Thursday, April 14, 2011

Can Egg Rolls be Healthy?


I love Chinese take-out food.  There is crab rangoon, teriyaki beef, pork fried rice, and above all else, there are egg rolls.  So delicious, but so, so bad for you.  Some of my best memories are when I was a child, before I discovered what calories were, guiltlessly indulging in greasy delight.  Unfortunately, since age 9 or so, I have not been able to enjoy this food without worrying what it was doing to my body.  So last month I set out to make a hot, comfort-food egg roll that is both low in fat and still delicious. I mostly succeeded; it is impossible that an egg roll completely non-fat, but this egg roll is a tasty alternative to its deep fried counterpart.
When you look at the ingredients of an egg roll, it is possible to suppose that is is relatively healthy, because most of the filling consists of vegetables.  Unfortunately, you would be wrong, because there are few things in life more fattening than the deep fried egg rolls pictured above.  Fortunately, however, with a few tweaks to the recipe, you can create something delicious that is both low fat and nutritious.  To make low fat egg rolls you will need

1 cup grated carrot
1 cup shredded cabbage
1/2 cup shredded raw sugar-snap pea-pods
1/2 lb cooked beef, cut up into small pieces
1 jalapeño, if you enjoy spicy food.
A dash of soy sauce
Olive oil for glazing
8 whole wheat egg roll wrappers

Poach the vegetables in 1-2 cups of boiling water for 3 minutes, then drain.  Toss in the beef and soy sauce until well mixed.  Then spoon mixture onto the egg roll wrappers before rolling up, and folding the ends over.  Place egg rolls on a pan and brush with olive oil.  Bake at 375 degrees until golden-brown and crispy.

No, this is not an authentic egg roll recipe, but it is low fat, and it is delicious.  Try substituting different kinds of meat and vegetables to suit your tastes.  \

Bon Appetit :)

1 comment:

  1. You are right,Egg rolls can be sooo sinfully delicious but can be bad for you. I will definitely try your recipe. Thanks for sharing.

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