Easy Filipino Lumpia Recipe

Name: Easy Filipino Lumpia Recipe
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 45 min
Ingredients: 1 lb. ground pork, beef, or chicken ((or a combo)); 1 stalk celery ((minced)); 4 oz sliced water chestnuts ((julienned)); 1 small white onion ((minced)); 3 scallions ((minced)); 4 cloves garlic ((minced)); 3 cups coleslaw mix; 1 tsp salt; 1 tsp black pepper; 1 tbsp soy sauce; 1 tbsp Sriracha hot chili sauce; 2 packages lumpia or egg roll wrappers ((enough to yield approx. 40-45 Lumpia)); 1 medium egg ((for eggwash)); 1 cup oil ((for frying))

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Lumpia are light and crispy, with juicy ground meat and vegetable filling. Also called Filipino egg rolls, lumpia is a lot easier to prepare than you would think! Serve this Filipino lumpia recipe with oil and vinegar coleslaw, easy fried rice, and spicy bibimbap sauce.

It's true, I'm not Filipino, but I do love Filipino food and have been known to make a mean pancit, pork & Chicken adobo, and of course, lumpia.

I first fell in love with Filipino egg rolls while spending time in the Philippines when I was in the Navy.

I got reintroduced to lumpia years later when a sweet Filipino nurse brought them to work. She made the BEST lumpia I've ever had! I still have the recipe she jotted down for me back in the early '90s.

As you can see from the picture below, she didn't give me exact measurements. I use her recipe as a guide and have developed my own recipe over the years.

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🧐 Why This Recipe Works
🛒 What You Need For This Recipe
🔖 Recipe Ingredients And Substitutions
🥟 How to Make Filipino Lumpia
🤷🏻‍♀️ Recipe FAQs
👩🏼‍🍳 Pro Tips
Related Recipes
📖 Recipe
💬 Comments

🧐 Why This Recipe Works

This Filipino lumpia recipe is a crowd-pleaser. It is always the first to disappear at any potluck or party.
Besides being delicious, lumpia can be assembled up to a day in advance and fried as needed.
This Filipino lumpia recipe is so versatile! The lumpia can also be portioned out and frozen to enjoy at a later date.

🛒 What You Need For This Recipe

🔖 Recipe Ingredients And Substitutions

Wrappers: Lumpia wrappers can be hard to find unless you go to an Asian market. Luckily, you can use egg roll/spring roll wrappers as an alternative.
Meat: Choose from ground beef, pork, chicken, or a combination of two or three of them. You can also add shrimp if you wish!
Vegetables: For the filling, you'll need green cabbage and carrots, or a coleslaw mix. You'll also need diced celery, green onions, white or yellow onions, garlic, and canned water chestnuts, which add a nice crunch.
Spices: I usually just add salt and black pepper. The heat will come from the Sriracha sauce added to the filling and the dipping sauce that you will serve the lumpia with.
Dipping Sauce: Lumpia is traditionally served with a sweet and spicy chili sauce. If I don't have any on hand, I will make bibimbap sauce instead.
Vegetable Oil: You will also need oil to fry the lumpia in.

🥟 How to Make Filipino Lumpia

Step 1: Begin by browning pork, beef, or chicken in a large skillet or a wok.

Step 2: Add celery, chestnuts, onions, and scallions and saute for a few minutes. Next, add the garlic, coleslaw mix, salt, pepper, soy sauce, and Sriracha. Cook for a few more minutes. Cool filling.

Step 3: Before rolling the lumpia, whisk an egg with 1 tablespoon of water to make a thin eggwash. The eggwash acts as a glue to keep the lumpia wrappers from opening while being fried.

How to Roll Lumpia (Filipino Egg Rolls)

There are a few different ways to roll lumpia. For this recipe, we will be cooking the filling first and rolling the lumpia similar to rolling Assyrian egg rolls.

Step 1: Place the wrapper with one of the corners facing up. Dab eggwash on all four corners of the wrapper.

Step 2: Add up to two tablespoons of filling towards the bottom of the wrapper and form into a strip. Roll up the bottom corner of the wrapper over the filling then fold in the sides.

