tablespoons of the cold filling on the corner nearest to you. Flatten the filling a little, then roll the corner of the wrapper over it, toward the center. Fold in the two side flaps. Brush the far corner of the wrapper with a little of the egg white and continue rolling to make a well-sealed bundle. Repeat with the remaining filling and wrappers.
Heat the oil in a deep-fat frier or wok. Add 4 spring rolls, lower the heat a little, and deep fry for 6-8 minutes, turning the rolls several times until golden brown. Remove from the wok with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Keep the spring rolls hot in a warm oven until the remaining batches are fried, then serve immediately. Alternately, leave the cooked rolls until cold, then briefly refry just before serving.
The cooked spring rolls can be frozen for up to 4 weeks. To serve, heat the oil and deep fry the frozen rolls for 6-8 minutes.