Turn Shrimp Egg Roll Into Chips and Dip
We love sorting out our food here at Skillet. This includes pulling the pigs out of their blankets and taking apart the cheese balls . In the spirit of deconstruction, I took apart the egg roll. It turns out that separating the filling from the shell is a great way to get the taste and texture of this appetizer without any rolling or deep frying skills. Have a takeaway menu. These tantalizing egg roll chips and sauce can be yours in just 15 minutes.
I have to make an embarrassing chef confession. I don’t always do staging before cooking at home. But I did today and you should too. Once the pan is hot, the ingredients are added one by one and the shrimp stuffing is ready in no time. Coarsely chop a few raw shrimp into small pieces the size of edamame or lima beans. Place chopped shrimp in a bowl of soy sauce to marinate for about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, brush both sides of two or three egg roll wrappers with vegetable oil. Cut each wrapper into 8 rectangles. I cut the middle lengthwise, and then across the width into four even strips. Lay them out in a single layer in a fryer set to 300°F on “air fry” mode. Let them cook for 5-8 minutes. Check periodically after the 5-minute mark if you like the color. These will be your chips.
Finely chop the celery stalk and prepare a mixture of shredded cabbage and carrots. I used a couple cups of a simple coleslaw mix. To make the “sauce”, add oil to a large skillet, wok, or shallow saucepan and place over high heat. Add the marinated shrimp and give the pan a quick shake to mix the shrimp. Add the celery, cabbage, and carrot mixture, then add the sesame oil, salt, sugar, and white pepper. Stir the ingredients quickly until the shrimp is cooked through and the vegetables are tender. Take it all off the heat and let it cool down a bit before serving.
Serve the shrimp and kale mixture in a bowl of chips and a small bowl of sweet chili sauce, or you can finally use those duck sauce packets you’ve been saving in the fridge. My perfect snack includes some chili sauce on a chip with a bunch of shrimp toppings. The filling is salty and savory, with a slight rising heat from the white pepper. Chips, however, are the real underdog hero. They get incredibly crispy in the fryer, which they can’t do when wrapped around vegetables, which release tons of steam during cooking.
This recipe uses shrimp, but you can use other chopped meats, tofu, or mushrooms instead. If you choose to use meat, cook it first to ensure it is done properly. Vegetables cook instantly and you don’t want to risk undercooking the meat. (For more chips and sauce, try deconstructed empanadas .)
Deconstructed Chips and Egg Roll Sauce
Ingredients:
- 8 raw large prawns, coarsely chopped
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
- 2 cups kale and carrot mix
- 1 celery stalk, finely chopped
- ¼ teaspoon sesame oil
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon sugar
- ⅛ teaspoon white pepper
- 2 or 3 egg roll wrappers
- Oil for brushing
- Sweet chili sauce (optional)
Marinate the chopped shrimp in a small bowl of soy sauce for about 10 minutes.
Brush both sides of the wrapper of each egg roll with a thin layer of vegetable oil. Cut the wrappers into chip-sized rectangles and fry them for 5-8 minutes at 300°F on the “air fry” setting.
Heat a teaspoon of vegetable oil in a large skillet, wok, or skillet over high heat. Add marinated shrimp. Give the pan a quick shake to toss the shrimp. Add cabbage-carrot mixture, celery, sesame oil, salt, sugar and white pepper. Shake and stir the ingredients until the shrimp is cooked through and the vegetables are tender, one to three minutes. Remove the mixture from heat and let it cool for a few minutes before serving. Serve the shrimp and cabbage in a bowl with sweet chili sauce and fried chips.