These homemade Egg Rolls are crisp on the outside with a satisfying pork and vegetable filling. Learn the secrets to an ultra-crisp shell. Watch the video recipe and learn how to make egg rolls that are better than takeout!
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Egg Rolls Recipe Video:
We love recreating our favorite restaurant dishes like Chow Mein, easy Stir Fry, and of course Chinese egg rolls. Watch the video tutorial and you’ll realize these are easier than you think.
This is our favorite egg roll filling with a well-seasoned blend of pork, rice noodles, mushrooms, and veggies. My mother learned how to make these in culinary school and taught me to make them. Growing up, we enjoyed her big stacks of freshly made egg rolls and they always disappeared fast. Thankfully this recipe makes a big batch so you can freeze a bunch for later.
The Best Egg Roll Wrappers:
The Key to an authentic egg roll is in the wrapper. It will make all the difference and is worth the effort to find the right ones.
- BUY Frozen Egg Roll Wrappers – the right kind of wrappers which are super thin and crisp up beautifully when fried are sold frozen.
- Suggested Brands – the ones that are available in our local Asian market are “Spring Home”, “Wei Chuan,” or “Little Chef.” They are about 8″x8″ in size. So long as they are the frozen variety, they will work.
- AVOID Refrigerated Egg Roll Wrappers – they are starchy, thicker, create a bubbly unattractive exterior when fried, and do not stay crisp, but soften quickly. I share examples of this in the video tutorial above.
- Where to Buy: Some grocery stores carry Egg Roll wrappers in the freezer section, but I had to find a local Asian market store to get them. Since they are frozen, you can stock up your freezer.
Spring Roll Vs. Egg Roll:
Some of the egg roll wrapper packagings will say “spring roll” which is used interchangeably with “egg roll.” They are the same thing.
Can I Substitute the Meat?
Our go-to filling is Pork because it is naturally very flavorful, but you can make these vegetarian by omitting the meat or substitute with different proteins:
- Ground turkey
- Ground chicken (dark meat is better)
- Chopped shrimp
How to Wrap Egg Rolls:
Wrapping an egg roll is really simple and you will be wrapping like a pro in no time. Here is a quick visual reference. The important points to remember are:
- Do not over-stuff (1/4 cup filling is all you need)
- Keep a tight roll from start to finish
- Seal the edge with egg wash
Tips for the Best Egg Rolls:
Here is our best advice for making egg rolls that will impress everyone.
- Keep Wrappers Moist – work with one sheet at a time and keep the remaining wrappers covered with a damp paper towel at all times to prevent them from drying out.
- Roll tightly to prevent oil from seeping into the egg roll
- Keep Oil at 350˚F – If the temperature drops too low, the egg rolls soak up more oil. If it’s too hot, they will darken too quickly.
- Fry in Batches – adding too many rolls at once will drop the temperature of the oil.
- Cool on a wire rack – the exterior will stay crispy all around if you cool them on a rack instead of paper towels.
- Cover finished rolls with a sheet of plastic wrap to prevent drying out.
How to Freeze Egg Rolls:
Egg rolls can be frozen cooked or uncooked. I find it is easier to fry all of them at once then freeze and reheat quickly when the craving strikes.
- To Freeze Fried Egg Rolls: cool to room temperature, put them in a large freezer-safe zip bag, and pop them in the freezer for up to 3 months. When ready to enjoy, I toast them in the air fryer until they are hot and crispy. Microwaving works but the shell won’t be crispy. You can also re-crisp in the oven.
- Freezing Uncooked Egg Rolls – to keep them from sticking together, place them in a single layer on a baking sheet and freeze. Once frozen, transfer to a freezer-safe bag. You can fry frozen uncooked egg rolls without thawing, just add an extra 1 to 2 minutes to the frying time.
How to Serve Egg Rolls:
Egg rolls are typically served warm or at room temperature as an appetizer with a sauce. We love pairing them with simple Asian sauces like sweet chili sauce, or a sweet teriyaki sauce.
I would love to hear about your favorite way to serve egg rolls in the comments.
More Asian-Inspired Recipes
Our collection of Asian recipes is always growing because we are obsessed with making our favorites. If you enjoyed these homemade Egg Rolls, you will love these:
- Chicken Fried Rice – a brilliant way to repurpose leftovers
- Broccoli Beef – this saucy stir fry is perfect over White Rice
- Kung Pao Chicken – a restaurant-inspired dish
- Vegetable Stir Fry – easy, excellent side
- General Tso’s Chicken – in an authentic tasting sauce
Egg Roll Recipe - How to Make Egg Rolls
Ingredients
- 40 frozen egg roll or spring roll wrappers , (8"x8"), thawed*
- 3 oz vermicelli rice noodles , (Chinese angel hair rice sticks)
- 1 lb ground pork
- 8 oz mushrooms, brown or white
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 2 medium carrots, grated or cut into matchsticks
- 4 cups green cabbage, thinly sliced
- 2 tsp salt, or to taste, (divided)
- 1/2 tsp black pepper, or to taste
- 1 1/2 Tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- Peanut oil or Canola Oil for frying, (2-3 inches of oil)
- 1 egg, (beaten) for sealing eggrolls
Instructions
- Place noodles in a large heatproof bowl and pour steaming hot water over the noodles. Separate the noodles by pulling them apart with forks and let it rest 5-7 minutes to soften until tender. Rinse with cold water to cool them down then drain really well. Chop the rice noodles to about 1-inch pieces on a cutting board and transfer to a large mixing bowl.
