On the latest episode of Epicurious' 4 Levels series, Chef King Phojanakong prepares spring rolls with lumpia wrappers, a four-protein filling and sweet chili mango sauce from scratch.
Chef King combines lobster, tender blue crab meat, ground pork and shrimp for his filling ("an explosion in the mouth") and double fries his lumpia wrappers. Then his sweet and spicy sauce cuts through the richness of the fried spring roll.
His pro tips: Start with live seafood for the best product possible. The sweetest lobster meat comes from the knuckle and claw. And you can reduce waste by using the head for stock or a soup base. Plus, don't miss how to avoid greasy fried food.
Watch Chef King's demo in the video and get his complete recipe below.
Ingredients
- 1/2 pound spring roll wrappers (see recipe)
- 1 head garlic, roasted
- 1.5-2 pounds lobster (whole, live)
- 1 pound ground pork 80/20
- 1/2 pound crab meat, jumbo lump
- 1/2 pound shrimp (jumbo, U-10), diced
- 1/2 cup carrots, brunoise
- 1/2 cup onions, minced
- 1/2 cup scallions, sliced
- 4 ounces soy sauce
- 2 ounces fish sauce
- 1.5 ounces sesame oil
- 3 eggs
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- Soybean oil, for frying
- Sweet chili mango sauce (see recipe, for dipping
- Boston bibb lettuce
Directions
- Have spring roll wrappers ready to go.
- Roast head of garlic in 420 F oven for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and squeeze garlic from covering.
- Bring a pot of salted water to a boil, kill lobster, add to pot and cook for approximately 4-5 minutes. Remove lobster from pot, place in ice bath until cool, remove meat from shell and slice.
- Grind pork in meat grinder.
- Combine all ingredients reserving one egg (egg wash) to seal spring rolls.
- Heat pan and add soybean oil (med heat, pan fry).
- Cook tasting portion of mix to check seasoning. Adjust mix if necessary.
- Place 4 ounces of mix evenly at bottom half of wrapper and roll. Seal with egg.
- Heat pan to medium heat and add enough oil for shallow pan fry. Can be deep-fried as well.
- Cook lumpia until crispy and filling cooked through.
- Remove from oil and cut in half along the bias. Serve with the sweet chili mango sauce and lettuce.
Spring Roll Wrappers
Yields 4-6 servings
Ingredients
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup water
- 1/2 cup canola oil
Directions
- Add salt and flour to bowl and mix.
- Add water and stir to make batter.
- Strain batter to remove any lumps.
- Oil well heated non-stick pan, add batter and cook. Repeat.
Sweet Chili Mango Sauce
Yields 4-6 servings
Ingredients
- 1 mango, juiced
- 4-6 ounces water
- 1/2 cup rice vinegar
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 3 tablespoons fish sauce
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon red pepper flakes, dried
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 3 tablespoons water
Directions
- Separate mango from seed, scoop out flesh, dice, add to blender with water, blend, strain and set aside.
- Place all ingredients in a saucepot except for the cornstarch and water. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook for about 10 minutes or reduced by half.
- Make a slurry with the cornstarch and water and mix into the sauce to thicken.
- Pull off from heat and transfer to a serving bowl.
Study Asian cuisines with Chef King in Culinary Arts at ICE.
