Whatβs vegan egg roll in a bowl? Well, you know the savoury filling inside a Chinese egg roll? Use the same ingredients, but instead of rolling them up and deep-frying, turn them into a dish in its own right. And now Iβve veganized it. Traditional egg rolls are time-consuming if you want to make them at home, but this stir fried version satisfies all the same flavour cravings in under 45 minutes.
History & Origins
Unlike spring rolls, which stretch back thousands of years into China’s ancient past, egg rolls are a modern Chinese-American invention.
The difference between spring rolls and egg rolls is in the wrapping:
- Spring rolls feature a thin, flaky pastry wrapper, made of just flour, water, and oil. (In fact, you can make them yourself using my Hot Water Dough.) Once rolled, they can be deep-fried, pan-fried, or air-fried. The outside texture is crisp and papery.
- Egg rolls, on the other hand, traditionally use egg in the dough. Wow!!! Shocker!!! They are almost always deep-fried. Once fried, pastry becomes thicker and bumpier than spring roll wrappers, and they are more crunchy than crispy.
Recently, the concept of βegg roll in a bowlβ has become popular.
Not sure why we love food in bowls these days (burrito bowl, sushi bowl, buddha bowl)… maybe itβs to cut down on carbs. But Iβm totally on board with this idea when it comes to egg rolls and spring rolls. Making a real spring roll from scratch is time-consuming, because each pastry has to be individually folded. Skipping the wrapping allows us to satisfy our craving for the same flavours any day of the weekβwithout spending hours in the kitchen.
Vegan Egg Roll Filling
The βeggβ in egg rolls is only found in the wrapper, not the filling. (And many βegg rollsβ these days donβt use egg at all, to cut down on cost.) Since this egg roll in a bowl recipe dispenses with the wrapper, I didnβt need to find a substitute for the eggs.
The only other ingredient usually found in egg rolls that is not vegan is the ground meat. Instead, you can use any plant-based ground meat alternative. Iβve tested this recipe with:
- Yves Original Veggie Ground Round
- Yves Chorizo Ground Round
- Lightlife Plant-Based Ground
- Lightlife Gimme Lean Sausage
- Impossible Burger Ground Burger
- Beyond Meat Beyond Beef Ground Beef
Try to use an βunflavouredβ or βoriginalβ product to ensure the flavourings in the meat product donβt clash with the egg roll spices. That said, I once made this recipe using Yves Chorizo Round. It tasted pretty good, just with a bit of a different flavour profile.
If you prefer less processed alternatives, you can make your own βground beefβ using TVP or crumbled tofu.
Read on to see the rest of the ingredients for this vegan egg roll in a bowl.
What You’ll Need
The aromatics found in classic egg rolls are: onion, garlic, ginger, scallions, and white pepper. Ground ginger is a suitable substitute if you donβt have fresh ginger. (Since Iβm only cooking for myself these days, I never go through ginger quickly enough so Iβve been relying on ground ginger a lot. Luckily, this recipe is not super ginger-forward so dried ginger does the job.) Also, if you donβt have ground white pepper, feel free to sub with the more commonly-found black pepper.
Youβll also want some oil to fry in. If you want to avoid oil, Iβve found a good substitute to still get that rich flavour: tahini. You know when you leave tahini sitting untouched for a few days, and it separates into two layers: with the thick creamy sesame paste settling at the bottom, and a clear layer of oil on top? The oily top layer is a perfect alternative to refined oil.
The amount of oil to add can depend on which veggie meat alternative you are using. For example, I find that the Beyond Meat and Impossible Burger products are formulated with more oil and have a richer taste than lighter options like Yves or Lightlife. So if using a higher-fat alternative, you can cut back on the amount of added oil; vice versa if youβre using a lower-calorie product, consider adding more oil to give it that nice rich flavour.
Chopped cabbage and shredded carrots not only bulk up this egg roll in a bowl, they also add sweetness to balance out the flavour. As you cook down the veggies, they release their natural sugars!
Use soy sauce to add salty and umami flavours. Iβve used a low-sodium soy sauce here, so if youβre using regular soy sauce, add only half the amount specified.
Another ingredient I add when I want a more filling meal: thin sweet potato noodles (aka glass noodles). These noodles are best known in japchae, a colourful Korean stir fry. However, many spring rolls and egg rolls contain some kind of thin vermicelli, so glass noodles work nicely here. You can also use rice vermicelli, or mung bean thread noodles. Or leave out the noodles entirely, itβs up to you.
