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1. Shanghai Spring Rolls

Legend:

Everyone knows Chinese Spring Rolls. But do you also know its history? Let’s start with “once upon a time”:

It is said that 1000 years ago there was a scholar in Fuzhou in southern China who often forgot to eat and sleep while working. Time and again his wife found it difficult to persuade him to eat but then she thought of solution: She invented pancakes made of ground rice, filled with meat and folded in rolls. She left these rolls on her husband's desk so that he could help himself any time. When it got cold in winter, she fried the rolls briefly in hot oil. Her husband liked the rolls so much that he couldn’t stop eating. Later, the pancakes were made from wheat flour and the filling also became varied. The recipe gradually became popular in all of southern China and it was even included in the list of the 128 best dishes in the imperial palace. People named the dish "spring rolls" because they liked to eat them as a snack during the Spring Festival.

In Shanghai, the filling differs from those of other regions in China, with Chinese cabbage as one of the main ingredients. The spring rolls from Shanghai therefore taste more savoury than those from other regions.

Prep Time: 35 minutes	Cooking Time: 10 minutes
Rest Time: 45 minutes	Total Time: 90 minutes

Ingredients for 20 spring rolls:

• 20 frozen spring roll pastries 215 mm x 215 mm (8" squares)

• Carrots 200 g (7 oz)

• Pork fillet 200 g (7 oz)

• Chinese cabbage approx. 500 g (18 oz)

• 3 pieces of dried tongu/shiitake mushrooms – optional

• 2 tbsp rice wine/ Shaoxing wine or dry sherry, beer

• Glass noodle 10 g (0.4 oz) – optional

• Corn starch, Salt and light soy sauce

• 3 cloves of garlic, finely minced

• Ground white pepper

• Neutral vegetable oil for frying

Instructions:

1. Soak the dried tongu mushrooms (or shiitake mushrooms) in lukewarm water for about 15 minutes, and defrost the spring roll wrappers by unpacking and covering them with a damp cloth. The mushrooms can be omitted if they are not available.

2. Shred the pork into fine strips and add 2 teaspoons of light soy sauce, 2 tablespoons of rice wine / Shaoxing wine (alternatively dry sherry / beer) and 1 pinch of ground white pepper. Mix well with 1 tablespoon of corn starch and let it the meat marinate in the fridge for about 10 minutes.

3. Wash and chop up the Chinese cabbage leaves. Grate the carrots with a food processor or manually and mince the soaked tongu mushrooms. Pour hot water over the glass noodles, drain and cut them into pieces. The glass noodles are used to keep the vegetable filling dry and they can be omitted, if the filling is thickened even more with corn starch.

4. Add a spoonful of oil to the marinated meat from the fridge and mix well to loosen it up. Heat about 1 tablespoon of oil in a wok and then stir-fry the marinated meat in the hot oil for about 2 minutes until caramelized. Then leave it to cool on a plate.

5. Heat about 1 tablespoon of oil in a wok and briefly sauté the finely minced garlic cloves in it. Then stir in all the remaining ingredients with about 1 teaspoon of salt and a pinch of pepper. Stir-fry for about 5 minutes until the cabbage is tender, then reduce the heat. Add 1 tablespoon of corn starch to 2 tablespoons of cold water in a small mixing bowl and stir well. Then pour the corn starch slurry into the wok to thicken the filling and, after tasting, add a little more salt if necessary. Set aside for cooling.

6. Wrap the cooled filling (approx. 2 tablespoons each) in the roll pastry and pan-fry the spring rolls in oil with the fold facing downwards until golden brown.

Serving: Depending on personal preference, the spring rolls can be served warm with dipping condiment such as balsamic vinegar, chili sauce or sweet chili sauce.

Insider tip: It tastes even better with "Worcestershire Sauce" as dipping condiment.