Looking for a tasty side or appetizer for Yom Tov? These crispy homemade egg rolls, packed with cabbage and your favorite add-ins, are sure to be a crowd-pleaser!

My father used to buy egg rolls every Friday at the local takeout place as an afternoon snack. I would eat the doughy ends and leave the middle for someone else to have! I loved the crispy fried wrapper but did not go for the vegetable filling. Today, I can say my palate has expanded and I love the cabbage filling almost more than the dough!

To me, egg rolls are a fancy delicacy. I save them for Yom Tov. Years ago, my mother-in-law, who serves them every Sukkos, taught me how to make them. She told me to prepare them before Yom Tov, freeze them, and then lightly pan fry them before serving to crisp them up.

I have a very strong rule, though. I do not cook anything on Yom Tov; no pots and pans come out. Instead of re-frying the eggrolls, I put them on a cookie sheet and heated them in the oven uncovered. I found that they got crispy again that way perfectly without the Yom Tov frying!

I used to think every Yom Tov meal required a potato side dish, but over the years I’ve veered away from that. (I seriously don’t know where I got that from! Maybe because my mother always served meat and potatoes?) On Rosh Hashanah I love to serve lots of delicious sides full of vibrant vegetables, such as my rice dish with sauteed vegetables and pomegranate arils or my spinach-garlic confit oven-baked orzo. In addition to the healthier options, these crispy homemade egg rolls also top the list of exciting Yom Tov sides for my family.

I am not one who fries a lot. I don’t like the mess it makes, the smell it leaves in my kitchen, or having to hover over the stove watching the food. I can’t remember the last time I fried schnitzel. I have been making my easy crispy one-bowl oven-baked schnitzel for years! But for this one recipe, I make an exception. I am sure there are people out there that have baked eggrolls successfully, but I did not like it when I tried it — so I will stick to frying my cabbage eggrolls for special occasions!

This recipe is for a standard cabbage filling, but I often change it up with different add-ins, like cubed pastrami or sausage, mushrooms or other veggies — really anything goes, and the extras make them even more festive!

The egg rolls freeze beautifully. Once cooled, I place them in a 9×13 pan with parchment paper between the layers. When rewarming, I allow them to defrost first and then place them in a single layer on a metal baking sheet lined with parchment paper. (I cut several pieces before Yom Tov so I have when I need it.)

Serve these with a bowl of duck sauce or sweet chili sauce for a perfect Yom Tov side or plate them as an appetizer with individual portions of sauce. Either way, they’ll be worth the frying!

Easy Crispy Homemade Egg Rolls

Looking for a tasty side or appetizer for Yom Tov? These crispy homemade egg rolls, packed with cabbage and your favorite add-ins, are sure to be a crowd-pleaser!

Print Recipe

Ingredients

3 Tbsp oil, plus more oil for deep frying
1 large onion, diced
1 bag coleslaw mix
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp ginger powder (or 1 frozen ginger cube)
2 cloves garlic, minced (or 2 frozen cubes)
Optional Add-ins: Cubed pastrami, diced sausage, mushrooms, etc.
1 package eggroll wrappers

Instructions

Heat the 3 Tbsp oil in a large frying pan over a medium flame. Add onions and sauté for about 5 minutes. Add coleslaw mix, soy sauce, garlic, spices and anything else you’d like. Sauté until cabbage is just wilted, 3-5 minutes — you don’t want it turning to mush. Allow to cool.
To assemble, place a spoonful of filling in the middle of each eggroll wrapper. Fold in the edges over the filling and then roll up jellyroll style.
Heat about two inches of oil in a pot or large, deep frying pan over medium-high flame. Fry the eggrolls on both sides until golden brown.

Notes

TO FREEZE & REHEAT: Let the eggrolls cool completely and then freeze. You can do this in a 9×13 pan with parchment paper between the layers or on a cookie sheet in a single layer (once they’re frozen, you can transfer to a Ziploc bag). To reheat, defrost fully. Place eggrolls on a cookie sheet in a single layer and heat through. They will crisp up.