Chinese Egg Rolls and Ginger Sauce

This recipe comes care of our friends K and P Lowe, who were generous enough to "invite" me over so they could make these fantastic egg rolls. I use the word "invite" loosely because I pretty much demanded them for dinner. I couldn't help it- a bit of cabbage and garlic was just what I was craving, and the Lowes make some of the best!

These aren't difficult to make, but they do require some assembly, which is pictured step-by-step below. My recommendation is to recruit an assistant to help with the rolling. Call it a date night and egg-roll it with your significant other!

And finally, although not pictured in this post, the Lowes have an excellent ginger sauce they serve with these egg rolls. I highly, highly recommend it. They usually dye it red for aesthetic purposes, but there's no real need for it. Bear in mind that the Lowes make their ginger sauce powerful enough to knock your socks off, so if you're new to the world of gingery foods, you may want to cut back by a tablespoon or so of the ginger in the sauce. Enjoy!


Chinese Egg Rolls
Recipe by K. and P. Lowe
Pictures by Kelly

1 pound sausage
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon oregano
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
1 cup purple cabbage, chopped
1/4 cup green onion, chopped
1 egg
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 package egg roll wraps
oil

1. In a large pan, cook sausage until well done, stirring frequently. Drain excess grease from pan. Add chili powder, oregano, ginger, cabbage, and green onions. Saute 1-2 minutes.
   
2. Push meat mixture to the side and add egg. Cook egg until mostly firm, then break and scramble. Stir into meat mixture.
3. Lay out several egg roll wraps flat on the counter. Add 1 heaping spoonful to each wrap. Fold up like a burrito and seal the sides by moistening the edges with a wet cloth.
   
4. Heat oil to medium heat in large fryer or large pan. Fry each egg roll until golden brown, about 2 minutes on each side. Serve with ginger sauce.

Ginger Sauce
Recipe by K. and P. Lowe

3-inch piece of ginger, peeled and grated
1 cup white vinegar
1 cup white sugar
1-2 tablespoons corn starch
1/2 tablespoon water
Red food coloring (optional)

1. In a small sauce pan, combine ginger, vinegar, and sugar. Heat until sugar is dissolved.
   
2. Add 1 tablespoon of cornstarch to 1/2 tablespoon water and stir until smooth. Add to ginger mixture and stir until mixture has thickened. Add more cornstarch if a thicker sauce is desired.
   
3. Add food coloring and serve.