Shanghai Spring Rolls

Shanghai Spring Rolls
Home Cooking



Having moved out of my parents house, I'm starting to miss mum and dad's cooking. It's one of those things you don't really appreciate until you're forced to eat out/make your own food every single day.

I have a theory that with certain foods, the taste varies greatly not just across different countries, provinces and whatnot but even in different families. This is probably the case with curry. It's definitely the case with spring rolls and wontons.

It's not to say I don't 'like' other spring rolls. Put some in front of me and I'll probably try them! However, I think that nothing replaces what you grew up with and what you're taste buds associate with home. I call these 'Shanghai' spring rolls because that's where my family is from and it's the kind of spring roll that Shanghainese people make.


I had a load of wom bok (Chinese cabbage) left over from the Korean hotpot night and stir-fried noodles... so I thought I'd use it to make spring roll filling. After a brief consult with my dad, I realized it would be super easy and I went for it!

Shanghai Spring Rolls
Makes approx. 12 small rolls

Ingredients:

• 1/4 head of wom bok, chopped into small pieces
• 3-4 dried shitake mushrooms
• 1 sml pork loin chop (approx 100g), cut into strips
• 2-3 tbsp light soy
• 1 tbsp cornstarch
• 1 tbsp Chinese cooking wine
• spring roll wrappers (small size - if you want to make small ones)
• oil to fry (use a neutral oil e.g. vegetable oil)

Procedure:

1. Mix together the cornstarch, cooking wine, light soy with the pork strips. Set aside for at least 10min.2. Soak the shitake mushrooms in hot water (or, you can pop them in a cup with tap water and microwave on high for 1min 30sec or 2min). When they are cool enough to handle, cut off the stumps and cut the mushroom into strips.3. Heat up a wok on high heat with a bit of oil. When the wok is really nice and hot, add the pork. Toss the pork around until it has changed color.
4. Reduce the heat and add the wom bok with a bit of water. Pop the lid on and let the wom bok tenderize. Stir now and again to prevent burning.
5. When the wom bok is really mushy, add in the mushrooms. Toss everything around and taste. Season with a bit of salt if necessary.

Spoon out the filling into a bowl, cover with cling wrap and cool it in the fridge. If you're short on time, it's a good idea to make the filling the day before you want to have the spring rolls so you can cool it in the fridge overnight.The next day...

1. Spoon a bit of filling into each individual wrapper and fold into rolls.2. Fry in a moderate amount of oil in batches. Fry the spring rolls with the seam side down first. When that side is golden, turn and fry the other side. You should only have to turn them once. Be careful when turning the spring rolls - if you pop them open, filling may ooze out and splatter in the oil (happened to me...)3. When each spring roll is done, place it on many layers of absorbent paper towel and let the oil drain a bit.
4. Serve with light soy sauce (Charlie likes it with sweet chili sauce; I like it with no sauce).

I was a bit disappointed with how my spring rolls look. I blame the wrappers that I used which were frail and tore easily. Taste-wise, I'm extremely pleased because they are exactly like the ones we had at home.


Spring rolls are traditionally eaten in the Chinese New Year (for the Spring Festival). They're a bit oily but very yummy so I think they're suitable for any time of the year.