These egg rolls are Chinese-takeout copycats that can be easily made at home! They store and freeze super well, so you can pop one into the air fryer or oven whenever you'd like a couple with your sesame chicken, chicken with mixed vegetables, or Mongolian beef!
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Ingredient notes
Please scroll down to the recipe card for the ingredient quantities!
- Cabbage - We like to use Taiwanese cabbage for making the filling because the leaves are more tender than regular green cabbage. But if Taiwanese cabbage is not available, green cabbage is perfectly fine.
- Celery - Just a small amount of celery is needed. It adds some extra flavor to the filling without overpowering it.
- Ground meat - Traditionally, ground pork is used in the filling. However, you can substitute it for you preferred choice of ground meat. Do note that the leaner the ground meat, the more oil you should use when cooking.
- Salt - Salt will be used for seasoning the egg roll filing and for salting the cabbage mixture.
- Sugar - A little bit of sugar helps to round out all the savory flavor.
- Garlic powder and onion powder - Both of these helps to add tons of flavor to the filling.
- Black pepper and white pepper - Both pepper have their unique flavor and adds their own touch to the overall flavor.
- Ginger - Using some ginger while cooking the ground pork is really optional. Ginger helps to get rid of unwanted porky flavors and make the pork more aromatic.
- Oil - Any neutral oil such as soybean, sunflower seed, grapeseed, and peanut oil are perfect. Although, peanut oil would make the egg roll more fragrant.
- Egg roll wrappers - These are available at most Asian markets. You'll usually find them either in the freezer or refrigerated aisle where the dumpling wrappers are. Also, Different brands are not made equally. So don't be afraid to try out a few brands to find your favorite.
How to make egg rolls like Chinese take-out
Please scroll down to the recipe card for the full recipe and instructions!
Prepare the egg roll filling:
1. Salt the cabbage. Thinly slice the cabbage and celery and place them into a mixing bowl. Sprinkle about 2 tablespoons of salt over the vegetables and toss to evenly distribute the salt.
Allow the vegetables to salt for about 30 minutes to 1 hour, or until the vegetables are at least wilted to half of the starting amount.
🌟 Pro tip: If you have a large colander/strainer, transfer the cabbage mixture into the colander after tossing with salt. Place the colander in a bowl (make sure it's elevated from the bottom) and place some weights on top of the cabbage. This way, the cabbage mixture won't be sitting in the excess moisture.
2. Cook the ground pork. While the cabbage is salting, prepare the ground pork. In a pan over medium high heat, add a small amount of oil. Once the pan is hot, add the ground pork along with the sliced ginger.
Break up the pork and sauté until fragrant and cooked through and the pork is no longer pink. Season with salt and sugar and mix well. Discard the ginger and set the pork aside to cool.
3. Squeeze the cabbage. After the salting time is up, take a handful of the cabbage mixture and squeeze with both hands to extra remaining excess moisture. Place the squeezed cabbage into a large mixing bowl and repeat with remaining cabbage mixture. Discard the excess moisture.
4. Season the filling. Once all the cabbage has been squeezed, unclump the cabbage by fluffing it up. Then, add the cooled ground pork and season with salt, garlic and onion powder, black and white pepper.
Toss and mix until evenly combined. Finish the filling by drizzling in the oil and tossing until well combined.
Make the egg rolls:
5. Assemble. On a clean work surface, put down a sheet of egg roll wrapper and turn it so that it's a diamond. Place about 4 tablespoons of filling at the lower center of the wrapper (closer half towards you). Gently compact the filling to form a 2 ½ to 3 inch long log that's about 1 inch thick.
Fold the bottom flap of the wrapper up, over the filling.
Roll the wrapper up one round and tuck the filling to make sure it's moderately tight and compacted.
Then, fold the left and right flap towards the center.
Wet the top flap of the wrapper with some water and roll the filling upwards to make a cylinder roll.
Place the egg roll seam side down on a tray and repeat with remaining filling and wrapper.
🌟 Pro tip: If you have to stack the egg rolls, place the second row of egg rolls seam side up so that they don't stick to each other.
6. Fry the egg rolls. Heat up 2 to 3 inches of oil to 350°F. Gently place the egg rolls into the oil and fry for 5 to 7 minutes, or until the egg rolls are golden brown and crispy. Remove and allow the egg rolls to drain on some paper towel or rack.
🌟 Pro tip: Fry in small batches if needed and don't overcrowd the oil! Adding too many egg rolls at one time can drop the oil temperature dramatically and will yield greasy, soggy egg rolls. Also, make sure to keep the egg rolls moving so that they get cooked evenly.
7. Enjoy! Serve the egg rolls while they are hot and enjoy by itself or with some sweet and sour sauce, duck sauce, or sweet chili sauce.
Recipe tips
- Squeeze the cabbage well. This is a VERY important step and highly recommend not skipping because it removes all the excess water from the vegetables. This helps to prevent the egg wrappers from ripping while wrapping. It'll also help to keep the egg roll stay crispy longer.
- Keep the egg roll wrappers covered. Like all dough wrappers, it is best to cover it with a damp towel while working, unless you are super fast at rolling egg rolls. This prevents the wrapper from drying out and cracking.
- Try to wrap the egg rolls moderately tight. It is best to wrap the egg rolls as tightly as possible but not so tight that the wrapper rips. Tightly wrapping the egg rolls helps to prevent air pocket, which could prevent the egg rolls from exploding. Plus, you can have more filling!
