Thai Spring Rolls (3 Cooking Methods)

Homemade Thai spring rolls are incredibly flavorful, wrapped up tightly in a thin, crispy wrapper. The hearty filling is packed with ground pork, cabbage, carrots, shiitake mushrooms, garlic, cilantro, vermicelli noodles, bold spices and sauce that includes soy and oyster sauce. SO much flavor!
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I made sure to include three cooking options as well that will give you the crispy, crunch that’s so desired in spring rolls. The classic frying method and air-frying method will give the best crisp.

two halves of Thai spring roll cut in half stacked on top of more spring rolls.

I don’t know if I’ve ever met a spring roll that I hated, but I know one thing for certain – homemade Thai spring rolls are the BEST I’ve ever tasted!

  • The crispy fried wrapper that’s wrapped tightly around the savory filling creates the most satisfying bite without being overly oily from the fryer.
  • Plus, it’s thin enough to not be too heavy, but still thick enough to provide a light crunch.
  • You can serve up these Thai spring rolls as an appetizer, finger food for your next party, or as a side dish to your favorite Thai-inspired meal! I often find myself frying up a batch of these bad boys whenever I make Pad Thai for dinner, Khao Pad or other favorite Thai recipes.
ingredients for Thai spring rolls on a cutting board

Key Ingredients and Substitutions

Wrappers – Use spring roll wrappers, it’s very important! Do not use dried rice wrappers, as those are meant for fresh spring rolls.

Ground Pork – If you’d prefer, you may also use ground chicken or ground turkey.

Rice Noodles – Glass noodles or vermicelli both work. The difference is that glass noodles are made with mung beans and vermicelli is made with rice.

Dried Shiitake Mushrooms – Try not to substitute these with any other type of mushrooms. You can use fresh shiitake mushrooms if needed but note that dried shiitakes have much stronger flavor.

Gluten free options – for the gluten in sauces, the soy sauce and oyster sauce can be easily substituted with gluten free options. For spring rolls wrappers, use rice spring rolls wrappers (clear ones) but they have to be labeled “for frying” or something similar.

collage of eight images of cooking steps for spring roll filling and the steps to roll them up in a wrapper.

How to Make Thai Spring Rolls

  1. When preparing ingredients, set time aside to re-hydrate the mushrooms and soak the noodles.
  2. Prep the remaining ingredients before cooking.
  3. To make the filling, sauté garlic in a hot wok, then add ground pork and cook, breaking up the pieces, with some soy sauce added. Add veggies and remaining ingredients and cook until everything is soft and cooked.
  4. To wrap spring rolls, spread some filling in a line on a diamond placed wrapper and roll them starting by folding up the bottom, then folding in the sides, and then rolling it up. Make sure to seal the edges.
collage of four images of option to cook the Thai spring rolls by frying or air frying.

Cooking Options For Spring Rolls

Of course, the classic method is to fry them. Since air fryers have become a staple appliance in so many households, I will include an air fryer method below that also yields delicious spring rolls!

  • Frying In Oil: preheat oil to 350°F and fry your spring rolls in batches for 5-6 minutes until they reach a golden brown color. Use metal tongs to remove them and place them on the prepared wire rack.
  • Air Frying: place some them into the basket of your air fryer in a single layer, and air fry at 375°F for approximately 12-14 minutes.
top view of layered spring rolls on the cutting board with one cut in half

To Keep Spring Rolls Warm While Cooking Other Batches

Preheat the oven to 200°F and place a wire rack on top of a baking sheet. Place the cooked spring rolls on the wire rack and keep them warm in the oven.

dipping a Thai spring roll half into some sweet Thai chili sauce.

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cut Thai spring roll on layer of spring rolls

Thai Spring Roll Recipe

Homemade Thai spring rolls are incredibly flavorful, wrapped up tightly in a thin, crispy wrapper. The hearty filling is packed with ground pork, cabbage, carrots, shiitake mushrooms, garlic, cilantro, vermicelli noodles, bold spices and sauce that includes soy and oyster sauce. SO much flavor!
5 from 3 votes
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Course: Appetizer
Cuisine: Thai
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour
Servings: 25
Calories: 126kcal
Author: Lyuba Brooke

Ingredients

  • 25 spring roll wrappers thawed
  • 1 egg whisked

Filling:

  • 1 lb ground pork or ground chicken, or ground turkey
  • 1 1/2 cups shredded cabbage
  • 1 cup shredded carrots
  • 3 oz glass noodles or vermicelli
  • 4-6 dried shiitake mushrooms soaked
  • 4 garlic cloves
  • 4-5 cilantro stems minced
  • 3 tbsp low sodium soy sauce divided
  • 3 tbsp oyster sauce
  • 2 tsp white granulated sugar
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 1/4 tsp white pepper
  • pinch salt if needed

