These egg rolls are incredibly easy to make and even faster to roll up if you have family or friends to help you.
Servings: 50egg rolls
Prep Time: 1 hourhour
Cook Time: 20 minutesminutes
Ingredients
For the Meat
1lbboneless, skinless chicken breasts, diced small
3/4lbpeeled & deveined shrimp, diced small
1Tbspsoy sauce
1tspcornstarch
1/4tspsugar
fresh ground black pepper
For the Vegetables
1/2head of cabbage
3carrots, shredded
3garlic cloves, finely minced
2-3tspgrated fresh ginger
10fresh shiitake mushrooms, or dried black mushrooms soaked overnight, stems discarded, sliced into thin strips
1TbspChinese rice wine
1Tbspsoy sauce
1/4tspsugar
1tspsalt
1tspsesame oil
Fresh ground black pepper
50Spring/Egg Roll Wrappers, 2 packages, defrost them in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours
1Tbspcornstarch, or flour mixed with ¼ cup of cool water
1Tbspvegetable oil plus more for frying
Instructions
Combine the ingredients under the 'for the meat' heading (chicken, shrimp, soy sauce, cornstarch, sugar and ground pepper) in a medium sized bowl and allow to sit at room temperature to marinate for at least 10 minutes.
In another bowl or large measuring cup, mix together the rice wine, soy sauce, sugar, salt, sesame oil and pepper and set aside.
Add 1 Tbsp of vegetable oil in a wok or large, deep saute pan and turn heat to the high setting. Heat pan until the oil coats the pan easily when turning and rotating it. Add the chicken & shrimp mixture and cook for 4-5 minutes.
Turn heat down to low or medium low. Move the chicken and shrimp mixture to one side of the pan. Add the vegetables (carrots & cabbage), garlic, ginger and mushrooms and stir-fry for 2 minutes or until the vegetables are softened. Add the rice wine-sesame oil mixture. Continue cooking the vegetables for 1 to minute and then mix the vegetables with the chicken and shrimp.
Remove the filling from the wok or pan, scoop with a large slotted spoon (don't pour) onto a baking sheet. Spread the filling out and allow the mixture to cool. Using paper towels, blot it to remove the juice from the cooked filling. Tilt one end of baking sheet to allow the oil and juices to drain to one end of the baking sheet. Blot with a paper towel or drain the juices. Allow the filling mixture to sit and cool for at least 15 minutes.
Fill each egg roll with one heaping Tbsp of filling (making sure to grab an even amount of meat as well as veggies). Roll egg rolls carefully and seal by dipping and blotting with the water and cornstarch mixture. For full instructions on how to roll egg rolls, see Jaden's post: http://steamykitchen.com/13029-my-mothers-famous-chinese-egg-rolls-2.html.
Clean wok or pan and fill with at least 2 inches of vegetable oil. Heat pan on high for at least 5 minutes until it reaches 350 degrees. Carefully add 6-8 egg rolls and fry for 3-4 minutes or golden brown. Allow egg rolls to cool slightly on a rack set up on another baking sheet.
Cook's Notes:
These egg rolls freeze great (freeze them after rolling them & before frying them). I put them in a plastic zippered bag separating the layers with parchment paper. No need to defrost them, add them to the heated oil (very carefully) and fry them a couple of minutes longer than usual.
Chinese rice wine has been so hard for me to find. I finally found it at my local Asian grocery store and was able to purchase a huge bottle for less than $2!
It's mine and Jaden's advice to buy the paper thin egg roll/spring roll wrappers at your local Asian grocery store in the freezer section. Don't buy the refrigerated brands that you can in your produce section near the tofu. They will not taste the same nor will they come out the same. The recommended egg roll wrappers are the same wrappers my Mom uses when she makes Vietnamese egg rolls.