Ground pork and Napa cabbage are flavored with garlic, ginger, and hoisin sauce before wrapped and fried until crisp.
I LOVE a good spring roll. And for the first time the other week, I made them for myself. I was challenged by Christy Wang to come up with my own version and was up for the task. While I must admit that they seemed a little intimidating, they were actually quite easy to make, so I encourage you to give this recipe a try if these are new to you!
Pork and Cabbage Spring Roll Filling
The base of this filling is ground pork and sliced Napa cabbage. It is packed with flavor thanks to hoisin sauce, ginger, and garlic—and some salt and white pepper, of course (though black pepper works too). There’s also some cornstarch in the mix to make sure the filling isn’t watery. A key step to remember is that once the filling is cooked, be sure to let it cool before rolling in the wrappers.
How to Make Spring Rolls
I looked to my blogger fried Lisa Lin and her recipe for crispy vegetable and pork spring rolls to really nail down the technique. While some people just use straight up cornstarch, she recommends using a slurry to help thicken the filling, so I listened to her advice. While the filling is cooling, you should take the package of spring roll wrappers out of the freezer to start thawing.
For each spring roll, place a wrapper on the table so that a corner faces you. Scoop about 2 tablespoons of filling in a line going across near that same corner and roll the wrapper over the filling. Then fold in each of the sides and roll into a log. (If you’ve ever made a burrito before, this is the same technique.) Then just repeat until all of the filling is used up. Afterwards, you can fry them immediately or freeze some for later if making a big batch.
Spring Roll Dipping Sauce
There are lots of different options for dipping sauces. Some people just use black vinegar, and Lisa includes a sweet chili sauce recipe with hers. But I decided to continue with the hoisin and use that as the base of my sauce. I thin it out with a little soy sauce and add some fresh-squeezed lime juice for a little brightness, and voila! You have a super flavorful sauce to pair with spring rolls.
Pork and Cabbage Spring Rolls
Ground pork and Napa cabbage are flavored with garlic, ginger, and hoisin sauce before wrapped and fried until crisp.
Ingredients
Pork and Cabbage Filling:
- 2 tablespoons vegetable or other neutral oil, plus more for frying
- 1/2 pound ground pork
- 1 small head Napa cabbage (1 1/2 pounds), thinly sliced
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1-inch piece ginger, minced
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch whisked with 2 tablespoons water
- 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
Spring Rolls:
- Vegetable or other neutral oil, for frying
- One package frozen spring roll/lumpia wrappers
- 2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 lime, juiced
Instructions
- Make the Pork and Cabbage Filling: Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat and cook the pork, breaking apart with a spatula or spoon, until almost fully cooked, about 2 minutes.
- Add the cabbage, salt, and pepper to the pan and cook, stirring occasionally, until cabbage is almost fully cooked down and softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and ginger and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute more.
- Add the cornstarch slurry to the pan and let simmer for about 1 minute. Stir in the hoisin sauce, check for seasoning, and remove from heat. Allow the filling to cool completely.
- Make the Spring Rolls: While the filling is cooling, take the spring roll wrappers out of the freezer to thaw per package instructions.
- For each spring roll, place a wrapper on the table so that a corner faces you. Scoop about 2 tablespoons of filling in a line going across near that same corner and roll the wrapper over the filling; fold in each of the sides and then roll into a log. Repeat until all of the filling is used up. You can freeze them for later or proceed with frying.
- Fill a pot with 1- to 1 1/2-inches of oil and heat to 350˚F. Working in batches so as not to overcrowd the pot, fry the spring rolls, turning them occasionally so that they fry evenly, until a light golden brown, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to drain.
- Mix together the hoisin, soy sauce, and lime juice as a dipping sauce to serve with the spring rolls. Enjoy!
Wow! I love spring rolls and googled gluten free lumpia rolls. There was the recipe on the Better Batter site! I also read that rice paper doesn’t work as well. Of course not. I have those. Can’t wait to make these. It will be a good project while obsessing over the election. I, too, cannot wait until this is over. We voted early in person in Florida, and it was easy peasy. It is so important that everyone votes. I read in the NY Times yesterday about the sizeable amount of people who don’t vote. Because nothing changes. Really? I guess they don’t care about poverty, racism, the treatment of women, anti-semitism, the unchecked virus….. Please, please vote and support Biden and Harris. Sorry. I also don’t like to express my views online, but it is so important.
While looking for spring roll recipes I came across your comment. totally agrey.e on both points. First all I have are rice paper wrappers too but plan to try them. Second, totally agree with you politically.
I don’t care for Biden & Harris., I feel its all rigged . They just make the people THINK they have a choise . They have the people so divided all by design . America 🇺🇸 is a mess .
Just curious…3 years in…how do you feel now? :/