Vietnamese Egg Roll Recipe (Cha Gio)

Just like the vegetarian eggroll recipe, the meat-filled version is perfect as an appetizer when you have a big party. It’s also a great way to get the little ones acquainted with cooking. It’s one of my earliest memories of being in the kitchen.

Preparation is fairly simple and will resemble an assembly line. The filling is essentially mixed together raw and then it’s on to assembling, folding and frying.

My littlest sister-in-law turned five this week and we’re going to have a birthday party this coming weekend. We’re making the mini variety for this occasion because it’s a better size for the kids and all around works great as an appetizer. We’ll be making between 100 and 200 eggrolls and I guarantee that there won’t be any leftovers.

1. Info for Vietnamese Egg Roll Recipe (Cha Gio)

• Cook Time: 45 min
• Total Time: 1 hr 20 min
• Servings: 10
• Calories: 374 kcal

2. Ingredients for Vietnamese Egg Roll Recipe (Cha Gio)

• 1-1/2 pounds ground chicken (see tips)
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon black peppercorns, freshly ground
• 1 teaspoon mushroom powder
• 1 tablespoon full-fat Greek yogurt
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, thinly sliced
• 1/3 cup dried black fungus mushrooms
• 1/4 cup mung beans
• 2 teaspoons canola oil
• 1 clove garlic, finely minced
• 3 shallots, finely minced
• 1 leek (white part only), finely chopped
• 1 yellow onion, finely diced
• 1 carrot
• 1 (2-oz) package dried rice vermicelli noodle
• 1 6-oz can lump crab meat (optional)
• 3 tablespoons fresh cilantro, finely chopped
• 4 packages eggroll wrappers, frozen
• 1 cup peanut oil, as needed

3. Directions:

1. In a saucepan, heat the canola oil. Add the garlic and two finely minced shallots. Cook until slightly golden. Transfer to a bowl (don’t drain). Let cool. Place the ground chicken in a large bowl. Add the yogurt. Mix well. Add the golden garlic and shallot with oil, raw shallot, ginger, leek and onion. Season with salt and pepper. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. Shred the whole carrot. If you use the Messermeister tool (see tips), you’ll get long threads of carrot pieces. Cut into about 2-inch pieces. Set aside. Place the whole package of dried rice vermicelli noodles in a bowl. Don’t forget to cut the little threads and discard them! Soak them in cold water for 20 minutes and drain. Chop into 1 inch threads. Set aside.