The other day I stopped by my friend Bevin’s house so my daughter could drop off a beautiful piece of toddler art for her best friend, who happens to be Bevin’s son.
We are in the thick of social distancing at the moment so it was a quick stop to wave between a glass door, drop off the lovingly crafted popsicle, yarn, cupcake liner, BFF rendering she created, cry a little, and wish we could actually hang out, and spend time with the people we love and miss.
This all sucks to say the least. And hopefully one day I will read back over this recipe, read this blurb, and life will be normal again and social distancing will just be a word of the past. A horrible thing that happened and we all survived. But as I write this, life is weird!
So when I stopped by and Bevin opened the door to quickly grab the picture, the most amazing smell wafted from the house..and I was all “what in the world are you cooking, that smells crazy good?!?!” The answer was CHEESEBURGER EGG ROLLS!! WHAT?!?!?! How has she not told me about this sooner!?!
Bevin is a vegetarian so gave the the basic run down of what she did to make them…and I went right home knowing I was making them the next day!
Bevin and I both used Beyond meat in the recipe. She mentioned diced onions and pickles so I added those as well. I used vegan cheddar shredded cheese to make them vegan and added a few spices and a dash of vegan Worcestershire sauce just like I would if were making vegan burgers. These days it is really easy to find vegan egg roll wrappers as well. My how times have changed.
Bevin baked her cheeseburger egg rolls, but I live to fry…I mean I’m southern, so I fry all the things, regardless of the knowledge that this is not exactly healthy…but moderation y’all, moderation. That said, I also really do love the ease of my air fryer and the lack of mess involved..also that whole “its healthier” thing. So, I often try any fried recipes I make both ways. Pan fried with oil and in the air fryer. Results are in and it works both ways y’all. I actually really liked the air fried version but my husband preferred the pan fried vegan egg rolls. I think the wrappers cook up really crispy in the air fryer but the texture is more spring roll-ish to me when cooked that way. But I wouldn’t turn away either option. Bevin warned that when cooked in the oven the wrappers were a little weird. So if you decide to bake them, don’t say we didn’t tell you. (the picture below is the air fried version)
These vegan cheeseburger egg rolls are now, without a doubt, my new favorite thing to do with an egg roll wrapper. They are SOOOOO FLIPPING GOOD! I used cheddar shreds but you could use whatever cheese you like. I also loaded them with pickles because I LOVE PICKLES. If you hate pickles, we are not friends, and you can leave them out. You could always add diced mushrooms and some vegan swiss or provolone. That would be amazing too.
We dipped ours in mustard and ketchup but how good would these be dipped in vegan 1,000 island…like a vegan Big Mac egg roll…Y’all….next batch I’m 100% dipping them in 1,000 island dressing.!!!
So everyone says thank you to the beautiful, brilliant, clever, Bevin. Without her, I wouldn’t be sharing this recipe. Although I wish this whole stupid social distancing thing would end and Bevin and I could be eating these together, with our crew of kids laughing and playing and being the goons they are…soon I hope, soon!
INGREDIENTS:
1 lb vegan ground meat, I used Beyond ground
1 medium yellow onion, finely diced
1/2 cup finely diced dill pickles
1 cup shredded vegan cheddar, homemade or store-bought
2 teaspoons vegan Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion salt
1 package vegan egg roll wrappers
neutral flavored oil for frying. I used grapeseed oil
INSTRUCTIONS:
Add the diced onions, pickles, vegan ground meat, Worcestershire sauce, onion salt, and garlic powder to a large skillet. Cook over medium heat until the vegan meat is cooked through and onions are soft and translucent. Set aside and allow to cool for a bit.
Once the mixture has cooled, stir in 1 cup of vegan shredded cheddar cheese.
Lay out the an egg roll wrapper to look like a diamond (points up and down) and scoop a heavy handed tablespoon of filling into the center. Fold the bottom corner up, then fold in the sides, and roll away from you. Continue until you used all of the filling. You will have a few wrappers left over.
Pan Frying: Heat a large skillet with a few inches of oil. Once oil is good and hot, add a few egg rolls at a time, letting them cook on each side unit crispy and brown. Place finished egg rolls on a wire cooling rack that you have placed on a paper towel lined cookie sheet. Continue until all vegan cheeseburger egg rolls are fried.
Air Fryer: Place egg rolls in air fryer and give them a light mist of oil. Cook at 375 for about 10 minutes or unit golden brown and crispy.
Server with a side of ketchup and mustard, or vegan 1,000 island for dipping.
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