Egg roll

This article is about the Chinese dish. For the traditional Easter activity, see egg rolling. For the Japanese dish, see tamagoyaki.

An egg roll is an appetizer and dinner, a variant of spring roll, which was originally eaten in East Asia but has spread throughout the world as a staple of Asian cuisine. Many Asian countries are claimed to have originated the dish, and variants of the egg roll exist in multiple Asian cuisines. Although Southern China is claimed to be a source, as it stems from features of Cantonese cuisine, egg rolls are actually not eaten there as a traditional dish. Egg rolls with fillings are commonly served in Vietnamese cuisine.

Egg roll
An American-style egg roll, with a view of its interior
Chinese	蛋卷
Literal meaning	egg roll
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin dàn juǎn Yue: Cantonese Jyutping daan6 gyun2 Southern Min Hokkien POJ tàn-kòan

An egg roll is made by wrapping a combination of chopped vegetables (often mostly cabbage), meat, and sometimes noodles, in a sheet of dough, dipping the dough in egg or an egg wash, then deep frying it. It can be closed or open ended.

When compared with its cousin, the spring roll, the egg roll is generally larger, has a thicker, puffier skin, is crunchier, and has more filling. However, the terms "spring roll" and "egg roll" are often used somewhat interchangeably. The egg roll dough is wheat-based while the spring roll is sometimes rice-based.

In mainland Japan, many Chinese-speaking regions of Asia, and Chinese immigrant communities around the world, egg roll is predominantly referred to as the egg-based, flute-shaped pastry, with typically yellowish, flaky crust often eaten as a sweet snack or dessert commonly eaten by Asians. Some varieties are made with sesame seeds or other flavorings/toppings, such as chocolate, cream, or strawberry. The term may also be used to refer to another modern Asian breakfast cuisine that mixes the western omelet with thin egg roll wrappers.

In West Bengal, and especially Kolkata, "egg roll" refers to a fried egg wrapped inside a paratha flat-bread. After the paratha has been prepared, an egg is cracked on a pan and while the egg is still uncooked, the paratha is added. It is cooked until the egg is well done and is stuck to the paratha. After that, the contents are removed from the pan and sliced raw onions, sliced green chilis, a squeeze of fresh lemon juice and black salt is added. An optional choice is adding tomato ketchup at the end.

In Britain and Australia, "egg roll" also commonly refers to a fried egg in a bread roll (a breakfast item) or chopped, hard-boiled egg with mayonnaise in a bread roll (a party buffet item). The terms "pancake roll" or "spring roll" are often used by Chinese restaurants in the UK to describe what is called an "egg roll" at Chinese restaurants elsewhere. In France, a similar hors d'oeuvre is called a "nem".

A "Mexican egg roll" is an egg roll wrap filled with beans, cheese, and, optionally, meat, as well as various peppers and spices.^{[citation needed]} It is then deep-fried and served with sour cream or salsas, like the chimichanga. In Mexico the residents refer to it as a burrito or in some rare cases, a taquito.

In Indonesia, the egg roll is called Lumpia Semarang pronounced loom-pya semarang but is more popularly referred to as Lumpia. It is similar with the Spring Roll, but it contain egg. Same name also applies in Philippines under the Indonesian influence.

In the United States, several restaurant chains (such as Chili's) market a "Southwest Egg Roll", which is a Tex-Mex dish consisting of a deep-fried flour tortilla containing (among other ingredients) corn, black beans, spinach, chicken, monterey jack cheese, peppers, and other spices.

• Lumpia - Indonesian and Filipino egg rolls
• Kati roll - Indian egg rolls
• Kabyob - Hmong egg rolls
• Biscuit roll