• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • About
    • About Me
    • Mission and Values
  • Privacy Policy
    • Disclaimer
    • Copyright
  • Contact
  • Roti n Rice
  • Nav Social Menu

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube
Roti n Rice

Roti n Rice

Food to gladden the heart

  • Video Recipes
  • Web Stories
  • Recipe Index
    • Cuisine
      • Asian
      • Southeast Asian
      • Western
      • Fusion
      • Mediterranean
      • Other Cuisines
    • Holiday
      • Chinese New Year
      • Valentine’s Day
      • St Patrick’s Day
      • Easter
      • Thanksgiving
      • Christmas
    • Main Ingredient
      • Beef
      • Poultry
      • Pork
      • Seafood
      • Other Meats
      • Rehash
      • Beans & Lentils
      • Rice & Grain
      • Noodles
      • Egg & Tofu
      • Fruit
      • Vegetables
  • Tutorials
  • Lifestyle
    • Travel
    • Reviews
    • Roundups
    • Others
  • Work With Us
  • Vegetarian Fried Noodles

    Ever so often we would have a vegetarian meal as it cleanses the palate and…

  • This Kimchi Fried Rice is a delicious way to use up over-ripe kimchi and day old rice. Top with a fried egg for a tasty and satisfying meal. | RotiNRice.com
    Kimchi Fried Rice

    This Kimchi Fried Rice is a delicious way to use up over-ripe kimchi and day…

  • Spring Greens Ambrosia Salad

    Enjoy this light and tangy Spring Greens Ambrosia Salad with clementine and coconut flakes anytime.…

  • Special Tri-Filling Spring Rolls wrapped with egg omelet, fish sticks, and stir fry jicama. Delicious served with sweet chili sauce and mustard. | RotiNRice.com
    Special Tri-Filling Spring Rolls

    Special Tri-Filling Spring Rolls wrapped with egg omelet, fish sticks, and stir fry jicama. Delicious…

  • These tasty Vietnamese Style Spring Rolls are perfect for lunch in the summer months. They also work beautifully as appetizers any time of the year. | Food to gladden the heart at RotiNRice.com
    Vietnamese Style Spring Rolls

    These tasty Vietnamese Style Spring Rolls are perfect for lunch in the summer months. They…

Home / Courses / Appetizer & Snack / Fried Popiah (Spring Rolls)

Fried Popiah (Spring Rolls)

By: 👩‍🦳 Linda · Published: 🖨 December 18, 2021 · Updated: 💻December 18, 2021 · 🗨 1 Comment

Recipe ▼

Fried Popiah (Spring Rolls) filled with jicama, carrots, and cabbage. Tips and instructions on how to make them light, airy, and crispy.

Golden delicious Fried Popiah (Spring Rolls).

There are many versions of Spring Rolls out there but the ones I grew up with are light, airy, and crispy. They are made with fresh paper-like wrappers filled with crunchy vegetables. Commonly known as Popiah (jūn-piá or spring rolls) in Malaysia, they come either non-fried or fried. The non-fried version is larger and has more ingredients in the filling.

A Southern Chinese Favorite

Spring Rolls are a southern Chinese favorite. The name “Chun Piah” in Hokkien (or Fujianese) means spring cake where “Chun” means spring and “Piah” means cake, cookie, or biscuit. In Malaysia, we call these spring rolls, Popiah where the “Po” or “Pok” in Hokkien (or Fujianese) means thin, referring to the paper-thin wrapper. We never call them egg rolls. I am not sure how the term egg roll came about and was totally surprised when I encountered it when I first moved here, thinking it was a totally different dish altogether. The wrapper has no eggs in it, nor is there any egg in the original filling.

Appetizer or Snack

While the non-fried version is usually eaten as an appetizer, the fried version is more popular as a snack. In Malaysia, both versions are often sold by street vendors throughout the day or at the pasar malam (night markets).

Fried Popiah (Spring Rolls) served with sweet chili sauce.

Fried Popiah (Spring Rolls)

Fried Popiah (Spring Rolls) are about 4 inches in length and an inch in diameter. The filling is very similar to that of Jiu Hu Char or Warm Jicama Salad, which is a combination of crunchy vegetables like jicama (bang kuang), carrots, cabbage, and a little meat. The meat can be either minced pork, chicken, or shrimp.

Other ingredients include diced tofu, mushrooms, and green beans. My version comes with the addition of glass vermicelli (mung bean threads) which helps to absorb moisture from the vegetables, thus keeping the filling nice and dry. I also like to drain the cooked filling in a metal colander to remove as much of the sauce as possible. Soggy filling is not a good thing in Fried Popiah.

Fried Popiah (Spring Rolls) with jicama (bang kuang), carrots, cabbage, and ground pork.