Step 3: Finish by rolling tightly all the way up until the lumpia is sealed. Place seam-side down onto a platter and continue until you use up all the wrappers and filling.

Pro Tip: Make sure to keep the wrappers covered either with a dish towel or plastic wrap to keep it from drying out!

Here is another way to roll lumpia. Cut the wrapper in half so that you have two triangle-shaped wrappers.

Shape the uncooked filling into a thin cigar shape and place it on the bottom, long edge of the wrapper. Fold in both sides over the filling, then roll up to seal.

kids making lumpia — Even kids can make lumpia! These kids learned how to make lumpia in a weekly cooking class I used to teach at my church. Notice I still use the same dollar store platter; it's the perfect size for lumpia.

How to Fry Lumpia

Step 1: Heat oil in a skillet until it reaches 375 degrees F. Using tongs, carefully add 3 to 4 lumpia into the hot oil. Roll the lumpia as necessary so that all the sides are golden brown. This should only take a few minutes.

Pro Tip: If you don't have a digital thermometer, you can tell that the oil is ready if it begins to bubble as soon as the lumpia is placed into the hot oil. If the oil does not bubble right away, keep heating it then try again.

Step 2: Drain fried lumpia on paper towels and continue until all the lumpia is fried. Serve immediately, while still hot with your favorite dipping sauce.

eggrolls, salad, and sauce for dipping on blue plate

🤷🏻‍♀️ Recipe FAQs

What to Serve with Filipino Lumpia

I recommend serving the Lumpia with a sweet chili sauce, like Mae Ploy. You can purchase the sauce at any grocery store, or even on Amazon.

Even better, if you like a little spice, make your own sauce using one of the many great recipes online. This Sweet and Spicy Chili Sauce recipe happens to be my favorite.

What are lumpia wrappers made of?

Lumpia wrappers are made with flour, water, and salt. Some recipes call for rice flour and cornstarch, while others call for all-purpose flour.

Unlike egg roll wrappers, eggs are not used in the recipe. Lumpia wrappers are almost see-through and much thinner than egg roll wrappers.

Another visible difference is that lumpia wrappers don't get "bubbly" when fried like egg roll wrappers do. They have a much smoother texture.

Unfortunately, lumpia wrappers are not as readily available as egg roll wrappers. For this reason, I use egg roll wrappers when I'm craving lumpia but don't feel like going out of my way to purchase lumpia wrappers, or making my own.

However, if you want to tackle making your own lumpia wrappers, check out this Homemade Lumpia wrapper video.

Can You Freeze Lumpia?

Lumpia can be frozen either before or after frying. If you plan on freezing unfried lumpia, make sure to first place them on a platter or large tray in the freezer until they are almost frozen.

You can then store them in a large freezer Ziploc bag. This will ensure that the lumpia does not stick together.

Frying Frozen Lumpia
You do not need to defrost frozen lumpia prior to frying them. Just follow the same frying instructions listed in the recipe, with the exception of adding a few additional minutes to the frying time.

Reheating Cooked and Frozen Lumpia
If the lumpia are frozen after they are fried, you can microwave them, a few at a time, for approximately one to two minutes. The exact time will depend on the wattage of your microwave.

For a crispier texture, bake the fried and frozen lumpia for approximately ten minutes in a 350-degree F oven. Using a toaster oven is an even better option and requires less time. Lumpia can also be reheated in an air fryer.

👩🏼‍🍳 Pro Tips

Feel free to use a combination of chicken, pork, or beef in the filling.
Using coleslaw in the filling not only saves you time, but you can serve the leftover coleslaw on the side!
If you prefer, you can replace the coleslaw with a combination of julienned carrots and cabbage to equal 3 cups.
Instead of egg wash, you can use a slurry of cornstarch and water for sealing the lumpia.
Make sure the oil temperature reaches 375 degrees F. The oil should be hot enough to begin bubbling as soon as the Lumpia is added. Having the oil at the right temperature will keep the lumpia from absorbing more oil than necessary and becoming too greasy.

lumpia and sauce and salad on a blue plate — **Filipino Egg Rolls with Spicy Chili Sauce**

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