Fried Spring Rolls: Spilled Milk #185

This is one of my Top 10 favorites of all time.

Are these authentic? Well, they’re as authentic as I can make them. Are they honest? Sure they are, and an accurate representation of the dish as I know it. Am I Vietnamese? No, I am not.  However, these are essentially Vietnamese cha gio. That being said, I use lumpia wrappers because I find traditional rehydrated rice paper to be trickier for the home cook to execute. And they don’t freeze as well. I make 30 or 40 rolls, freeze them on a tray and then store them in Ziploc bags, six per bag. I fry them frozen without defrosting, and it works beautifully.

I also know that many cooks feel that the addition of sesame oil for example is a Chinese influence. Others feel the addition of oyster sauce is a Thai convention. The use of TYJ brand all-purpose wrappers makes them a smidge Filipino, I guess, since a lot of cooks use that brand for lumpia despite it not even being a true lumpia wrapper but pretty close. I wouldn’t argue with any of it because food is hybridized and elastic. It moves. And in many parts of Vietnam, all or some of these ingredients are used. And as if to prove my point, TYJ brand wrappers are made in Singapore, home to a massive slice of the hybridized Asian food culture, where blending and cross-pollination of dishes, techniques and ingredients from all over southern Asia was almost invented.

My focus is on deliciousness. And while I advocate for the preservation of recipes, techniques and authenticity because I worry about diluting cultural heritage and other crucial sociological touchstones, a little slip and slide with your spring roll filling or preparation shouldn’t elicit a visit from the food police.

Recipe: Fried Spring Rolls