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How to Make Egg Rolls and Other Asian Appetizers

homemade egg rolls with dipping sauce

My husband and I love going out to eat, but it can get expensive. Besides, sometimes we don’t really feel like leaving the house. I also like to know what ingredients I am putting in my body so we try to limit our take out experiences. So we began wondering how to make eggrolls at home? This is what we came up with….

We recently bought a pasta maker and decided to try it out to make more than just Italian recipes. We love Asian appetizers so we figured why not use the pasta recipe for making egg rolls and potsticker dumplings. How to make egg rolls? It is basically like making a burrito but smaller. If you are still hungry, try our lo mein chicken recipes.

How to Make Egg Rolls with Pork

homemade egg rolls

Ingredients for making Chinese egg rolls

  • egg roll wrappers- from the store or use homemade pasta recipe
  • 8 oz. shredded cooked pork
  • 4 finely chopped green onions
  • 8 oz. shredded Chinese cabbage
  • 2 cups bean sprouts
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce
  • 2 tsp. sesame oil
  • 1 tbsp hoisin sauce
  • cooking oil

Directions for making egg rolls

  1. Stir fry the vegetables in a tablespoon of cooking oil for about 5 minutes. Then stir in soy sauce, hoisin, and sesame oil. Let filling cool while preparing wrappers.
  2. In order to make homemade egg roll wrappers follow the homemade pasta recipe. You will only need approximately half the dough, use the rest to make pasta.
  3. Once the filling and wrappers are ready, place a large tablespoon of filling in the center of the wrapper, figure 1. Fold bottom corner up, then sides, like an envelope, figure 2. Then roll up from the bottom to the unfolded corner. Let sit to dry out for about 30 minutes before cooking.
  4. To cook heat oil in a pot to 375 F. Cook for a few minutes until golden brown, and then drain on paper towels. When ready to serve, place on a plate with duck sauce for dipping.
large spoonful of cabbage and pork filling on a homemade pasta sheet showing how to make egg rolls
figure 1
folded pasta sheet showing how to make egg rolls
figure 2

Here are some sponsored links for handy kitchen appliances I use. They make cooking much easier. Fillings are so much easier when you can grind up meat finely. And, I would never attempt making pasta without a pasta maker. I tried it in my younger years, but that is why I waited so long before trying it again.

Potsticker Dumplings

homemade pot sticker dumplings with sauce

Making pot stickers is similar to making egg rolls except you use a mold to make the dumplings and steam them for the second half of cooking.

Ingredients

  • premade dumpling shells or follow homemade pasta recipe
  • 1 cup shredded cooked pork
  • 4 finely chopped green onions
  • 1 tsp 5 spice powder
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce
  • 2 tsp sesame oil
  • 1 tsp. sugar

Directions

pork filling for pot sticker dumplings
figure 3
pork filling placed in the center of pasta sheet in half moon mold
figure 4
closed half moon mold sealing pot sticker dumpling with filling inside
figure 5
  1. Mix all ingredients except shells. Of course you can add more liquid seasonings if filling is too dry, figure 3.
  2. Make dough following directions for ravioli.
  3. When dough is ready, place end of dough over dumpling press, and place a spoonful of filling in center. Make sure not to overfill because the dough won’t seal properly, figure 4.
  4. Once filling is in place, fold dumpling press over to seal edges, figure 5. You can use a sharp knife to trim away excess dough. After that, remove dumpling from press and set on a parchment paper lined baking pan to dry out. If edges are not completely sealed, then press them with the tines of a fork.
  5. Continue process until filling is used up. Remaining dough can be used to make pasta for future use.
  6. Pour 1/8 inch oil in a deep frying pan. When the oil is hot, add dumplings. Cook until bottom is browned. Once browned remove to a plate while you cook remaining batches of dumplings.
  7. Once dumplings are browned, return browned dumplings to pan and add 1/2 cup of water. Then cover and steam for about 5 minutes.

