What happens when Asian cuisine meets Tex-Mex? These incredible Southwestern Egg Rolls! They are filled with shredded chicken, black beans, peppers, and cheese. This is the perfect appetizer for the big game. Serve it with a Southwestern dipping sauce and now it’s a party!
These tasty appetizers truly are a party favorite. Every bite is filled with fresh vegetables and spicy chicken covered in an amazing blend of seasoning and all tucked into a crunchy rice wrapper and oozing with melted cheese. What’s not to love.
Working with rice wrappers:
There’s an art to working with rice spring roll wrappers. They need to be wet enough to stick, but too wet they will rip. Make sure your hands are dry before handling the wrappers. Wet hands can activate them and they will stick together. Submerge the wrappers for 3-4 seconds then place them on a smooth, clean surface, like a cutting board or nonstick surface, and wait 2-3 seconds. If it is still not soft enough to work with, use your fingers to sprinkle it with water, and spread the water around the wrapper.
Cooking methods:
Frying, air crisping, or baking egg rolls will result in slightly different outcomes. They can also be tricky to fry. Watch your oil temperature carefully. Too hot and they explode on contact. Not hot enough and they will absorb too much oil. Frying also takes longer as you have to fry them one at a time. If they touch one another in the oil they will act like gorilla glue and stick together.
Another alternative is to air-crisp them. Personally, I have never had satisfying results with air crisping. I admit it is more than likely user error on my side. If you like this method by all means go for it. This recipe will adapt well.
My preferred method, and the one I used in this recipe, is baking. The biggest complaint you will hear when it comes to baking is they do not get as crispy as frying. I have a workaround that might help. I brush them generously with olive oil and bake them at a higher heat. The result is a crispy outside yet still tender inside.
Southwest Egg Rolls
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast
- 1 medium white onion sliced
- 2 tablespoons taco seasoning
- 1 cup whole kernel sweet corn
- 1 cup black beans
- 1 red bell pepper diced
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese
- 1 (8 ounces) package spring roll wrappers
- Olive Oil
Dipping Sauce:
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- ¼ cup sour cream
- 1 tablespoon taco seasoning
- 1 tablespoon taco or hot sauce
Instructions
- Lay the chicken in a large stock pan. Add the onions and cover with enough water to cover. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 1 hour.
- Remove the chicken from the pot and let cool until easy to handle. Discard the onion and water. Using a fork, shred the chicken. Toss with the taco seasoning.
- In a heavy skillet heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook until slightly crispy about 3-5 minutes. Add the corn, black beans, and pepper cook 1-2 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Take out a large shallow bowl or pie plate that is slightly larger than the circumference of your spring roll wrappers. Fill with 1 1/2 to 2″ of warm tap water.
- Fully submerge a rice wrapper into the water, for anywhere from 10-30 seconds.
- Place on a dry and smooth surface. (Wiped after each roll.)
- Spoon 2 tablespoons of the filling in the lower third of the wrapper. Fold the wrapper over the filling and roll the wrapper forward one complete rotation to cover the filling.
- Fold each end of the wrapper towards the center and roll forward until completely sealed. The rice paper will stick to itself and doesn’t require anything additional to seal.
- Spray the parchment paper lightly with cooking oil. Place the egg rolls on the prepared baking pan seam side down. Repeat until all wrappres are completed.
- Generously brush with olive oil and bake for 35-45 minutes, turning the pan halfway through, or until crispy and golden brown.
For the dipping Sauce:
- Mix all the dipping sauce ingredients in a small bowl. Serve alongside the egg rolls.