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Lumpia are Filipino fried spring rolls filled with ground pork and mixed vegetables. This lumpia recipe is authentic and yields the crispiest lumpia ever. Serve them as an appetizer or finger food, with a sweet and sour dipping sauce.
Almost every country in Asia has its own interpretation of spring rolls, or egg rolls in the United States. In the Philippines, spring rolls are called lumpia.
In this lumpia recipe, Marvin, a native Filipino who blogs at Burnt Lumpia will explain different types of lumpia and share lumpiang Shanghai recipe with us.
Table of Contents
What Is a Lumpia?
Many people wonder what does lumpia mean? Lumpia is a Filipino word and it comes from the Chinese spring roll, with veggies (like cabbage and carrots), meats (usually pork), and/or seafood (sometimes shrimp) as the filling.
Different Types of Lumpia
There are many types of lumpia, here are some of the most popular ones:
- Lumpiang Sariwa refers to “fresh” lumpia with veggies and meat as the filling. You use a thin homemade crepe, instead of spring roll wrappers to wrap them.
- Lumpiang Hubad (naked lumpia) is made without a wrapper.
- Lumpiang Prito is Filipino fried spring roll with meat and a variety of vegetables as the filling.
How to Make Lumpia?
Below is the recipe for Lumpiang Shanghai with vegetables and ground pork as the filling. For serving, you dip them into Chinese sweet and sour sauce.
Lumpiang Shanghai are also thinner and smaller than its other fried counterparts. Lumpiang Shanghai are very easy to make as you just roll them up. They are perfect finger foods for parties!
Difference between Lumpia and Egg Rolls
Lumpia is the Filipino version of fried spring rolls. Egg rolls are American version of Chinese spring rolls. Both share the same origin but they taste and look different, with egg rolls being bigger and “fatter” in shape.
Can You Freeze Lumpia?
Yes, you can make lumpia ahead of time and freeze them in the refrigerator. In case you are wondering how long does frozen lumpia last? The answer is a long time. You can freeze them for months in the freezer without going bad.
Just make sure that you thaw them to room temperature before deep-frying.
How Many Calories per Serving?
Each roll is only 65 calories.
What Dishes to Serve with This Recipe?
For a classic Filipino meal, I recommend the following recipes.
Chicken Adobo
Filipino Chicken Skewers
Crock Pot (Slow Cooker) Chicken Adobo
Pancit (Filipino Fried Rice Noodles)
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Lumpia (Filipino Spring Rolls)
Lumpia are Filipino fried spring rolls filled with ground pork and mixed vegetables. This lumpia recipe is authentic and yields the crispiest lumpia ever. Serve them as an appetizer or finger food, with a sweet and sour dipping sauce.
Yield 50 Spring Rolls
Prep 30 minutes mins
Cook 10 minutes mins
Total 40 minutes mins
Ingredients
- 1 package Lumpia wrappers (Chinese or Vietnamese spring roll wrappers meant for frying can be used (25 sheets))
- 2 lbs. (1kg) ground pork
- 5 cloves garlic (peeled and minced)
- 1 inch (2.5cm) ginger, peeled and minced
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon chicken bouillon powder (optional)
- 2 eggs (lightly beaten)
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 6 oz. (175g) cabbage, thinly sliced
Instructions
Using a serrated knife, cut the square lumpia wrappers in half so that you have two stacks of rectangular wrappers. Place a damp paper towel over the wrappers to keep them from drying out as you work.
Combine the pork, cabbage, garlic, ginger, soy sauce, chicken bouillon powder (if using), eggs, and ground black pepper in a large bowl. Using your hands, or a rubber spatula, mix the filling well so that the seasonings are evenly distributed.
Place one of the rectangular wrappers vertically on your work surface with the short edge facing you. Place a heaping teaspoon of the filling on the wrapper about half an inch from the edge closest to you. Grasp the bottom edge of the wrapper and roll it up and over the filling, continuing to roll until 2 inches of wrapper remain.
Dip two fingers into a bowl of water, then moisten the last 2 inches (5cm) of wrapper with your fingers. Finish rolling the lumpia, then rest it on its seam. Continue rolling with the rest of the filling and lumpia wrappers.
At this point, you can freeze your rolled lumpia if you wish by placing them in freezer bags and then into your freezer.
To cook the lumpia, fill a large frying pan with about 1/2-inch (1cm) of vegetable oil. Heat the oil over medium-high heat. Gently place the lumpia into the hot oil and fry until golden brown on all sides, 3 to 5 minutes total (if frying frozen lumpia, it will take 1 to 2 minutes longer).
Place the fried lumpia on paper towels and serve immediately with sweet and sour sauce or chili sauce (bottled from the store is fine).
Notes
Watch the cooking video on this page for step-by-step guide.
Recipe Contributor: Marvin at Burnt Lumpia.
You can also add finely minced raw shrimp to the pork mixture if you'd like. Also, instead of ground pork, you can use ground beef or ground turkey.
You can use Chinese or Vietnamese spring roll wrappers (for deep-frying) if you can't find lumpia wrappers.
Course: Filipino Recipes
Cuisine: Filipino
Keywords: Lumpia
Nutrition
Nutrition Facts
Lumpia (Filipino Spring Rolls)
Amount Per Serving (1 roll)
Calories 65Calories from Fat 36
% Daily Value*
Fat 4g6%
Saturated Fat 2g13%
Cholesterol 20mg7%
Sodium 83mg4%
Carbohydrates 6g2%
Fiber 1g4%
Sugar 1g1%
Protein 4g8%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated, using Spoonacular, for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.
