"It's Almost Spring" Rolls

On a recent trip to Reading Terminal and Chinatown I realized very quickly that I should have brought luggage. I did get a workout though while juggling a potted hydrangea, a 10 lb sack of rice, and enough produce to feed a family of four for a couple weeks. Among my finds though was a pack of spring roll wrappers - 50 for a little more than a dollar. At least I guessed they were spring roll wrappers from the pictures on the back of the package. Lest you think that I have been falling off the vegetarian wagon what with the chicken pot pie and all you will be happy to see that these are in fact devoid of meat. Ok so they are also deep fried. Guess you can't please all of the food gods at the same time.

Ingredients
1 package extra firm tofu, drained and cubed into small pieces
1 stalk (is that the right terminology?) bok choy, finely diced
1 scallion, white and green parts sliced
1 package mushrooms, finely diced
Soy Sauce
Sesame oil
A tsp or so of grated ginger
Canola oil
1 package spring roll wrappers
Dipping sauce of your choice

In a large, non stick skillet or wok, heat a small amount of canola oil over medium low heat. Once it's hot add your tofu. Flip occasionally so they don't burn. You don't have to be too gentle because it's ok if it gets broken up a little. Let them sautee for about 3 minutes before adding the mushrooms. Once the mushrooms start to brown add the scallions, ginger, and a splash each of the soy sauce and sesame oil. You may want to add more to taste. You don't need to add salt unless you are using low sodium soy sauce. Let this mixture cook together and stir occasionally. You should turn down the heat if anything seems like it is browning too much. This mixture should give off almost all of it's moisture. Once it's pretty dry, turn off the heat and let cool slightly. Pour into a bowl.

Prepare your work station with the wrappers (kept under a damp paper towel), filling, a plate to keep the stuffed rolls, and a plate lined with paper towels to drain the fried rolls.

This is the method I used to stuff them, which seemed to work pretty well. The wrappers were not as fragile as other dumpling wrappers I've used which made the process much easier.

Once you have them all wrapped, start heating your vegetable oil. I used my cast iron dutch oven. You want enough so that the spring rolls will be submerged, but you don't need a ton of oil especially for small spring rolls. Heat it over medium heat, and keep some small bits of tofu or bread to test the heat. When you drop something in and it immediately sizzles and begins to brown, it's ready. If it browns and burns very quickly, turn the heat down a bit.

Carefully drop them in a few at a time and keep a close eye on them. Flip them once you can see brown around the edges. A spider is a very handy tool to have. If you don't have one, it's worth the $1 at your local asian grocer. Take them out and let sit on paper towels for a few minutes before dipping in your favorite sauce and enjoying.



As with all labor intensive foods, make enough to freeze. Don't make the same mistake I did of freezing them together in one container. Freeze them in batches being careful not to let them touch before placing the individual frozen spring rolls in a bag or tupperware.