How to make spring rolls – recipe | Felicity Cloake's Masterclass
How to make spring rolls – recipe | Felicity Cloake's Masterclass
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Fun to make and best eaten fresh from the pan, these east Asian signature snacks are great for lunar new year, but delicious at any time of year. Thanks to their happy similarity to gold bars, these tightly wrapped little parcels of joy – be they Vietnamese chả giò, Filipino lumpia or Thai po pia tod – will be enjoyed by many of those celebrating lunar new year this week. Spring rolls are best enjoyed hot and fresh, rather than reheated from the supermarket, and these Chinese versions are easy and fun to make at home.
![[Felicity Cloake]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2018/01/29/Felicity_Cloake,_L.png?width=75&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
Prep 20 min. Cook 15 min. Makes 8. 125g minced pork, or chicken, turkey, shrimp, prawns, soya mince or tofu (see step 1). 5g dried shiitake mushrooms, or other Chinese mushrooms (see step 2). 1 tsp peeled and grated fresh ginger. 2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed.
![[Felicity Cloake’s spring rolls 02a. Soak the mushrooms.]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/e8728c9ffeda8e742cc15f0e088835ac524b769e/534_2880_4358_2613/master/4358.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
150g trimmed Chinese leaf, or other cabbage. 50g carrot. 50g water chestnuts, or bamboo shoots or bean sprouts. ½ tbsp neutral oil, plus extra for deep-frying. 1 tsp Chinese five-spice. 1 tbsp oyster sauce. 1 tsp light soy sauce. ¼ tsp sesame oil. 2 tbsp chopped spring onions or Chinese chives.
![[Felicity Cloake’s spring rolls 03b. Meanwhile, finely grate a teaspoon of fresh ginger, and peel and crush the garlic. Trim the core from the Chinese leaf (or savoy or green cabbage), if necessary, and then finely shred the leaves to yield about 150g. Scrub and grate the carrot, and cut the water chestnuts or bamboo shoots into matchsticks; the beansprouts can be left whole.]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/da1a87de47e6ba536ff5bc42a62520089a977aad/0_2389_5342_4187/master/5342.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
8 spring roll wrappers, plus a few to spare (defrosted, if necessary). If you’d prefer to leave out the pork, you could substitute minced chicken or turkey instead, or brown shrimp or finely chopped small prawns (defrosted and patted dry, if need be), rehydrated soya mince or firm tofu, minced and lightly seasoned – the tofu will soak up all the other flavourings, so there’s no need to go overboard with the salt and pepper.
![[Felicity Cloake’s spring rolls 04a. Stir-fry the vegetables. Heat the neutral oil in a frying pan, cook the ginger and garlic for a minute, then stir in the five-spice and stir-fry for 30 seconds. Add the mushrooms and other vegetables, mushrooms and about 2 tbsp of the reserved mushroom soaking water (or water, stock or rice wine), and add the tofu, if you’re using that instead of meat.]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/596b65f00660fde5f98741cafe1dd9c198685b61/0_1464_5352_5772/master/5352.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
Soak the dried shiitake in warm water for about 20 minutes, or while you prepare the rest of the ingredients. Chewy wood ear would also work well here, as would a mixture of wood ear and shiitake. Alternatively, use 50g cleaned fresh mushrooms, coarsely chopped and sauteed in a hot, lightly greased pan until all the moisture has evaporated.
![[Felicity Cloake’s spring rolls 05a. Leave the veg mixture to simmer, uncovered, until the liquid has evaporated and the vegetables have softened. Stir in the oyster and soy sauces and the sesame oil, and cook for another minute, then leave to cool. Mix in the pork, if using, fry until cooked, then take off the heat. Once completely cool, mix in the spring onions or chopped chives]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/965d965c89aafcd6642fe637f68175e696dc1778/0_1380_5352_5884/master/5352.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
