Do spring rolls have egg in them?

In this blog post, we will answer the following question: Do spring rolls have egg in them? We will explain the difference between spring rolls vs egg rolls, and teach you how to make vegetarian spring rolls. 

Do spring rolls have egg in them?

Spring rolls do not have egg in them. The spring roll is a roll made of pasta filled with different julienne chopped vegetables and sometimes with minced meat. They can be served with sweet and sour sauce or soy sauce.

Often confused with a sister dish, the egg roll, although they differ fundamentally in that the later is generally larger, finer, and the dough that rolls it is thinner and more fragile; it is, in the same way, more crispy and has more filling than the spring roll.

However, the terms “spring roll” and “egg roll” are often used in a similar way confusing the West. The dough used in the egg roll is made from wheat flour and egg, while that used in the spring rolls is based more on rice flour

However, spring rolls can be made in two ways: with a rice flour-based pasta –Vietnamese or Thai style- or with a wheat flour pasta –China-. It should be noted that the latter is the best known in the West thanks to the enormous spread of Chinese food that Chinese restaurants have made in the main capitals of the world.

Spring rolls vs Egg rolls

Egg rolls are made of a mixture of various vegetables cooked and cut into thin strips, wrapped in a fine dough of wheat flour and egg, and finished cooking in a pan in plenty of soybean oil. Once the outer layer is golden and crisp, it is removed from the frying, drained in an oil can and served with a soy sauce or a sweet and sour sauce.

In China, only wheat flour is used. Introduced in the West thanks to the enormous diffusion of Chinese food that Chinese restaurants have made in the main capitals of the world, in the West, they are generally confused with the spring roll that is made from a much finer paste and that is usually smaller in size.

Spring rolls offer a contrast in texture when tasting, as well as continuing to be very versatile in combination with other ingredients of various flavours. It is a roll made with a scramble of different chopped vegetables in the julienne style and some minced meat. 

They are normally eaten raw or steamed. Roughly speaking, spring rolls are served as part of the festive menu for Chinese New Year and the festivities that welcome spring.

Egg rolls do not require much effort, and you can also add a personal touch to the filling and sauces. As with many of the traditional dishes, recipes that had a certain history and dates set for their consumption have become, thanks to globalization, a dish of daily enjoyment, especially when catering and frozen food companies have included this preparation among their offers, so anyone can go to the frozen area and buy this dish.

The most difficult thing to make is the very fine and delicate pasta that surrounds the roll. To avoid this problem, you can buy this pasta already stretched in specialized stores or it can be substituted for filo pasta, more common and easier to find.

Vegetarian spring rolls

You can make vegetarian or mixed rolls and take advantage of the remains of vegetables that are in the fridge. The filling can be improvised, depending on the vegetables that are in the fridge, or be premeditated, with a sauté of chives, leeks, mushrooms or peppers, to suit everyone. 

If you want them to have a Chinese flavour, among the sauteed vegetables you should not omit Chinese cabbage, drained and sautéed with the rest of the ingredients, a few thin strips of canned bamboo and drained before sautéing and, at the last minute, almost out from the fire, some bean sprouts.

If you prefer vegetarian spring rolls, the chosen vegetables will suffice, to which you can add a touch of protein with a few pieces of tofu and wheat gluten at the last minute. 

If you choose some mixed rolls of vegetables and other products, you can add a few strips of chicken breast, a few pieces of pork loin, a few prawn tails or a few strips of fish, ingredients that are easy to chew. Other slightly tougher meats such as lamb or beef should be avoided.

The outer pasta can be cut into squares and the filling is placed in the centre, wrapped into a roll and the ends are moistened with water or beaten egg. They wrap inwards.

The rolls are fried in abundant hot oil, which can be soybean, sunflower or seed oil. Once fried and drained in an oil can or on a tray with kitchen paper, they can be served with a homemade sweet and sour sauce or with a flavoured tomato sauce, along with a few drops of soy sauce or with oranges sauce.

Other FAQs about Spring Rolls which you may be interested in.

Is Panda Express Spring Roll vegan?

Are Chinese spring rolls gluten-free?

Are spring rolls always vegetarian?

The bottom line

In this blog post, we answered the following question: Do spring rolls have egg in them? We explained the difference between spring rolls vs egg rolls and taught you how to make vegetarian spring rolls. 

Spring rolls do not contain eggs, however, egg rolls do. It is important to know the difference between the two, especially if you want to adopt a vegetarian lifestyle.

If you have any questions or comments on the content, please let us know!

References

Tastessence.com – Is a Spring Roll Different from an Egg Roll?

Thedaringkitchen.com – Spring Roll vs Egg roll

Chefonefoods.com – What Is The Difference Between Spring Rolls and Egg Rolls