Bring Philippines to Your Kitchen: Learn How to Make Traditional Lumpia Shanghai

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This lumpia Shanghai recipe has been one of my absolute favorite traditional Filipino foods to share with my loved ones- especially during the holidays!

You will find that each Filipino home will have their own variation of the lumpia recipe, differing only in a few ingredients. But each equally as delicious and worth giving a try. I have seen and tried so many versions of lumpia and I honestly can’t tell you which had been the absolute best. I’m a fan of them all!

The recipe that I am sharing with you came from a close family friend who I refer to as one of my ‘Aunties.’ She taught me a lot about the basics in Filipino cooking. I made several adjustments to her many of her recipes in order to fit the Filipino American palate and have been sharing them with the friends I meet- I will share them in future blog posts. However, this lumpia recipe remains authentic with only minor adjustments in its ingredient ratio to ensure that it is both savory and flavorful.

I genuinely hope that you and yours get to enjoy this recipe as much as I enjoy sharing it!

Let’s get started!

Ingredients

(Makes approximately 30 lumpia rolls)

Filling

• 1.5 Lb lean ground beef
• 1 Large onion (diced)
• 2 Medium carrots (diced)
• 8 Cloves garlic (diced)
• 4 Stalks celery (chopped)
• 6 Stalks green onions (chopped)
• 1 8 oz can water chestnut (optional) (chopped)
• 1/2 Cup reduced sodium soy sauce
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 2 tsp black pepper
• 2 eggs

Wrapper Paste

• 1/4 cup flour
• 1/4- 3/4 cup water (paste-like consistency)

Lumpia Wrapper

• 1 30 pcs Simex Individually Separated Lumpia Wrapper

Cooking and Serving

• Vegetable or canola oil for frying
• Mae Ploy Sweet Chili (optional- for dipping)

Directions

1. Wash and prep your produce. A food processor is highly recommended to achieve the appropriately sized cut for onion, celery, and carrots- as well as its use saves a lot of time.
2. In a large bowl combine the ground beef, onion, garlic, green onions, eggs and water chestnut (optional). Add soy sauce. Season with black pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder. Using a spatula or your hands, mix the filling well. The filling should be able to be molded and maintain its shape.
3. Remove wrappers from packaging and place them in your working area- for lumpia rolling.
4. In a small bowl prepare your flour and water mixture for sealing lumpia rolls. This should be a paste-like consistency.
5. Place one wrapper onto your work area and scoop a heaping tablespoon of the lumpia filling onto the portion of the round wrapper that is closest to you- right at the center. Leaving a half inch from the edge of wrapper. You will mold the filling horizontally about 2 1/2 inches in length. Grab the bottom edge of the wrapper and roll over the filling. Stop midway and fold over the side and continue to fold until 2 inches of the other edge remains.
6. Dip fingers into paste mixture and moisten the remaining edges before sealing the lumpia roll.
7. If you are storing the lumpia in the freezer you will want to re-wrap the lumpia in the individual separators that came with the packaging. This will prevent the lumpias from sticking to one another.
8. To cook the lumpia, fill a large frying pan with 2 inches of vegetable or canola oil. Carefully heat oil over medium- to medium high heat. Slowly place lumpia into frying pan and allow to cook evenly until golden brown, about 3-5 minutes- ensuring that each roll is thoroughly cooked.
9. Remove and place onto serving plate lined with paper towels.
10. Enjoy!

Please let us know what you think of this recipe in the comment section below!