Magnolia's Down South Egg Rolls

[kaci]

Magnolia's Down South Egg Rolls



2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups julienned yellow onion
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin strips, removing all fat
1 cup small strips of Tasso
2 packed cups cooked, chopped collard greens, well drained
8 egg roll wrappers
2 teaspoons cold water
2 tablespoons cornstarch for sealing
1 cup cornstarch for dusting
12 cups peanut oil or canola oil for frying (two 48-ounce containers)


Heat the olive oil in a large heavy-bottomed frying pan over medium-high
heat. Add the onion, garlic, chicken and Tasso. Saute, stirring, for 5
minutes or until chicken is fully cooked. Squeeze all juice from the collard
greens and add them to the frying pan. Cook for 1 or 2 minutes to heat the
collards and meld all of the flavors. Pour into a colander and drain. Spread
the mixture out onto a pan and let cool. Then squeeze out as much moisture
as you can. You can easily do this by squeezing the mixture in a clean tea
towel, in batches if necessary. The drier, the better.

Lay the egg roll wrappers on a clean, dry surface dusted lightly with
cornstarch, setting them up in a diamond pattern. Portion 3/4 cup of filling
on the centers of each of the 8 wrappers. Place the 2 tablespoons of
cornstarch in a small bowl and slowly add the cold water, stirring until you
have a smooth paste which is free of lumps. Lightly brush the edges of each
egg roll wrapper with the mixture of cornstarch and water. Fold the bottom
quarter of the diamond up toward the top. Fold the two sides inward to form
an envelope. Bring the top corner over toward you. Gently press the edges to seal the rolls. Lightly dust the egg rolls with cornstarch to keep them dry.

Put the peanut or canola oil in a deep fryer or a deep frying pan. If you
are using something smaller, use only enough oil to fill the fryer about
three quarters of the way up the sides. Gradually heat the oil to 340
degrees F by starting to heat it on medium heat and slowly increasing the
heat to medium-high. Never put oil in any frying container and turn the heat
on to high.

Put only 4 egg rolls in the hot oil at the time. Too many egg rolls in the
oil will bring down the temperature of the oil. Try to keep the temperature
as close to 340 degrees F as possible.

Fry, turning frequently, until the egg rolls are golden brown and crispy.
Initially you should try to keep the egg rolls submerged. As they brown,
they will float to the top. If the oil is too hot, the egg roll skins will
brown before the egg rolls become warm throughout. Remove the egg rolls from the oil and place on paper towels to absorb any excess oil.

Serve at once with Red Pepper Sauce, Spicy Mustard and Peach Chutney. For 8 egg rolls, you will need 1 1/2 cups of each accompaniment.

NOTE: To use chicken thighs, which are less expensive, buy boneless and
skinless thighs. Thigh meat will take longer to cook than breast meat.
Expect to add another 1O minutes to the saute procedure.

Makes 8 egg rolls.

Magnolia's, Charleston, South Carolina