Step-by-Step Process
Heat oil in a large wok or skillet on medium-high heat. Or, use the top layer from a jar of tahini, like Iβm doing here.
Add the onion, garlic, ginger, and scallions, and sautΓ© until soft and aromatic (5β7 minutes).
Add the carrots. I used my food processor to dice up the carrots. You can also dice them, shred them, or julienne them.
Next add the cabbage. SautΓ© the veggies for another 5 minutes, or until the cabbage gets wilty and soft.
Stir in the vegan ground and cook until itβs heated through.
Season with white pepper and soy sauce to taste.
Throw on any additional toppings you like. I added some chopped scallion tops.
Make Ahead & Storage Tips
Vegan egg roll in a bowl can be refrigerated for up to five days in an airtight container. Iβve taken this to campus a few times and nuked it in a microwave for lunch. It reheats very well so itβs a great meal prep option!
I have not tried freezing this recipe. Let me know how it works out for you.
Diet Substitutions
If you’re following a specific diet or need to be aware of allergies, here are a few ways you can modify this recipe:
- Gluten-free: Use tamari or coconut aminos in place of soy sauce (unless you can find a wheat-free soy sauce).
- Oil-free, WFPB: The only non-compliant foods here are vegan ground meat, which you can sub with crumbled firm tofu, and oil, which you can sub with the top layer of a separated jar of tahini. (See details in the What Youβll Need section above.)
- Low carb: Skip the noodles and make sure to use a low carb vegan ground meat.
If you made this recipe with a successful substitution, please let me know! Post a comment describing what you did so I can add it to this section and help future readers. (Leave your name blank if you don’t want to be credited.)
What to Serve with Vegan Egg Roll in a Bowl
Top this recipe with crunchy pan-fried tofu to replace some of that crunch you might miss from a traditional egg roll.
Want more carbs? Serve steamed rice, chal bap, or shichimi togarashi potatoes on the side.
Recipe Card
Vegan Egg Roll in a Bowl
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp oil 12g *can sub with 2 tbsp tahini liquid; see
Note 1 - Β½ small onion, diced 50g
- Β½ head garlic, minced 20g
- 1/2- inch piece ginger, minced *can sub with 1 tsp ground ginger
- 3 scallions, diced 45g
- 1 lb cabbage, shredded or sliced thin 454g
- 2 carrots, shredded or diced 200g *can sub with more cabbage
- 1 lb vegan ground 454g
- 1 tsp white pepper 2g *can sub with black pepper
- ΒΌ cup low-sodium soy sauce 60g *can sub with 2 tbsp regular soy sauce
- 100 g sweet potato noodles, soaked in cold water for at least 15 minutes *optional
- Optional toppings: sesame oil, sesame seeds, crushed nuts, cilantro, chili oil, more scallions
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large wok or skillet on medium-high heat. Add the onion, garlic, ginger, and scallions, and sautΓ© until soft and aromatic (5β7 minutes).
- Add the carrots and cabbage, sautΓ© for another 5 minutes or until cabbage wilts.
- Stir in the vegan ground and cook until heated through.
- Season with white pepper and soy sauce to taste. Garnish with any additional toppings you like.
Nutrition
Recipe Notes
- If you want to keep this meal WFPB-compliant, Iβve found a good substitute for the oil: tahini. You know when you leave tahini sitting untouched for a few days, and it separates into two layers: with the thick creamy sesame paste settling at the bottom, and a clear layer of oil on top? The oily top layer is a perfect alternative to refined oil.
Did you make this recipe? Please consider leaving a rating below to let me know how you liked it.
You can also take a picture and tag me on Instagram @earthtoveg, I will shout you out in my Stories!
Nutrition, Cost, and Emissions Information
One vegan egg roll bowl costs $1.58, contains 284 cal and releases 368 gCO2e of carbon emissions into the atmosphere. (Note these estimates may change depending on the type of vegan meat alternative you use.)
To reach the global Paris Agreement emissions target, itβs recommended to limit daily carbon emissions from food to 3,050 kgCO2e/day per person. Nutrition data is provided by Cronometer (click the link at the bottom of the nutrition label to learn more). Feel free to contact me for sources on the cost and carbon emissions information presented here. I am not a nutritionist and guidelines on this page are provided for informational purposes only.
Used Beyond Beef Crumbles and added some tofu. So yummy; going into my weekly rotation.
That sounds amazing! Mixing Beyond Beef and tofu sounds like twice the deliciousness.