- Place a deep skillet over medium/high heat. Add 1 Tbsp oil and saute ground pork until cooked through and season with 1/2 tsp salt. Transfer to the mixing bowl with noodles.
- In the same skillet, add 2 Tbsp oil, sliced mushrooms, diced onions, and shredded carrots. Sautee until softened (5-6 minutes) then add 4 cups cabbage and sautee just until wilted (2 minutes). Season with 1/2 tsp salt and transfer to the mixing bowl with the noodles.
- Season egg roll mixture with 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp black pepper, 1 1/2 Tbsp soy sauce, and 1 tsp sesame oil. Since the filling is fully cooked, taste it, and add more seasoning to taste. Drain any excess liquid from the filling if present.
- Peel back 1 egg roll wrapper and place it in a diamond shape on a clean work surface. Keep remaining egg roll wrappers covered with a damp paper towel to keep them from drying out. Add 1/4 cup of filling onto the bottom third of the wrapper.
- Fold the bottom corner over the filling and tuck underneath. Roll tightly towards the center then fold in the sides, roll again then brush the last flap lightly with beaten egg and roll to seal. Repeat with remaining egg rolls. Keep the formed egg rolls covered with plastic wrap so they don’t dry out.
- Heat oil in a dutch oven or fryer to 350˚F. Fry 5-7 egg rolls at a time for 5-6 minutes or until golden brown and crispy. Egg rolls should sizzle when they are in the oil. Keep the temperature of the oil between 340-350˚F while frying. Transfer to a wire rack and cool 15 minutes before serving with your favorite sauce.
Notes
Nutrition Per Serving
If you make this recipe, I’d love to see pics of your creations on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! Hashtag them #natashaskitchen
This was one of our first recipes originally published in 2010. It was updated in October 2020 with new photos, a video tutorial. We improved the filling and added tons of great info for making the best egg rolls.
Hi Natasha. Love your recipes and you are always my first go to for a recipe because I’ve never made one of your recipes that wasn’t a hit. Especially love your chicken chow mein recipe. It’s scrumptious. Am about to tackle your egg roll recipe but am put off by the inclusion of mushrooms which I do not like. What would be an adequate substitute and in what amount to make those divine sounding egg rolls? Thank you in advance for any correspondence you would take the time to give me.
Hi Suzann, I’m so happy you’re enjoying my recipes. You can omit the mushrooms and use a little more of the other veggies for volume. I hope this helps.
I love all of your recipes. My husband and I made these eggrolls tonight. They were so delicious. Thank you for all the wonderful recipes. So easy to follow.
Im so glad to hear that, Kimberly! Thanks for sharing.
Can we use this type of egg roll wrapper found in refrigerated section (not frozen section of Walmart)? Nasoya Egg Roll Wraps, Vegan
Hi Cathy! That would be fine. We prefer to use spring roll wrappers because they are thinner and get more crispy.
These are so good. I always make extra to freeze in case I don’t feel like cooking or have no idea what to fix. Your recipes have become favorites in our home.
Made this the other night love them
Froze leftover uncooked
Also froze filling that was left over
Thank you so much for sharing that with me.
Can these be “fried” in an air fryer?
Hi Marsha, I usually just reheat them in the air fryer. An Air Fryer will work, though; If I recall correctly, I think it was 350˚F for 5-7 minutes, turning halfway. It depends on the air fryer. Remove them when they are heated through and crispy. If you experiment with making these baked eggrolls, we’d love to hear your feedback.
I would like to know what kind of oil you use for frying them?
I make a dipping sauce with applesauce and soy sauce.
Hi Linda! See my note in the recipe card, I use
Peanut oil or Canola Oil for frying.
Made these egg rolls, along with chicken broccoli and white rice. Major hit
Can these egg rolls (spring rolls) be baked in the oven instead of frying them in oil?
Hi Michelle! I have not baked these so I am not sure you’d get that same desirable crunchy exterior.
Hey Michelle! I bake my egg rolls all the time. I put them in at 425° F for about 14-15 minutes. A lot of the times I find I don’t need to brush my egg rolls with oil when i bake but that’s my preference. Good luck!
I love your recipes and the way you present them , most of your recipes are easy to do , some ingredients I can not find around my area but for the most part every thing is great, tried and true
I’m so happy you enjoyed that. Thank you for sharing that with us, Sharon!
Making these tonight and my mouth is already watering. You always have the best recipes, thank you! And my go-to dip is hot mustard; hubby likes duck sauce.
Thank you for that wonderful compliment and comment, Donna! I’m so happy you’re enjoying my recipes.
Love watching your ideas are perfect and great recipes.Thank you
you
I’m so happy to hear that, Carolyn!
i forgot tradition also adds garlic, ginger, and peanut butter. i add those little baby shrimp too
spring roll wrapper is not the traditional egg roll wrapper so you were making spring rolls. Sorry worked for 35 years around the corner of Chicago’s Chinatown.
So so yummy. I like really flavorful egg rolls, so I added a bit of mushroom bullion, chicken bullion, lemongrass paste, garlic, ginger, and crushed red pepper.
I love your recipes and the way you present them , most of your recipes are easy to do , some ingredients I can not find around my area but for the most part every thing is great, tried and true
I’m so happy you’re loving my recipes, Sharon! I recommend asking your local grocers if they have items in stock or you can try ordering some ingredients online. I hope you find everything to make this recipe, Sharon!