Vietnamese egg roll, or chả giò, is made with a mixture of ground pork, shrimps, bean thread noodles, wood ear mushrooms, taro, carrots, and onion wrapped with spring roll wrappers. It's deep fried until golden and crispy and often enjoyed with Nước chấm (Vietnamese dipping sauce).
Prep Time1 hourhr
Cook Time10 minutesmins
Total Time1 hourhr10 minutesmins
Yield: 50egg rolls
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Ingredients
For the filling:
1poundground pork
½poundshrimpspeeled, deveined, and finely chopped
2ouncescellophane noodlesalso known as bean thread noodles (usually 1 bundle)
Place the cellophane noodles and dry wood ear mushrooms each into a heatproof bowl and rehydrate with hot water, about 10 minutes. Make sure they are completely submerged.
Once the noodles and wood ear mushrooms are rehydrated, drain them well. Cut the cellophane noodles into ½ to 1 inch pieces. Finely chop the rehydrated wood ear mushrooms.
In a large mixing bowl, add all the ingredients and mix until everything is evenly combined. Set aside.*You can also take about 1 tablespoon of filling and cook it in a pan over medium heat to taste the filling. Then, you can adjust the seasonings if needed. Do note that the egg rolls do get served with dipping sauce, so no need to make the filing super seasoned.*
Make the cornstarch slurry:
Mix together the ¼ cup of water and 2 teaspoon cornstarch until well combined. Either heat the slurry in a pan until thickened or in the microwave for about 15 seconds.
Make the egg rolls:
On a clean work surface, lay a sheet of the egg roll wrapper like a diamond. Place about 2 tablespoons of filling on the wrapper, about 2 to 3 inches from the bottom. Pinch and spread the filling into an even, thin log, about 3 inches long.
Fold bottom of the wrapper over the filling, tuck it tight, then fold the sides of the wrapper over it. Evenly smear some prepared cornstarch slurry at the top corner of the wrapper and roll the egg roll upwards to seal. Repeat with the remaining filling and wrappers.
Fry the egg rolls:
In a heavy bottom pot or fryer, heat the oil to 350°F and prepare a plate or sheet pan lined with paper towels or a cooling rack.
Add as many egg rolls as possible while keeping them all submerged. Maintain the oil between 350°F and 375°F and fry the egg rolls for about 10 minutes until the egg rolls are golden brown.
Remove the egg rolls from the oil and let them drain on the prepared plate/sheet pan. Repeat with remaining egg rolls.
Serve:
Enjoy the egg rolls on their own, with Vietnamese dipping sauce, lettuce, herbs, and/or Vietnamese pickled carrots and radish!
Notes
Please refer to the post above for photo references, tips, and FAQs!
Oil temperature - It is very important that you maintain the oil temperature around and between 350°F to 375°F. If the oil is too low, the fine particles of the filling tends to leak into the oil. Too hot, and the filling will not get cooked through before the wrapper gets too dark.
Food process - If you prefer, you can finely chop the onion and wood ear mushrooms (separately) using a food processor. We find hand cutting everything gives better texture, but food processor would definitely reduce the prep time a little.
Finely grate the taro - We highly recommend grating the taro using the the side of the grater with the smaller holes. This ensures the taro gets cooked throughly.
Wear gloves - When handling raw taro, we recommend wearing gloves, especially if you have sensitive skin. Raw taro can make your hand itchy and dry.