The ultimate crispy air fryer egg rolls recipe! Crispy and crunchy egg rolls filled with a hearty meat and veggie filling. This Asian-inspired appetizer is sure to become a favorite.
Check out our other delicious Asian-inspired recipes, like our Beef Lo Mein recipe.
AIR FRYER EGG ROLLS
This classic Chinese appetizer is easier to make than you think! Skip the deep frying and make these air fryer egg rolls, they taste just as good. These egg rolls are loaded with a hearty pork and veggies filling. Pair with sweet chili dipping sauce, these are going to be gone in seconds.
| Egg Roll vs Spring Roll- There is a large difference between an egg roll and a spring roll, and that is the wrapper and filling. An egg roll is made with a thicker wrapper, while spring rolls use a rice paper wrapper. The filling for an egg roll is typically made up of sauteed meat and veggies, while spring rolls usually contain raw veggies. |
WHAT YOU NEED-
- Wrappers– You want to be sure to use egg roll wrappers or egg roll wraps, you can find these at almost any local grocery store.
- Pork– For this recipe we use ground pork to get juicy pork egg rolls. You can totally substitute the pork for ground chicken or turkey.
- Soy Sauce– Adding soy sauce to the filling gives you added flavor and helps make the filling juicy! You can use low-sodium soy sauce or even liquid aminos for a healthier alternative.
- Water– When adding a couple tablespoons of water to the filling, help give you a juicy filling!
- Garlic– You cannot forget freshly minced garlic for additional flavor. You can use either fresh garlic, canned minced garlic or even garlic powder.
- Flavor– To season ground pork filling, we use salt, pepper, and paprika! You can use any other of your go-to seasonings!
- Coleslaw Mix– This recipe calls for the classic coleslaw mix with cabbage and shredded carrots. You can also use the tri-color coleslaw mix that has the purple cabbage.
HOW TO MAKE EGG ROLLS IN AIR FRYER
With just a few steps of prepping, you can have a bunch of egg rolls ready to cook!
- In a bowl, combine the ingredients for the pork filling.
- Sauté the ground pork until cooked through, breaking it apart as it cooks.
- Once the pork is cooked through, add garlic and cook until fragrant.
- Add the coleslaw mix and cook until the veggies are slightly tender. Remove from heat.
- Assemble the egg rolls, dividing the filling evenly, scooping about 1-2 Tbsp of filling on each wrapper.
- Spray the air fryer basket with baking spray and add the egg rolls to the basket. Do NOT overcrowd. Lightly spray the egg rolls with spray.
- Air fry until golden and crispy, flipping halfway to ensure all around crisp.
- Remove and serve with desired sides.
| SERVING IDEAS– The best serving sauce for classic egg rolls is sweet chili sauce! You can also try the egg rolls with sweet and sour sauce, orange sauce, soy sauce or even hoisin sauce. |
HOW TO ASSEMBLE HOMEMADE EGG ROLLS
You want to make sure that you are wrapping the egg rolls properly to avoid the filling from oozing out or wrapper ripping. The assembly process is just like creating an envelope. TIP: Adding water is basically like glue, so you want to make sure you brush water along all the edges and areas to fully seal the egg roll.
- Lay an egg roll wrapper on a flat surface, lay it down diamond shape.
- Add the filling in the center, but more toward the bottom of the wrapper.
- Fold the bottom part of the diamond corner (the one closest to you) over the filling.
- Then fold in the left and right side of the wrapper towards the middle tightly. Dip your fingers in water and run them along the edges to “glue” the folds together.
- Run water along the edges of the remaining “flap”, then tightly begin to roll until completely sealed.
- Repeat until all the filling is gone.
| What if my egg roll wrapper rips? No worries, you can just do some patching to seal the rip! If the rip is small with wet fingers, pinch to tear to seal. If the rip is large, take a little piece of extra wrapper and brush it with water and then “patch” the rip. |
EGG ROLL VARIATIONS
There are so many different variations of the classic egg roll! Here are some different filling ideas:
- Hearty– Add your choice of ground meat, sauteed mushrooms, cabbage and carrots for your filling!
- Veggie– Skip the meat and make the egg rolls just plain veggie, loaded them with cabbage, carrots, mushrooms, and green onion.
- Vegetarian– Substitute the meat for a couple pieces of tofu for a vegetarian filling.
FREEZING EGG ROLLS-
These egg rolls are AMAZING to make ahead and to meal prep! You can take a day and make a variety of egg rolls and freeze for the future!
UNCOOKED EGG ROLLS-
- Line a baking sheet (or whatever will fit into your freezer) with parchment paper and add the assembled uncooked egg rolls to the lined sheet. Make sure they are not touching.
- Cover the tray with plastic wrap to avoid them from drying out.
- Freeze for about an hour or until they have hardened. Then transfer to a freezer safe bag and freeze for up to 4 months.
- To cook– When ready to enjoy, take out the desired amount of egg rolls and deep fry on medium until golden and crispy. Air fry the frozen egg rolls at 380°F for about 10-12 minutes, or until egg rolls are fully cooked through.
COOKED EGG ROLLS-
- Cooked egg rolls must be fully cooled before transferring to the fridge or freezer!
- Once cooled, add the egg rolls to a freezer safe bag and freeze for up to 3-4 months. Double bag them if you are worried of freezer burn.
- To reheat– Throw the desired amount of egg rolls into the oven, microwave or air fryer to reheat.
QUESTIONS YOU MIGHT HAVE-
No! You can always just shred your own cabbage and carrots.
You can make these egg rolls with ground pork, ground chicken, ground turkey or even tofu!
Yes! These are great to make ahead and freeze (see above). You can make the filling 2 days ahead of time, and then assemble and cook when ready.
Store your leftover egg rolls in the fridge, once completely cooled, for up to 4-5 days! To reheat, just toss in the microwave, oven or air fryer!
While you are working, cover the assembled ones with a damp paper towel to keep the wrappers from drying out.
Crispy Air Fryer Egg Rolls
Ingredients
- egg roll wrappers
Pork Filling-
- 1 lb ground pork
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp ground black pepper
- ½ tsp paprika
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 2 Tbsp green onion finely chopped
- 1 Tbsp soy sauce
- 2 Tbsp water
- 4 cups coleslaw
Instructions
Prepare Filling-
- In a bowl, mix together the ground pork, salt, pepper, paprika, minced garlic cloves, chopped green onion, soy sauce, and water.
- In a skillet, saute the pork mixture on medium high heat until browned about 5-6 minutes. Breaking apart as it cooked to get fine chunks.
- Add the coleslaw mix and cook until the veggies are slightly tender, about 3-4 minutes. Remove the skillet from heat.
Assemble Egg Rolls-
- Lay an egg roll wrapper on a flat surface, laying it down in diamond shape.
- Add about 1-2 tablespoons of the pork filling to the center, but more toward the bottom of the wrapper.
- Fold the bottom corner (the one closest to you) over the filling.
- Then fold in both side corners towards the filling tightly. Dip your fingers in water and run along the edges to seal the folds in place. At this point, it should look like an open envelope.
- Run water along the last open corner, then tightly roll until full wrapped and sealed, add more water if you need.
- Repeat until all the filling is gone, this recipe makes about 14-15 egg rolls.
Air Fry Egg Rolls-
- Spray the air fryer basket with baking spray and add the egg rolls to the basket. Do NOT overcrowd. Lightly spray the egg rolls with baking or oil spray.
- Air fry at 400°F for 8-10 minutes or until golden and crispy, flipping halfway to ensure all around crisp.
- Remove the egg rolls from the air fryer basket and serve with desired sides.
Leave a Reply