Instructions

Before cooking:

  • Soak the dried shiitake mushrooms in warm water until rehydrated. Soak the noodles according to the package instructions. (Usually 3-4 minutes in hot, boiling water.) Mince mushrooms when they are rehydrated and chop the noodles into about 1-inch pieces as well.
  • Shred or shave cabbage and carrots. Smash and mince garlic cloves and mince cilantro stems.
  • Measure remaining ingredients and set everything aside.
  • Make sure to thaw spring roll wrappers if they are frozen.

Prepare the filling:

  • Preheat a large wok (or a deep, large cooking pan) and drizzle some canola oil.
  • Add minced garlic and sauté just for a few seconds, until fragrant. Add ground pork and break it up and add about a tablespoon of soy sauce. Keep cooking and breaking it up until almost done.
  • Add in cabbage and carrots, stir and cook until both softened. Stir in minced cilantro stems and minced shiitake.
  • Stir in remaining soy sauce, oyster sauce, sugar, and peppers. Stir well and finish cooking until vegetables are completely softened.
  • Take off heat and let it cool to room temperature before rolling.

Wrapping spring rolls:

  • Whisk the egg in a small bowl and set it on your work station.
  • Place a spring roll wrapper on a diamond.
  • Spread about 3-4 tablespoons of filling in a line, on the lower part of the diamond, leaving about a couple inches on each side.
  • Gently and carefully, fold the bottom corner over the filling mixture. Fold both side corners toward center of wrapper, it will start to look like an open envelope.
  • Dip your fingers in the egg and run it all along the edges of the wrapper to seal better. Carefully roll up the spring roll. Repeat with remaining spring rolls.

Frying Spring Rolls:

  • Place a couple of sheets of paper towel onto a wire rack for the spring roll when they're fried.
  • Preheat canola or vegetable oil to 350° and fry a few spring rolls at a time (don't overcrowd them). Fry spring rolls for 5-6 minutes, until golden-brown. Use metal tongs to take the spring rolls out and place them onto the prepared wire rack.

Air-frying spring rolls:

  • To air-fry spring rolls, place them into the air-fryer basket in one layer and make sure to give them a little space between. Don't overcrowd.
  • Air-fry spring rolls at 375° for 12-14 minutes, until crispy golden brown.

Baking spring rolls:

  • Preheat the oven to 400° and fit a wire rack inside a baking sheet. Lightly grease the wire rack.
  • Place wrapped spring rolls onto the wire rack and bake for 18-20 minutes.

To serve:

  • These spring rolls are fantastic with Sweet Thai Chili Sauce!

Video

Notes

Wrappers – Use spring roll wrappers. This is very important! Do not use dried rice wrappers, as those are meant for fresh spring rolls. Spring roll wrappers are much thinner than egg roll wrappers and cook nice and crispy. You can easily find spring roll wrappers in an Asian market or a well stocked grocery store. If Asian culture is prominent where you live, chances are that your grocery store will have them. Check the frozen foods section!
Gluten free options – substitute the soy sauce and oyster sauce with gluten free soy sauce (or tamari) and gluten free Oyster sauce. As far as the wrappers, it’s not as easy. You can use rice spring rolls wrappers (clear ones) but they have to be labeled “for frying” or something similar. Regular rice spring rolls wrappers will not work.
Storing – If you have any leftovers, store them in an airtight food storage container in the refrigerator. Stored properly, they should stay fresh for about 3-4 days.
To reheat them – I highly recommend using at air fryer and reheating them at 375­°F for 3-4 minutes. You can also use an oven and reheat them at 350°F for 7-10 minutes.

Nutrition

Calories: 126kcal | Carbohydrates: 16g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 21mg | Sodium: 255mg | Potassium: 106mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 895IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 19mg | Iron: 1mg
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All images and text ©Lyubov Brooke for ©Will Cook For Smiles. Please do not use my images without prior permission. If using my posts in collections and features, please link back to this post for the recipe.
Disclaimer: Nutrition information shown is not guaranteed to be 100% accurate as most ingredients and brands have variations.

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5 Comments

  1. Skip Belcher says:

    5 stars
    Crispy, smooth, very tasty Pork Spring Rolls! Quick, relatively easy, and guaranteed an appetizer “Big Hit!”

  2. Annette Liss says:

    You are my all time favorite , You never disappoint.
    You go Girl

    1. Aww, thank you, Annette! You made my day! 🙂

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