Sweet and Savory Lumpia

There are few things that make me happier than lumpia!

Lumpia are a staple of Filipino gatherings. If you have a Filipino friend or family member, then you already know that Filipinos love to feed everyone. So what better way to start a meal than with hundreds of crispy rolls.

At Christmas, we make both the sweet and savory varieties. The savory lumpia are a combination of ground pork, shrimp, and veggies. The sweet lumpia (also known as Turon) are filled with banana, jack fruit (Lanka), and brown sugar. The savory are a great starter, while the sweet are a wonderful dessert, especially when topped with powdered sugar and served alongside vanilla ice cream.

The best part of this tradition is the time spent with family prepping and rolling hundreds of these beauties. Last weekend, I made another batch for a potluck and couldn’t help thinking of my mom and little sis.

Ingredients

• 2 packages of store-bought square Lumpia wrappers (45 in each pack)
• Eggwash (2 eggs whisked with 2 teaspoons of water)

Savory

• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, finely diced
• 1 lb. ground pork
• 1 lb. fresh shrimp, diced
• 1 cup chopped water chestnuts
• 1 cup grated carrots
• 1 cup grated potato
• 2 cups shredded green cabbage
• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• Freshly ground salt and pepper

To make the savory filling

1. Heat 1 tablespoon of canola oil in a large sauté pan (or wok) to medium high heat.
2. Add onion and cook for 2-3 minutes.
3. Add ground pork and sauté until cooked through (about 6-8 minutes). For this step, you don’t want to brown the pork because it is going to cook a little more when fried.
4. Add carrots, potato, water chestnuts and cook another 2-3 minutes.
5. Add cabbage, soy sauce, sesame oil, and stir to combine.
6. Add shrimp and cook for 3-4 minutes.
7. Add salt/pepper to taste.
8. Place the filling into a colander to drain any excess liquid and let cool.

Sweet

• 6 Bananas, halved and cut lengthwise (each banana is cut into 8 pieces total)
• 1 can jack fruit
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• Powdered sugar for topping (optional)

Ready to roll

Savory

1. Take a wrapper and place on a surface with one corner facing you (so that when you look down it looks like a diamond)
2. Using an ice cream scoop, place one scoop of filling near the bottom corner.
3. Using your hands, form the filling into a 3 inch log.
4. Take the bottom corner of the wrapper and roll up once, making sure the corner is tucked under the filling. Then, roll 1-2 more times so that the filling is in the center of the wrapper.
5. Fold in the right and left corners and brush with egg wash.
6. Brush the top corner with egg wash and roll until closed.

Sweet

1. Take a wrapper and place on a surface with one corner facing you (so that when you look down it looks like a diamond)
2. Place a piece of banana near the bottom corner. Place one piece of Lanka jack fruit on each side of the banana.
3. Top with brown sugar.
4. Follow the same instructions as above to roll.

Ready to fry

1. In a large Dutch oven, heat ~3 inches Canola oil to 350 degrees.
2. In small batches (so that you don’t crowd the pan), fry the lumpia with the seam side down first until golden brown.
3. Flip and fry the other side until golden brown.
4. Let cool for 5 minutes and serve! If you want to keep warm before serving, place on a sheet pan in a 200 degree oven. (Don’t cover when in the oven or you’ll create steam that will make the rolls soggy)

Frying tips:

• If you are using a pot with a handle, please tuck the handle away to keep everyone safe and avoid messy spills.
• Make sure to use a deep enough pot, meaning that you have at least 3 inches from the oil to the top of the pan.
• Use affordable oils (like vegetable or canola) to do your frying. You need a few cups to fry so this is not the time to use your very special extra extra virgin olive oils.