Crispy Egg Rolls (Cha Goi)

Egg rolls are a favorite with most people. How do I know this? Because every time that I make egg rolls for a party, they disappear faster than you can snap your fingers. They are time intensive to prepare because you have to fold each one individually, but they are worth the work. You can also freeze the egg rolls after you roll them up and fry them up at a later date.

I have included two different variations in this posting. For the non-vegetarian egg rolls, you can substitute the ground pork with other ground meat such as chicken. Pork is a popular meat option in Vietnamese cooking.

Another thing to note is that there is a difference between Cha Gio (crispy eggrolls) and Goi Cuon (spring rolls). Cha Gio are the ones that are deep fried, while Goi Cuon are made with rice paper and are not fried. In Vietnam the traditional crispy egg rolls are made with rice paper, but in my household we use the same spring roll paper that is used to make Lumpia.

Also, in the Vietnamses household, we do not dip our eggrolls in sweet and sour sauce like you often find in Chinese restaurant. Rather we serve it in Nuoc mam cham and wrap the Cha Gio in fresh romaine or red leaf lettuce leaves and fresh herbs.

Cha Goi Egg Roll

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. shrimps, shelled and deveined
• ½ lb ground pork
• 100g bean thread (1 cup cooked)
• 2 tbsp dried black fungus, soaked until soft and chopped
• 1 ½ c. carrots, shredded (about 2 carrots)
• 1 ½ c. jicama, shredded  (about ½ medium size jicima)
• 1 c. onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 ½ Tbs. fish sauce (nuoc mam)
• ½ tsp. pepper
• ¼ tsp. salt
• Vegetable oil for deep frying
• 1 package large (8 inch) spring roll wrappers
• 1 egg, white and yolk separated

Directions:

1. Carrots and jicama should be shredded. Use cheese cloth to squeeze out excess liquid from the vegetables. In a large bowl, add carrots, jicama, onions, mushroom, black fungus, bean thread.
2. In a food processor, lightly chop the shrimp. Remove and place in a bowl. Add ground pork fish sauce, salt, black pepper and mix. (Note: You want some texture in the shrimp so do not process it until it is fine)
3. Combine the vegetables with the meat. Add the egg white. Mix and combine evenly.
4. Place wrapper on a flat surface. Add 2 tablespoons of filling in center of wrapper, about 2/3 down the wrapper diagonally. Fold the two sides on the diagonal over the filling. Fold up the bottom corner over the filling and roll up. Brush egg yolk on the top corner and seal.
5. Heat up vegetable oil on medium-high heat. Deep fry the egg rolls in for about 5 minutes or until golden brown. Remove and place on paper towels to absorb excess oil.
6. Serve and enjoy. I would recommend eating the eggrolls by wrapping it with green lettuce and dipping it in Nuoc Cham.

Cha Goi Chay
Ingredients:

• 1 block tofu, sliced
• 100g bean thread (1 cup cooked)
• 2 tbsp dried black fungus, soaked until soft and chopped
• 1 ½ c cabbage, shredded
• 1 ½ c carrots, shredded (about 2 carrots)
• 1 ½ c jicama, shredded (about ½ medium size jicima)
• 3 shallots, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 ½ Tb fish sauce (nuoc mam)
• ½ tsp pepper
• ¼ tsp salt
• vegetable oil for deep frying
• 1 package large (8 inch) spring roll wrappers
• 1 egg, white and yolk separated

Directions are the same as the meat version.