7 Delicious Side Dishes To Serve With Egg Rolls
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Egg rolls taste good on their own, but a good dip or a side dish brings out the best of this dish. Are you one of those people who enjoy their rolls alone, or do you prefer to eat them with a variety of side dishes? Usually, side dishes are a great addition to the mouth-watering egg rolls you make for yourself and your guests.
Egg rolls are quick appetizers served with a variety of side dishes. The side dishes differ across cultures and their cuisines. Asians, for example, prefer rice or noodles to add to their egg rolls. In the west, however, egg rolls are complemented by potatoes, chicken coleslaw or salads and so on. You can also dip them in sauces or ketchup for flavor enhancement.
Finding the right side dish can be really tricky. But fear not, here I’ve talked about 7 delicious side dishes to serve with egg rolls that you will most definitely like. So, without further ado, let’s get right on with it.
Is It A Good Idea To Serve Side Dishes With Egg Rolls?
Some prefer egg rolls alone. Some don’t. But it is always great to throw in one or two easy side dishes so that the rolls don’t taste bland. Moreover, the side dish itself should not overpower the taste of the egg rolls. A lighter and less oily dish would be a delicious addition to the rolls.
In the west, people often eat egg rolls alone. As these egg rolls contain many veggies, flour, eggs, etc., some think it is enough to eat rolls only at dinner or lunchtime where some might go for something as light as garlic roasted potatoes or salads but nothing too oily.
For others, egg rolls taste best with a few quick side dishes here and there. It is especially true for Asian cuisine. Whether in the east-south region or the eastern part of Asia, most people would agree that the rolls alone would taste bland and uninteresting. So, they always prefer some side dishes according to their own food culture to complement the egg rolls.
Side Dishes To Serve With Egg Rolls
There are plenty of delicious, mouth-watering side dishes which can make your egg rolls extra tasty. Depending on the ingredients of particular egg rolls, consider choosing a side dish from eastern, east-south Asia, or western cuisine. The side dish recipe might differ, but they never fail to enhance the taste of egg rolls.
In Southeast Asian cuisine, side dishes differ significantly. For example, side dishes in India have little to nothing in common with dishes served in Thailand, the Philippines, Vietnam, or even farther eastern regions. However, what all of them have in common is the appreciation of rich flavor and aroma.
Vegetable Fried Rice
In the Indian region, rice is often served with egg rolls. Since egg rolls consist of veggies and meat, they are often popularly paired together because they complement each other.
For vegetable fried rice, take a cup of cooked rice. You can even use the leftovers. Followed by a couple of onions and vegetables of your choice. Start by cooking the onions and veggies first, then add the cooked rice. Once they are all cooked, give them a good mix, and voila! Your veggie fried rice is ready.
Bok Choy
As we go a little further east, there’s Thailand’s bok choy, which is popularly eaten with eggs or spring rolls. This recipe is something very simple to follow.
The ingredients for this recipe are bok choy, garlic, onion, oil. You can take sesame or pepper, but they are optional. Begin by adding the oil to the pan. Then add garlic, onion, bok choy altogether and stir until a beautiful aroma from garlic is in the air. No Thai dish is ever done without fish sauce, so you can pour some into your dish and serve it with rolls.
Choy Sum
Choy Sum is another traditional Thai recipe that tastes great when coupled with egg rolls. Mainly made with Chinese greens or leafy veggies, choy sum is a great quick-serve.
Take some greens and cut them into about 1-inch pieces. Put them all in a pan, boil them for a couple of minutes. Now take them out and rinse the water. Take another pan and add some oil and garlic. Following this, add the greens, mix them a little and add Thai fish or soy sauce and you’re done
Cucumber Salad
In Japan, the egg rolls are called harumaki, also known as spring rolls. With egg rolls, Japanese people like to serve a light meal instead of any meaty, oily side dish. The salad is not oily but known for balancing out the oil in the egg roll.
Slice some cucumbers into small pieces. Japanese people don’t prefer oil, but you can mix it in with some olive oil. Following that, add some sesame and give them a good toss. Your Japanese cucumber salad is ready!
Pork Dumplings
Chinese people often go with it when serving egg rolls. Dumplings give that little soft and meat flavor with oily egg rolls.
Take pork, chicken or beef, any meat you prefer. Make a Chinese dumpling dough with flour. Add vegetables of your choice with the meat. Now take a bamboo dumpling pot and put all the dumplings there to let them cook in the steam. Check every 5 minutes until done. Chinese dumplings are great side dishes for any type of appetizer.
Garlic Potato Home Fries
This is probably the easiest recipe there is of any side dish with egg rolls. You can make it both on the stove and in the oven.
Take some potatoes and leave the peels on. Cut them into cube-sized pieces. Now take a pan and brush some oil on it. Then put the potatoes in the pan and cook them on a medium flame for 15-20 minutes until done. Finally, take the crispy potatoes out and serve with egg rolls.
Chicken Coleslaw
Chicken coleslaw is an easy recipe to make. Take chicken pieces and prepare the vegetables to mix with them.
Prepare the vegetables such as carrots, lettuce, etc. Boil the chickens and cut them into pieces. Mix the vegetables with vinegar, sour cream, mustard, and mayonnaise. Add all the ingredients together, and then give them all a good toss. Coleslaw is yet another popular side dish in the Americas, and rightly so!
You can even get away with no chicken and serving regular coleslaw. It basically goes with every fried dish out there. And the same goes for egg rolls.
Dipping To Add With Egg Rolls
Most Southeast Asian fries or crispy rolls taste well with the dipping of different types of sauce. Dipping indeed makes food saucier and creamier. Therefore, when eating egg rolls, duck sauce, sweet-sour sauce, ketchup, etc. can be some delicious additions to the egg rolls.
The sweet and sour sauce is an all-time hit for the egg rolls. You can also dip your rolls in ketchup, chilly sauce, or tomato sauce. Any type of gravy would also go well with rolls. My personal favorite is a spicy sweet and sour tamarind sauce. They kind of help balance the heaviness of egg rolls and keep you coming back for more.
You can also try dipping your egg rolls in tomato ketchup on days when you’re too lazy to prepare anything else. It never disappoints! You can check out this video to discover some other awesome dipping recipes:
