Chinese (Fish) Rolls - Recipe

 

Filling

• A Can of Tinned Mackerel (or Tuna), deboned and shredded. (or minced/ground beef/mutton, if you prefer Mutton Rolls
• 2 medium potatoes – boiled, peeled and roughly chopped
• 1 large onion and a couple of cloves of garlic
• Few curry leaves, Pandan leaf and thinly sliced green chillies
• 3 Cardamom pods and 3 cloves (crushed in a mortar and pestle)
• Salt, pepper, chilli flakes, coriander and cumin powder
• Squeeze of lemon
• Oil for frying

For the crêpes

3 cups of flour

1 Egg

2 – 3 cups of Water

Crumb coating

Egg

Flour

Bread crumbs

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Method:

The filling

• Heat a couple of tablespoons of oil in a pan and sauté the chopped onions, garlic and the curry leaves, till the onions softens, add the crushed cardamoms and cloves and pandan leaf and the sliced green chilli. keep sauteing till the aromatics are active
• Add in the shredded Mackerel or Tuna, followed by the rest of spices.
• Once the fish has been sauteed, I like to add in a handful of chopped fresh coriander/Cilantro to add a bit of freshness.
• Lastly stir in the mashed/cubed potato. For beef rolls specifically, keep the meat to potato ratio low as the potatoes should not overshadow the taste and texture of the mince.
• Lastly taste for seasoning and round off the flavours with a squeeze of lemon juice
• Set aside to cool down

The Crêpe (pancake)

Mix the flour, egg, & water and whisk to form a smooth, lump free batter. The consistency of the batter should be somewhat similar to that of a pancake mixture – but slightly runnier. A simple hand whisk always ensures a lump free mixture. Use a blender if you must, and strain for lump free batter

Season with a pinch of salt

Note: It is important to make the batter thin as a thick mixture would result in thick crêpes which would make the ‘roll’ thicker and tends to split after rolling. So remember to take the water quantity only as a guide and adjust accordingly.

Forming the roll

• Heat a non stick (it is really essential to use a non stick pan for this!) pan under medium heat and ladle in a spoonful of the crêpe mixture in and swirl it around the same way you would to make an omelette.
• Once cooked on one side, Flip the pancake with a flat spatula and cook the other side.
• Remove the crêpe from the pan, onto a plate.
• Repeat with remaining batter
• Bring two sides of the crêpe towards the centre and start rolling to form a ‘roll’ shape as shown below.
  

  
  
• be mindful that the crêpes fresh out of the pan are obviously hot!
• When making the rolls with crêpes fresh out of the pan, you do not have to seal the edges with a egg mixture. But if you feel the roll is not sealed properly at the end, you could seal the edge with a bit of egg wash.

Crumb Coating

• Add All purpose flour to dish and set aside.
• For the egg wash, beat an egg or two with a fork and set aside. Or You could simply prepare a thin batter made from a bit of water and a 1/4 cup of all purpose flour.
• Next add breadcrumbs into a deep dish and set aside. 
• Now, dip a roll in the flour, then the egg wash or batter and transfer it to the breadcrumbs to coat it well.
• Set aside on a plate, repeat.
• Refrigerate for at least half an hour. This will make sure the roll actually binds the coating properly, and not fall apart when dropped into the deep fryer.
• Heat up oil in a pan and deep fry the crumbed rolls till they are golden, Do not overcook! The roll will keep on cooking even after removing from the oil, and will darken. Drain on a draining rack or on newspapers/paper towels.
• Enjoy with some Sri Lankan Chilli Sauce or some tomato ketchup

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