Biscuit rolls are a popular snack in Asian cuisine, with variations such as spring rolls and egg rolls. The dough is traditionally made from scratch and filled with vegetables, meat, or seafood before being deep-fried. Spring rolls are lighter and crunchier, while egg rolls are thicker and heartier. The fillings can range from shredded cabbage to cooked meat and vegetables.
A biscuit roll is a snack that is often found in Asian cuisine and can come in different versions, such as the light spring roll and the slightly stronger egg roll. Several incarnations of the crunchy cookie roll date back centuries, particularly in traditional Chinese culture. The basic techniques for making these types of cookie rolls involve filling a narrow cylinder of dough with a variety of vegetables and chopped meat or seafood before dipping into a deep fryer. The dough for any type of cookie roll is traditionally made from scratch according to recipes that have sometimes been passed down through several generations of family.
Although a spring roll and an egg roll are often classified in the same cookie crunch category, their recipes have some key differences. The dough for a spring roll doesn’t usually contain egg, making it less filling and often more crunchy. The origins of spring rolls can be traced back to traditional Chinese New Year celebrations, when families would serve these light rolls together with tea to visit friends. The days immediately following New Year’s Eve are considered the beginning of spring, particularly in Cantonese culture, and the name of the spring scroll is therefore attributed to this time of each year. Homemade spring roll dough is typically made from a simple mixture of flour, water, and sometimes a pinch of salt to taste.
An egg roll is another part of the biscuit roll family that can be found frequently in Chinese cooking. It is generally considered a staple for traditional dim sum servings, the name of which translates to a Cantonese term for various servings of small appetizers eaten as an alternative to larger entrees. Many Chinese restaurants feature a range of egg roll options in their dim sum menu options. Typical recipe ingredients for from-scratch egg dough include a beaten egg or two, all-purpose flour, water, and cornstarch. The thickness of the egg roll dough depends largely on the amount of cornstarch the cook uses.
The filling used for these types of Asian biscuit rolls can range from shredded cabbage to finely shredded crab, chicken or duck. Some vegetarian spring roll recipes call for fresh leaves of lettuce and other vegetables to be wrapped in thin spring roll sheets. These are generally not fried and are instead eaten as an alternative to salad. The tenderest spring rolls and egg rolls filled with cooked meat and vegetables are often considered best eaten right after they’re taken out of the fryer.
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