Spring Roll Wrappers

To keep the rolls light and airy, do not pack or roll them too tightly. Use thin spring roll wrappers. They come in packs of 25 or 50 wrappers and you can find them in the frozen section of most Asian markets. Thaw the wrappers on the counter 30 minutes before using.

Similar Products Used in Making These Fried Popiah (Spring Rolls)

This post contains affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy here.

Adjustable Mandoline Slicer – 5 Blades
T-fal Thermo-Spot Heat Indicator Anti-Warp Base Glass Lid Cookware, 12-Inch, Gray
5-Quart Stainless Steel Colander
Skimmer 6″ diameter

Golden delicious Fried Popiah (Spring Rolls).
5 from 1 vote

Fried Popiah (Spring Rolls)

Fried Popiah (Spring Rolls) filled with jicama, carrots, and cabbage. Tips and instructions on how to make them light, airy, and crispy.
(Makes 25 rolls)
Author : Linda Ooi
Course : Snack
Cuisine : Chinese
Keyword : egg rolls, fried popiah, popiah, spring rolls
Print Recipe Pin Recipe Rate this Recipe
Prep Time 1 hr
Cook Time 15 mins
Total Time 1 hr 15 mins
Servings : 12
Calories : 260kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 2 bundles glass vermicelli (mung bean threads)
  • 1 small jicama (about 1 lb/450g)
  • 1 large carrot
  • 8 oz ground pork (225g) + 1 tbsp soy sauce + ¼ tsp ground pepper
  • 2 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 1 onion (peeled and thinly sliced)
  • 2 cloves garlic (minced)
  • ½ head cabbage (finely sliced) (about 1 lb/450g)
  • 1 tsp salt
  • ¼ tsp ground pepper
  • 3 green onions (finely sliced)
  • 1 packet spring roll wrappers (25 pieces)
  • Vegetable oil for deep frying
  • Sweet chili sauce for serving

Instructions
 

  • Soak glass vermicelli in warm water for 20 minutes to soften. Drain.
  • Peel jicama and grate into fine strips using a box grater. Do the same for carrots.
  • Combine ground pork, soy sauce, and ground pepper in a bowl. Mix well.
  • In a wok or large pan, heat vegetable oil. Add seasoned ground pork. Cook for 3 minutes. Add onion and garlic. Cook for another 2 minutes.
  • Add grated jicama, carrots, and cabbage. Stir to get everything well mixed.
  • Add salt and pepper and continue to cook for about 5 minutes. Turn off stove and stir in sliced green onions.
  • Place a metal colander on a shallow bowl. Transfer cooked filling to metal colander to drain off excess sauce. Allow filling to cool.
  • Place a sheet of spring roll wrapper on a clean work surface with one of the pointed ends towards you. Place a little glass vermicelli and filling on the wrapper.
  • Fold the pointed end over the filling.
  • Then fold in both the right and left sides of the wrapper.
  • Moisten the remaining edges of the wrapper with a little water. Roll and seal.
  • Repeat with remaining wrappers and filling.
  • In a medium sized sauce pan, heat about 1 inch deep oil. Gently lower spring rolls into the oil and fry until golden brown. This will take only 1 to 2 minutes. Remove and drain on a metal strainer.
  • Serve immediately with sweet chili sauce.

Nutrition

Calories: 260kcal
Tried this recipe?Mention @RotiNRice or tag #RotiNRice

Freshly made Fried Popiah (Spring Rolls) are delicious with sweet chili sauce. Be sure to make enough for everyone as they do not last long at the table.

Popiah that is not fried can be kept frozen in ziplog bags. Do not thaw. Fry them directly from the freezer when needed.

Light, airy, and crispy Fried Popiah (Spring Rolls).

NOTE: The original publication of this post was on May 22nd, 2014. This republication comes with changes to the writeup but the recipe remains the same.

4.0K shares

Categories: 🗂 Appetizer & Snack, Asian Tags: 📋 cabbage, Chinese, jicama

Roti n Rice's Amazon Page Roti n Rice is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.
Previous Post: « Muah Chee (Fujianese Mochi)
Next Post: Shanghai Style Pancakes and Peanut Cream »

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Comments

  1. Ramona says

    May 26, 2014 at 10:28 am

    5 stars
    I would love to eat these…. they are some beautiful and delicious looking. 🙂

    Reply

Primary Sidebar


My grace is sufficient for thee…
2 Corinthians 12:9

Hi, I’m Linda! I make quick, easy meals, and spin on classics and old favorites with focus on Malaysian, Chinese, and American cuisines. Read more →

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • YouTube
Roti n Rice

Footer

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • YouTube

My grace is sufficient for thee…

2 Corinthians 12:9

  • Privacy Policy
  • Disclaimer
  • Copyright

© 2010–2023 · Roti n Rice · All Rights Reserved