Spring rolls began as the spring pancake (chunbing) of the Chinese Spring Festival — fresh seasonal vegetables wrapped to welcome the new season. Over centuries the wrapper thinned and the parcel met hot oil, becoming the crisp golden roll known worldwide.
You bite through a paper-thin shell that shatters into flaky shards, releasing steam and a savory mouthful of sweet cabbage and pork. The contrast of crackling crust and soft, juicy filling is the whole point. Dunked in black vinegar, it sings.
Cooling and draining the filling keeps the wrapper from going soggy and prevents oil splatter during frying. A tight roll with a sealed seam traps steam so the inside stays moist while the thin wheat skin fries into glassy, blistered layers.
Variations
Cantonese with shrimp and bean sprouts, Shanghai with pork, shiitake mushroom and cabbage, sweet red-bean dessert rolls, vegetarian versions
On the Palate
Where Chinese Spring Rolls sits in the Chinese flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 4
How it's made
7 steps · 35 min
- 14 min
Stir-fry shredded pork until it loses its pink color.
- 25 min
Add shredded cabbage, carrot and a pinch of salt; cook until just wilted, then cool.
Watch outCook the cabbage just until it wilts, then cool and drain hard — any water left in the filling steams the wrapper soft and makes the oil spit.
- 32 min
Season the filling with soy sauce and white pepper and drain off excess liquid.
- 48 min
Place a spoon of filling on a wrapper, fold in the sides, and roll up tightly.
Watch outRoll tight and seal the seam well — a loose roll traps air that puffs and bursts in the oil.
- 53 min
Seal the seam with a dab of flour-and-water paste.
- 66 min
Heat oil to 170C and fry the rolls in batches until golden and crisp.
Watch outHold the oil around 170 degrees — too cool and they drink oil and go greasy, too hot and they brown before the inside sets.
- 72 min
Drain on a rack and serve hot with black vinegar or chili sauce.
