Shredded cabbage, celery, carrots, green onion and some spices…whats easier than that.
You’ll love this Chinese inspired vegetable egg roll recipe. This recipe is very low on the difficulty level and actually kind of fun to make. But maybe that’s just me cause I love to cook. These egg rolls are deep fried, because I prefer them that way. Can you bake them in an oven? Sure, people even use an air fryer. These are likely healthier options, but today we are going to deep fry these rolls for that crispy golden crust that we all have come to love from our favourite Chinese restaurant.

A deep fryer is absolutely recommended to help control temperature and oil fires.

Egg Roll vs Spring Roll

So whats the difference between an egg roll and a spring roll? its basically the wrapper. Spring rolls are wrapped in a thin wrapper, mostly rice wrappers. Egg rolls are wrapped in a thicker wrapper usually made of a wheat flour. Spring roll wrappers can definitely be used with this recipe if you so prefer.

Cooking tips:

A little tip here, if you find yourself making a lot of Chinese or Thai inspired stir fry dishes, keep some sesame oil in your pantry. Sesame oil adds amazing flavour to stir fries. Just thought I’d throw that in here because it is used in this recipe.

Remember to squeeze out the liquid juice after sauteing the vegetables, otherwise the liquid will release while frying the egg rolls, resulting in a dark and cloudy oil. You’ll see bits of burnt looking spots on your egg rolls. It’s not so serious, don’t panic, but egg rolls will look nicer if filling is kept dryer while rolling.

Most grocery stores carry egg roll wrappers. This recipe will fill a 1 pound (18 wrapper) package, when filled with a heaped tablespoon of filling.

Deep frying and safe cooking tips

Never heat oil or shortening for deep frying in a pot on top of a burner.
Use only a thermostatically-controlled deep fat fryer which is properly designed for safe cooking with oil.
Follow the manufacturer’s instructions for care and cleaning. The Office of the Fire Marshal and your local fire department urge you to use ONLY thermostatically controlled deep fat fryers.

Print Recipe

5 from 1 vote

Vegetable Egg Rolls

Prep Time40

Cook Time30

Course: Appetizer, Dinner, Snack

Cuisine: American-Chinese

Keyword: chinese egg rolls, vegetabl egg roll

Ingredients

3 cups cabbage shredded or thinly sliced
1 large carrot shredded or thinly sliced
2 green onions chopped
1 stalk celery shredded or thinly sliced
2 tablespoons sesame oil

Seasonings:

1 teaspoon ground ginger or fresh minced ginger
1 teaspoon garlic powder or fresh minced garlic
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon oyster sauce
1 teaspoon sugar
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon sesame oil

1 pound package of egg roll wraps (18 sheets)

Instructions

Heat the 2 tablespoons sesame oil in a large pan. Quickly saute the cabbage, carrots, green onions and celery, until barely softened. Remove from heat.
Mixture will reduce and sauteing helps remove some of the moisture from the cabbage. Transfer the mixture to a bowl and let rest. Remove liquid from sauteed vegetables by pressing on mixture or egg rolls will be soggy and leak liquid when frying.
Add seasonings and the teaspoon of sesame oil, mix well.
Take a single wrap out of the package, dip finger in water to wet edges before rolling. With the point facing you put a heaping tablespoon of the filling near the tip and roll halfway over the filling then fold over both outer corners on top then continue rolling.
Use a small but tall pot to fry the egg rolls in. A narrower pot will use less oil but result in more frying time to cook all 18. Add cooking oil up to about 2 inches high, but not higher than 1/3 of the pot. A deep fryer is absolutely recommended.
Check oil temp with thermometer. Oil should read between 350°F and 375°F.
Carefully add first egg roll to oil. Egg roll should sizzle and rise up from the bottom. If egg roll darkens too quick lower temperature. Don't over crowd the pot. If oil is too cool egg rolls will come out very greasy.
Turn egg rolls often for even frying. After about 7 or 8 minutes when golden brown on all sides remove the egg rolls and drain on a rack or paper towels.
Leftovers can be kept in the fridge for a couple days or wrapped and frozen. Place in a hot 375°F oven on a tray covered with parchment paper to crisp up again.
Serve with your favourite dipping sauce.