• 1 package spring roll pastry (thinner and smaller than regular egg roll wrappers)
  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 1 lb. ground pork
  • 1 onion, minced
  • 1 cup minced carrot
  • 1 can water chestnuts, diced
  • 1/4 cup soy sauce

Lumpia is a Filipino style egg roll my husband and I grew up enjoying at our friend Rex’s house. Rex’s mom, Gloria, (who we still call her Mrs. Gallamoza) is a such delightful woman. Her egg rolls were about the best in the city. Mike and I recently talked about asking for her recipe. Rex, her son, actually introduced my hubby to me. Mike and Rex went to high school together and then became roommates while studying electrical engineering. Over the telephone, Rachel, Gloria’s daughter, told me of how her mom and aunt make lumpia. This was my first attempt to recreate the childhood favorites we enjoyed as kids. Everyone in our family loved these and although Mrs. Gallamoza lives many miles away, we felt as though she was here with us in spirit. Thanks to Rachel and her mom for sharing their family’s recipe!

While some lumpia recipes use an uncooked filling, the Gallamoza’s cook their filling, allow it to cool and then fill their wrappers. I liked this idea, because I knew that cooking the vegetables and then the pork would add so much and whatever Mrs. Gallamoza does was what I planned to do- if it ain’t broke — don’t fix it!

Prepare your spring roll filling

In a wok or skillet (I used a cast iron pan because I was using my wok for Garlic Fried Rice) saute carrots and onions until tender. Add pork, water chestnuts and soy sauce. Cook until pork is completely cooked. Break up with a wooden spoon. Mixture should be pretty fine. Allow mixture to cool completely before filling spring rolls.

Spring rolls are great because you can buy them on sale and freeze them. Simply leave out on the counter to thaw. This is what they look like:

The easiest way to separate the very thin spring rolls is to pull apart several and then work on separating each one individually.  Don’t be afraid to pull.

Assembling your spring rolls

Turn the spring roll so it looks like a diamond. Add two tablespoons of pork and vegetable mixture to the middle, fold over once tightly, turn both sides in and using your fingers add a bit of water to the end and roll up tightly.

Fill all of your spring rolls. This recipe made so many egg rolls. Even after using all of the filling we still spring roll wrappers left over.

In a small skillet (I don’t like to fry up too many spring rolls at once) add oil just about 1 inch deep. Fry about five spring rolls at a time. Place on a plate lined with paper bags or paper towels. Continue frying up the rest of your spring rolls and then enjoy! This is what lumpia looks like!

We enjoyed these delicious spring rolls with Sinangag or garlic fried rice and Filipino barbecue chicken!

From our hearts to yours,

Elise and family