What to do with leftover oil
Leftover oil can be reused for cooking or more frying. Transfer the leftover oil into a heatproof bowl, jar, or container. Let the oil cool completely, then cover with plastic wrap or a lid. If you're uncomfortable with handling hot oil, set the oil aside to cool first!
If you plan on reusing the oil again, make sure to strain it through a fine mesh strainer or a couple layers or cheesecloth to remove any debris. Keep the oil in a cool, dark place and use within a couple of weeks.
If you're disposing oil, pour it into a jar or a container that can be sealed. Dispose of it in your trashcan. DO NOT pour it down your drain! It may damage your pipes and also cause damage to the environment!
Storage
The great thing about egg rolls is that they store really well! Leftover egg rolls can be refrigerated for up to 4 days or frozen for up to 2 to 3 months.
Make sure the egg rolls are completely cooled before storing in air tight containers.
Reheating
Leftover, refrigerated egg rolls can be reheated by air frying, baking, or refrying.
Air fryer method: Refrigerated egg rolls should be air fried at 400°F for about 5 minutes. Frozen egg rolls should be air fried at 375°F for about 10 to 15 minutes, until heated through.
Oven method: Refrigerated egg rolls should be baked at 425°F for about 5 to 10 minutes. Frozen egg rolls should be baked at 425°F for about 10 to 15 minutes, until heated through.
Frying method: Refrigerated egg rolls should be refried at 350°F for about 4 to 5 minutes. Frozen egg rolls should defrosted before frying.
FAQ
Classic egg roll filling is made of ground pork, cabbage, celery, and/or carrots.
The main differences between egg rolls and spring rolls are that egg roll filling usually contain meat and is wrapped in a thicker, wheat based wrapper. Fried spring rolls, on the other hand, are usually made with an all vegetable filling and are wrapped in a very thin wheat based wrapper. Spring rolls are usually also skinnier than egg rolls.
Contradictory to its name, egg rolls do not contain any eggs in their filling and egg roll wrappers may or may not contain eggs, depending on the brand.
📖 Recipe
Egg Rolls (Chinese Take-out Copycat)
Ingredients
For the egg rolls:
- 4 pound Taiwanese cabbage or green cabbage
- 2 ribs celery washed and trimmed (optional)
- 2½ tablespoons Kosher salt divided
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon white pepper
- 1 tablespoon oil any neutral oil (plus more for cooking and frying)
- 16 sheets egg roll wrapper
For the ground meat:
- 8 ounces ground pork or your preferred ground meat
- ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon granulated sugar
- 2 slices ginger (optional)
Instructions
- Salt the cabbage:Cut the cabbage and celery into thin slices and discard the cabbage core. Place both the cabbage and celery into a large mixing bowl and season with 2 tablespoons of salt. Toss to distribute the salt. Allow the cabbage and celery to salt for about 30 minutes to 1 hour to extract moisture.*If you have a large colander, transfer the vegetables to a colander and place weights on top of the vegetables to help expedite the salting process. Refer to the post for more details and photo reference!*
- Cook the ground pork:While the vegetables are salting, cook the ground pork. In a pan over medium high heat, add a very small amount of oil. When the pan is hot, add the ground pork and ginger. Cook until the ginger is fragrant and the pork is cooked through and no longer pink. Make sure to break up the ground pork while cooking.
- Season the cooked pork with the ½ teaspoon of salt and ¼ teaspoon of sugar. Stir and toss well. Discard the ginger and set the ground pork aside to cool.
- Make the filling:After 30 minutes to 1 hour of salting, the cabbage and celery mixture should have wilted to half of the amount and released a lot of moisture. Take a handful of the vegetables and squeeze firmly with both hands to remove any excess moisture. Transfer the squeezed cabbage mixture to a large mixing bowl and repeat with remaining vegetable.
- Unclump the cabbage mixture by fluffy it up. To the cabbage mixture, add the cooled ground pork and season with sugar, garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, white pepper, and the remaining ½ tablespoon of salt. Toss until everything is well combined and evenly seasoned. Finish by drizzling in 1 tablespoon of oil. Mix well to combine.
- Make the egg rolls:Prepare the egg roll making station with a sheet pan, a small bowl of water, the egg roll wrappers, and egg roll filling.
- On a sheet of egg roll wrapper, place about 4 tablespoons of egg roll fillings onto the lower center of the wrapper. Compact the filling gently to form into a 2½ to 3 inch log.
- Fold the bottom wrapper flap over the filling. Then fold the left and right flaps towards the center. Dip your fingers into the bowl of water and wet the entire top flap of the wrapper. Roll the egg roll upwards to make a cylinder shape roll. Place the finished egg roll, seam side down, onto the prepared sheet pan and repeat with remaining egg roll wrappers and filling.
- Fry the egg rolls:In a pot, heat up 2 to 3 inches of oil to 350°F. You can also do this in a fryer.
- Gently place the egg rolls into the hot oil and fry for about 5 minutes or until the outside is golden brown and crispy. Fry in small batches if necessary. Remove the egg rolls and allow them to drain o some paper towels or a cooling rack.
- Enjoy the egg rolls while they are hot and crispy, either by itself or with some sweet and sour sauce, duck sauce, or sweet chili sauce.*Egg rolls refrigerate and freeze really well, so make sure to check out the post above for storage and reheating details!*
Notes
- Ground meat - Classic egg rolls are made with ground pork (best 80% lean and 20% fat). However, you can use your preferred ground meat, such as chicken, turkey, or even beef. And depending on how lean your choice of protein is, you may want to use a little more cooking oil.
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