Spring Rolls

Everybody's favourite Spring Rolls, made at home! Nothing like the ones at suburban Chinese takeout joints with unidentifiable mushy fillings and overly greasy. These are shatteringly crisp and golden, just like they should be, and you will actually be able to taste the filling!

Prep Time 20 mins
Cook Time 10 mins
Total Time 30 mins

Ingredients:

Filling:
• 1 tbsp oil
• 2 garlic cloves , finely chopped or minced
• 400 g / 13 oz pork mince (ground pork), or chicken or turkey
• 6 dried shiitake mushrooms soaked in boiling water OR 8 fresh (Note 1)
• 1 1/2 cups shredded carrot (1 large or 2 small)
• 1 1/2 cups (heaped) bean sprouts
• 1 1/2 cups (packed) shredded green cabbage (any type is fine)
• 1 tsp cornflour / cornstarch
• 1 1/2 tbsp Oyster Sauce
• 2 tsp soy sauce (light or all purpose is best, dark is also ok)

Spring Rolls:
• 15 – 20 spring roll wrappers, defrosted (21.5 cm / 8” squares) OR 35 - 40 small spring roll wrappers (Note 2), or Egg Roll wrappers to make Egg Rolls (Note 6)
• 2 tsp cornflour (for sealing rolls)
• 1 tbsp water (for sealing rolls)
• Oil for frying (I use vegetable) OR oil spray for baking (I use canola)

Sweet and Sour Sauce (makes ~ 2/3 cup):
• 2 tsp cornflour/ cornstarch
• 2 tbsp water
• ½ cup apple cider vinegar
• 1/3 cup brown sugar (adjust to taste)
• 2 tbsp tomato ketchup
• 2 tsp soy sauce

Method:

FILLING:
1. Heat oil in a skillet or wok over high heat. Add garlic, stir quickly, then add pork. Cook, breaking it up as you go, until it turns white.
2. Add carrot, bean sprouts, cabbage and mushrooms. Cook for 3 minutes or until vegetables are wilted. Add cornflour, soy sauce and Oyster sauce, cook for 1 minute until the liquid is gone. The Filling should not be watery, it should be kind of sticky (watery filling = soggy spring rolls = ? ).
3. Cool Filling (super speedy: spread on tray, refrigerate 5 minutes). (Hot filling = spring rolls burst open = ? )

SPRING ROLL:
1. Mix cornflour and water in a small bowl (for sealing the rolls).
2. Carefully peel off one spring roll wrapper, keep the others covered under a damp tea towel.
3. Place the wrapper with the SMOOTH SIDE DOWN (Note 3) in a diamond position. Place a very heaped dessert spoon of filling on the bottom. Roll up halfway, fold sides in, then finish rolling. Use cornflour sludge to seal. (Watch VIDEO below). They should be about 12 cm / 5" long, 2.5cm / 1" wide once wrapped.
4. Pour enough oil in a wok or large saucepan (Note 4) so it is double the height of the spring rolls. Heat on medium high until hot - stick a bamboo chopstick or wooden spoon handle in, if rapid bubbles appear, then it's hot enough.
5. Carefully place spring rolls in the oil (about 4 - 5 at a time) and cook, turning occasionally, until deep golden - around 1 1/2 - 2 minutes. Transfer to paper towels to drain.
6. Repeat with remaining spring rolls. Serve while hot with Sweet and Sour Sauce!

BAKING option:
1. Place spring rolls on a rack and place the rack on a tray. Spray very generously with oil all over (use canola or other natural oil). Bake at 200C/400F (standard) or 180C/350F (fan / convection) for 20 to 25 minutes until golden and crispy - no need to turn.

SWEET and SOUR SAUCE:
1. Combine ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to simmer, stirring regularly, then simmer until it thickens to taste (about 3 - 5 minutes).

Notes
1. Shitaake Mushrooms: Soak dried mushrooms in plenty of boiled water for 20 minutes or until rehydrated (don’t do this step if using fresh mushrooms). Drain, squeeze excess water out of the mushrooms (like they are a sponge), then finely chop.
   Dried Shitaake mushrooms are available at Asian grocery stores and in the Asian section of some supermarkets here in Australia. They are whole dried mushrooms and, like porcini mushrooms, the mushroom flavour is more intense so it brings a great savouriness (“umami”) to anything it is added to.
   If you make this with fresh mushrooms instead, finely chop them and add them before the carrot to give them a head start on the cooking, to ensure all the moisture inside cooks out (because wet filling = spring rolls burst open).
2. You can get spring roll wrappers at the supermarkets here in Australia! Frozen section, Woolies, Coles, Harris Farms. Spring roll wrappers are made of wheat. You ca also make this with rice paper spring roll wrappers (that are used to make things like Vietnamese Rice Paper Rolls) but will need to be soaked first before wrapping, and the spring roll will come out crispy with a bubbly surface and kind of see through, like these Crispy Rice Paper Fish Parcels.
3. Look closely at the wrapper and you’ll notice one side is slightly rough, one side is smoother. You want the smooth side on the outside of the spring roll – looks prettier. Not a deal killer. :)
4. Because of the shape of woks, the oil usage is more efficient than using a saucepan or skillet. i.e. With a wok, there is more surface area with less oil usage.
5. FRYING vs BAKING: See photos in post for comparison of baking vs fried - they look very similar! Frying makes spring rolls that are more delicate, crispy and flaky as they should be. With baking, the wrapper is still very crispy, but it is not quite the same delicate flaky texture. Also with baking, the wrapper flavour is slightly more dominant. Tip for baking is to SPRAY VERY WELL with oil!! If you don't use a rack, then turn the spring rolls at about 15 minutes.
6. MAKE AHEAD / FREEZING: Freeze before cooking them cook from frozen. Best to serve freshly cooked so don't try to store cooked ones. :)
7. Nutrition per spring roll, excluding sauce. This is what I think is a conservative estimate as it is impossible for me to determine how much oil is absorbed by the spring rolls. I have assumed 1 tsp per spring roll which is conservative, it is difficult to imagine because the wrapper doesn't absorb oil and the filling does not get oily from frying. I've researched and other sources suggest it is about 150 calories per spring roll.