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Sparkle (4)
These popular appetizers become dinner in our home when placed on a plate next to a pile of white or fried rice, or simple ramen noodles—making a meal that really satisfies while sitting in front of a movie or in the company of a good book; and because no diversion at all is needed when in the company of a good friend, quantities here are for two. I myself first discovered these yummy delights while living in a college dormitory, loosing weight rapidly in light of the fact that—having found fish bones in my lasagna—I could no longer walk into the cafeteria. However, the proprietors of the Chinese restaurant down the street had long ago figured out that they could show up on campus at midnight and easily unload the day’s leftovers, where ravenous hordes of young people like myself were anxiously waiting to hand their precious pocket change over to the eggroll man….
Ah, memories!
Now I’m also going to pass along my recipe for the basic sweet-and-sour sauce I use for dippin' and in things like sweet and sour pork, but have to admit that when it comes to eggrolls, I often buy something more exotic whenever I can afford to—violating my intention to use only ingredients still readily available outside the average American hive in my cookbook. However, I love this meal, so I decided to put it in there anyway, and if you can’t find eggroll wrappers and plum sauce—sometimes also known as duck sauce—I apologize. I also buy hot mustard when in the mood, but in a pinch, one can make a simple version by mixing powdered mustard with water to desired consistency.
And in case you’re wondering why I’m not telling you how to make your own eggroll wrappers—since I appear to be a person obsessed with cooking everything from scratch—it’s because—like bagels, pita bread, and puff paste—having devoted countless hours to the art of dirt-cheap cookery while minding my sweet children, I finally conceded—deciding that for the truly delicate results I’d come to crave out there in the culinary world, I’d sadly be forced to leave these things to those with more sophisticated equipment. No, in my opinion you’ll be better off buying those wrappers, and you’ll find that there will be more than enough in one package for this recipe, which is particularly good news for the novice, since you can puncture several of them while learning how to roll without panic or guilt. Extras can be then frozen, and the casualties fried up in pieces as garnish for tomorrow’s soup.
And if you’ve never made eggrolls, be aware that success primarily depends upon how good you are with a knife, since the celery in particular needs to be shredded as thinly as possible. It’s worth taking the time to learn to do it if you’re new to kitchen cut-ups, because your food processor can’t really do it for you. A skilled oriental chef can slice a mushroom no bigger than a marble into seventy-two slices—using a meat cleaver the size of a fire-axe, while standing on his head—and with only several years of practice you can surely do the same, so what’re you worried about?
However, don’t let me make you overly concerned. As long as everything’s reasonably thin, your filling will surely come together enough to be rolled up. The point of getting everything so thin is to eliminate lumps that might poke a hole in the wrapper, while making a more compact filling that helps the finished product hold together when you bite into it.
Also pictured below is a little bowl of Chicken Fried Rice on the side, while plain rice is also swell in its own way, and so your inner chef must now kick in.
Shrimp Eggrolls
- 1 pound shrimp, shelled and chopped into ¼-inch pieces
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons sherry
- 3 cups celery, shredded very thin, and then cut into 2-inch pieces
- 1 cup mushrooms, thinly sliced
- 1 pound bean sprouts
- 6 tablespoons peanut, canola, or vegetable oil
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- pre-packaged eggroll wrappers
- more oil for frying, the amount depending upon your pan
Buy small shrimp for this because not only are they less expensive, they’re actually more suited to the recipe. Also, it’s fine if the bean sprouts come from a can, in which case you won’t need to scald them, just be sure to drain them dry.
Helpful tip for beginners: this careful elimination of excess moisture is another key to success in any kitchen endeavor—and perhaps
