Don't Try This at Home Children

I decided to make my Famous Egg Rolls for New Year's Eve and weekend munchies.  Its a fam favorite and they usually fly off the plate.  I thought I would share the recipe and a pictorial.  As the title suggests I wouldn't recommend you try this at home.  Its a lot of chopping PEOPLE.  But if you feel REALLY ambitious and are in the mood for some drain bamage HAVE AT IT.  No I'm kidding here it is a bit of work but well worth the trouble because they are DELISH...

Liz's Famous Egg Rolls

Cast of Characters

2 center-cut pork chops
2 chicken breast (I used organic)
1 lb shrimp
2 tablespoons oil (or more)
All meats browned on both sides and fully cooked in a fry pan using a couple of tablespoons of oil
1 head of cabbage shredded
1 lb of soy beans (Amount approx. I used fresh, but you can use a large can of soy beans if you can't find fresh) diced
1 onion diced
4 carrots shredded
1 can mushrooms or fresh
1 lb of peas (I used the fresh sweet snow peapods) diced
2 small cans of bamboo shoots diced
2 small cans of sliced water chestnuts diced

1-2 packages of egg roll wrappers (I used almost three packages of wrappers this time because I ACCIDENTALLY doubled the meat I normally use.  Shoot me now)
For the sauce use 2 tblspoons of each of the following (amount are approximate because I just shake a little of each onto the batch of filling until it looks right?@!?)
Soy sauce
Sesame oil
Premium fish sauce
Kitchen Bouquet browning & seasoning sauce
2 packages of stir fry seasoning mix (Any flavor you can use chop suey, fried rice, stir fry seasoning mix.  I normally use what I have on hand)

La Choy Sweet & Sour Sauce for dipping (the red stuff) OR
If you don't have any of this on hand (my favorite) then you can make some.  TIP of the CENTURY: Mix equal parts of apple sauce and honey for a fantastic sweet and sour sauce substitute.

Brown the pork chops, chicken breast in a fry pan in oil on both sides until fully cooked.  Cook the shrimp in boiling water, drain.  Dice the meat/shrimp.  Shred the cabbage and carrots.  Dice the soy beans, onions, pea pods, bamboo shoots and water chestnuts.  Combine all and add to the meat mixture.  Season w/ seasoning mix, soy sauce, sesame oil, fish sauce and kitchen bouquet (to taste).  Simmer until all is mixed well and wilted.  Drain the egg roll filling in a strainer until dry.  Add 2 tblspns a filling to each wrapper.  Brown in hot oil on both sides approx 3-5 min each side or until lightly browned.  Drain on paper towels.  Makes: approximately 2 dozen

Close up of the cast, Part 1

Egg roll wraps, seasoning mix, fresh soy beans etc....

Close up of the cast Part 2

Onion, water chestnuts (yes I said sliced chestnuts but the hus did the shopping), mushrooms, carrots, pea pods

Cast Part 3, Soy sauce, sesame oil, fish sauce and kitchen bouquet (secret ingredient)

Shredded cabbage

Pea pods, bamboo shoots, water chestnuts and mushrooms diced

Shredded carrots and diced onions

Tri-meat filling (diced shrimp). Meat diced in food processor.  Normally I dice it by hand bc it adds texture to the egg roll mixture.  To save time I used a food processor this time.  I like hand diced better.

Combine all of the diced items above add seasoning and simmer

Drain egg roll filling in a strainer over a large bowl.  A tip to successful rolling is to have a very dry filling.  If you leave it moist the egg roll wrappers tend to tear and fall apart in the oil.  I drain them on the counter for at least 30 min or longer.

Egg roll filling is still draining... meanwhile prepare your wrapping station.  I like to wrap on paper towels.  Again to keep the wrappers as dry as possible during the process.  I have a little bowl of water for sealing the wrappers once rolled.

Heat your oil.  It's times like this I wish I owned "Fry Daddy" It doesn't seem to get as hot as I like on the stove top.  We eat so little fried foods that owning an appliance for frying doesn't seem necessary.

Spoon a couple of tablespoons of filling onto a wrapper (don't overfill)

Fold the bottom corner up.  Wet the upper left and upper right edges with water

Fold the right side over

Fold the left side over.  Just like swaddling a baby.

Fully folded.  Set off to the side on another paper towel lined plate.

Prepare a batch for the oil.  I like to get an assembly line going so some can be browning in the oil while I continue to wrap.  They cook quickly so I don't want the hot oil sitting empty while I wrap.  So I try and get a couple of batches fully assembled before I start frying.

Fry in hot oil until lightly browned

Flip once, fry for an additional 3-5 minutes or until lightly browned

Cookie sheet lined with (yep, you guessed it more paper towels) and a draining rack

Finished egg rolls.  Don't try this at home.  I'm telling you people, you don't want to.  Really.

Drain between layers of paper towels

 

Bon Appetit!!

Heads bow.  Cut open so you can see how the filling looks

My husband said I made approx. 4 DOZEN.  The accidental (on my part) doubling of the amount of chicken and pork chops.  I had to have him run out for more wrappers so I could use up all of the filling I made.  Help me Rhonda.

 

I really don't have a recipe for my egg rolls.  I just chop and dice and slice what I thought would taste good in an egg roll.  Really lean meats, cabbage, carrots, bamboo shoots, water chestnuts etc.  The reason I don't have any amounts for the seasoning and spices is because I add a little bit of this and that until I think it looks and tastes right and usually whatever I had in the house that was Asian flavors I would use. Draining the filling and using the paper towels are tips I learned by trial and error.  Egg roll wrappers are very delicate and they don't like moisture.  Amen.  I haven't made these in a long time and that's why I forgot how much meat I normally use.  After I had the filling made I realized I used double the meat that I normally use.  4 pork chops & chicken breasts instead of only 2.  HENCE 4 DOZEN EGG ROLLS instead ofthe normal 2 dozen.  Anyone want to come over for dinner?

Enjoy

and HAPPY NEW YEAR!