How to Make Egg Rolls from Thailand

shows how to serve egg rolls on a plate with dipping sauce

These differ slightly from the Chinese egg rolls in the ingredients. However, the frying and rolling is similar. Of course, we used our homemade pasta recipe and cut the flat noodles in 5″ squares for this recipe.

Ingredients for making Thai egg rolls

  • 6 Shiitake mushrooms soaked and chopped
  • 6 ounces cooked shredded pork, finely chopped
  • 5 large shrimp cooked and chopped
  • 1 can drained bean sprouts
  • 1 finely grated carrot
  • 2 tbsp finely chopped cilantro
  • 1 clove garlic
  • 5 inch square egg roll wrappers
  • oil for frying
  • egg white for sealing egg rolls
  • sauce for dipping

Directions for how to make Thai egg rolls

shows how to make egg rolls by placing the correct amount of filling on one end of the wrapper
Diagram 1
shows how to make homemade egg rolls by rolling up the wrapper over the filling
Diagram 2
shows how to make homemade egg rolls by folding edges of wrapper over before finishing rolling
Diagram 3
  1. Mix first 7 ingredients together. This is a great way to use left over pork.
  2. Once filling is mixed, place a spoonful of filling towards one end of the wrapper as in diagram 1 above.
  3. Roll up one turn of the dough as in diagram 2. Make sure to keep a damp cloth over the rest of the wrappers so they don’t dry out.
  4. Then fold both sides as in diagram 3, and finish rolling the egg roll. Brush the end with a little egg white to seal.
  5. As you roll each one, place it on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and sprinkled with cornstarch, diagram 4. Check them occasionally while you continue rolling egg rolls because they tend to stick to the paper if they are too moist. If this happens, put them in the freezer for a bit to dry them out. If some split open just pinch them back together.
  6. Once you are finished rolling the egg rolls, heat an inch of oil in a pot until it reaches 375 F. Fry several egg rolls at a time until golden brown about 2 minutes each, diagram 5. Then drain them on paper towels.
  7. Serve with plum dipping sauce, or mix up your own. We mixed some Thai chili sauce with some pineapple juice. Yum!
shows how to make egg rolls by drying them slightly prior to cooking
Diagram 4
shows how to cook egg rolls in oil
Diagram 5

Thai Steamed Dumplings

shows Thai steamed dumplings

Ingredients for steamed dumplings

  • 8 oz. cooked ground pork
  • 1/4 cup shredded carrot
  • 2 tbsp chopped cilantro
  • 1 chopped clove garlic
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce
  • a finely chopped chili
  • egg whites for sealing wrappers
  • 3″ square wanton wrapper either purchased or made from homemade pasta recipe
  • additional soy sauce for dipping

Directions for steamed dumplings

photo 1
photo 2
photo 3
  1. Mix first 6 ingredients well in order to make the filling, and add one egg white to help form a paste.
  2. When filling and wrappers are ready, place a small spoonful of filling in the center of the wrapper like in photo 1.
  3. After that brush the edges of the wrapper lightly with egg white. Pinch together to seal as in photo 2 and place them on a tray lined with parchment paper sprinkled with cornstarch to prevent sticking.
  4. Then cut strips of parchment paper and line a steamer basket with them. Place dumplings on parchment paper over boiling water in steamer. Cook for 10-12 minutes in 2 batches. Photo 3.
  5. Remove from steamer when done and serve with soy sauce mixed with some water for dipping.

These sponsored links come in handy when making Asian food.

I hope you enjoy these appetizers as an additional way to use homemade pasta dough. Let me know what you think. I would love to hear from you.

author profile picture

Donna Emperador is a travel and food blogger and copywriter. Donna believes in learning about different cultures while sharing good food and cocktails. She has lived in South Florida for over 20 years and enjoys spending time exploring the road to find unique places to share with readers. She can be found on FacebookInstagram, and Pinterest.

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