Lumpia (Filipino Spring Rolls) | Two Plaid Aprons (2024)

These lumpia, or filipino spring rolls, are filled with ground pork, onion, and carrots and fried till perfectly golden brown and crispy on the outside. They are amazing with some chicken adobo and pancit, or bring a tray to your next gathering and watch it become the biggest hit! They are super delicious and easy to make. Plus, they freeze really well. So you can make and store them for later when you're craving some!

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What is lumpia?

Lumpia, or filipino spring rolls, are an adaptation of Chinese spring rolls called rùnbǐng (润饼), meaning soft pastry, or bópíjuǎn(薄皮卷), which translates to thin-skin roll. There are several variations of lumpia, from fresh to fried and sweet to savory.

This recipe focuses on the most popular and common lumpia, also known as lumpiang shanghai or lumpia shanghai. The filling is a basic mix of ground pork, onion, carrot, garlic, and seasonings.

Ingredient notes

Please scroll down to the recipe card for the ingredient quantities!

• Lumpia wrapper - You can find lumpia wrappers at most Asian markets in the freezer aisle, where dumpling wrappers and egg roll wrappers are found. If you can't find lumpia wrappers, spring roll wrappers (also called spring roll pastry) are a good substitute.

• Ground pork - Lumpia shanghai is usually made with ground pork, preferably 70 percent lean and 30 percent fat. But some family likes to make it with a mix of ground beef or shrimps.
• Yellow onion - A must! It adds so much flavor to the filling. If you prefer, you could add the same amount of green onions instead.
• Carrot - This is a common vegetable added to the lumpia filling, both for color and flavor, which also adds a hint of natural sweetness.
• Garlic - For flavoring. We do recommend fresh garlic instead of granulated garlic for this.
• Eggs - To act as a binder for the filling and some for egg wash to help seal the lumpia.
• Soy sauce - To season and to add color to the filling. If you prefer, you could substitute with more salt instead. We used low sodium soy sauce.
• Chicken bouillon powder - Although this is not necessary, it really adds a nice touch of umami to the filling. Highly recommended! You can find chicken bouillon powder at most Asian markets.
• Salt and black pepper - For seasoning.

Lumpia wrapper

We highly recommend using lumpia wrapper if you can find it. They are available at most Asian markets, in the freezer aisle where dumpling wrappers and egg roll wrappers are found.

Although you can use spring roll wrappers (aka spring roll pastry) instead, we find that lumpia wrappers makes the crispiest and best texture lumpia and the color after frying is better too. This is because lumpia wrappers are thinner than spring roll wrappers. You'll also notice that lumpia wrappers are quite porous as well.

How to make lumpia

Please scroll down to the recipe card for the full recipe and instructions!

1. Finely chop the vegetables. Place the carrot and garlic cloves into a food processor and blend until everything is finely chopped.

Then add the onions and blend until finely chopped as well. Scrape down the sides as needed.

2. Make the lumpia filling. Combine the finely chopped vegetables, ground pork, eggs, and seasonings in a bowl and mix until well combined.

Then give it a more vigorous mix until the fill is well binded and looks kind of pasty.

3. Prepare the wrapping station. Prepare a plate or sheet pan for the finished lumpia, a cutting board or a clean work surface for wrapping, a brush for egg wash, a damp, clean towel or paper towels, and a pipping bag or Ziploc bag for the filling.

4. Prepare the wrapper. Separate each sheet of the wrappers before you start wrapping. This will save you lots of time later.

5. Wrap the lumpia. Transfer an appropriate amount of filling into the pipping bag and snip off the tip to make a ¼ to ½ inch opening. Pipe the filling onto a sheet of wrapper, roll into a cylinder, and seal with the egg wash. Please refer to "How to wrap lumpia" below for more details.

6. Fry the lumpia. Heat up 2 to 3 inches of oil to 350°F and gently place the lumpia into the hot oil and fry for 4 to 5 minutes or util the filling is cooked through and the outside is crispy and golden brown.

7. Serve. Remove the lumpia from the oil and allow them to drain on paper towels or a rack. Enjoy by itself or with some banana sauce, sweet chili sauce, or sweet and sour sauce!

How to wrap lumpia

If using lumpia wrapper:

1. On a sheet of lumpia wrapper, pipe a 4 inch long log about 1 inch above the bottom edge.

📝 Note: Lumpia wrappers tend to be more porous and you'll most likely find holes or tears in the wrappers. But no worries! Simply roll the filling up a couple of rounds to give the filling a couple extra layers of protection.

2. Fold the bottom flap over the filling and tuck it tightly (not to tight though!) and roll it up 1 to 2 rounds.

We also like to press the ends of the filling to help prevent air pockets and leaking.

3. Fold the left and right flaps towards the center. Overlapping may happen and that's okay.

4. Brush the top inch of the wrapper with a light layer of egg wash and roll up to seal.

If using spring roll wrapper:

1. After separating the spring roll wrappers, stack them back as best as possible. Then cut the wrappers in half, diagonally, to make right triangles.

📝 Note: This is if you're using the largest size spring roll wrappers. We found that having too thick/too many layers of spring roll wrapper tends to make the lumpia chewier. If that's what you like, you can use a whole sheet. Also, if you are using smaller size spring roll wrappers, you can either cut the wrapper in half, like the larger sheet, and pipe shorter logs of filling or pipe a regular size filling parallel to the wrapper and use a whole sheet.

2. Place a triangle sheet of the wrapper long-side down (right angle pointed away from you). Pipe a 4 inch long log about 1 inch from the bottom of the wrapper.

3. Fold the bottom flap over the filling, tuck tightly, and roll up 1 round.

4. Fold the right and left flaps toward the center. Overlapping is okay.

5. Brush the tip of the wrapper, about 1 inch, with a thin layer of egg wash.

6. Roll the lumpia upwards to seal.

Recipe tips

• Keep the lumpia wrappers covered at all times. This is very important and helps to keep the wrappers from drying out. Cover with a damp towel or damp paper towels.
• Don't overcrowd the oil! This applies to any fried food. Overcrowding the oil dramatically decreases the oil temperature, which makes whatever you're frying soggy.
• Roll the lumpia tightly. This will prevent having air bubbles and gaps in the lumpia, which could yield a soggy, oil lumpia. But don't roll it too tightly either or the wrapper may tear.
• Separate the wrappers before you start. Lumpia wrappers and spring roll wrappers are both really thin and are stuck together. So it'll save you lots of time to peel and separate each sheet before starting the wrapping process.
  • Also, especially when it comes to lumpia wrappers, they can be a little frustrating to separate because they are so thin and tend to tear. Try to be patient and treat it as meditation! It really pays off.

Storage

Leftover fried lumpia can be refrigerated for up to 4 days. We do not recommend freezing cooked lumpia because the filling will likely become overcooked and dry.

If you wish to freeze lumpia, we recommend arranging uncooked lumpia in an airtight container or freezer bags and freezing them without cooking. Also, there's no need to keep them separated with parchment. Frozen lumpia will stay good in the freezer for up to 3 to 4 months.

Reheating

Refrigerated cooked lumpia can be reheated in the air fryer at 400°F for about 3 to 5 minutes or until hot and crispy. For the oven, reheat at 425°F for about 5 to 10 minutes until hot and crispy.

Frozen lumpia can be fried at 350°F for about 5 to 10 minutes, or until they are cooked through and crispy and golden brown on the outside.

FAQ

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