Another one of my New Year's Resolutions, besides starting this blog, was to learn how to cook Asian Cuisine. So far this year I have attempted Asian Chicken Wontons, Chicken Lo Mein, Crab Meat Rangoon's and Egg Rolls -- surprisingly with decent luck!
My family and I have enjoyed a love of Asian Cuisine for as long as I can remember. Sometimes I laugh and say I enjoyed it before I was even born -- and in a way, it's sort of true. I was born in West Allis, Wisconsin -- and when my mother was pregnant with me, she and my father lived in an apartment building that was located across the street from a small, hole in the wall, Chinese Restaurant called Double Dragon. It's still exists and is open to this day, and we all make a point to stop and visit when we're in the area.
My biggest LOVE for Asian Cuisine, aside from Crab Rangoon's, are Egg Rolls (when done right). One day, in a moment of craziness, I thought -- HEY, why not have a bunch of ladies over to the house, and make Egg Rolls in bulk? Much to my surprise, the response of those I asked was very positive. Why not right?!?
So we set a date, found a recipe, and bought up all the ingredients. A total of 6 of us made up Egg Rolls that day, and the recipe we used is as follows:
1 package of egg roll wrappers
2 tablespoons of oil for stir-frying
4 cups of oil for deep frying
Filling:
1 pound of fresh ground pork
1 bunch of green onion tops, snipped into small segments
1 bag of coleslaw cabbage mix
1 can of bean sprouts, drained
1 can of bamboo shoots, chopped
1 medium onion, diced (optional)
2 stalks of celery, diced (optional)
1/2 pound of mushrooms, sliced (optional)
6 water chestnuts, sliced (optional)
Marinade:
1 teaspoon of soy sauce
1 teaspoon oyster sauce
salt & pepper to taste
a bit less than 1 teaspoon cornstarch
Gravy:
4 tablespoons of water
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon soy sauce
2 teaspoons oyster sauce
salt, pepper, & accent to taste
1.) Mix the ground pork and marinade together, and let set for 10-15 minutes.
2.) While the pork in marinating, prepare vegetables and gravy mixture.
3.) Heat your pan over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon of oil.
4.) When oil is ready, add your pork -- cook until no longer pink.
5.) When done, remove meat from pan, drain oil/grease, and set aside.
6.) Add another 1 tablespoon of oil to the pan.
7.) Add vegetables, and stir-fry until semi-soft, or to your likeness.
8.) Add pork back to the vegetables and stir together until well combined.
9.) Make a well in the center of the vegetable/pork mixture, and add gravy.
10.) Stir gravy in the well until it starts to thicken. Then mix all together till well combined.
11.) Once done, set the filling aside and allow to cool, before wrapping into egg rolls.
*TIP - when wrapping egg rolls, you'll want to start with a corner point facing you. Add your filling to the wrapper (1-2 tablespoons), kind of in the middle, but not directly in the center, you'll want it a little closer to you. You'll then dampen you finger in a bowl of water, and paint the edges of the egg roll wrapper. Then you take the corner point closest to you, and fold it over the filling. Then take the sides and fold them in towards each other. Finally you'll carefully roll the egg roll from you out, tightly sealing the filling inside. Set on parchment paper, until all egg rolls are complete.
12.) Heat up your deep frying oil until it hits 375 degrees. Deep fry the egg rolls 3-4 at a time until they're nice and golden brown. Drain on paper towels, and sprinkle with salt.
13.) Serve with Sweet & Sauce, Plum Sauce, or Duck Sauce.
This recipe makes between 16-25 egg rolls.
I may be a little bias, but my husband and I thought they were excellent! YUM!
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