Spring rolls are a traditional Vietnamese snack. These cheeseburger spring rolls are anything but traditional. And to be honest the only thing they have with Vietnam is the ‘skin’. This delightful appetizer is more American than a guy in Nebraska who says he’s Irish because his great-great-great-grandmammy happened to be from Ireland. (That’s super American if you’re following along). Let’s get to it.
This recipe for cheeseburger spring rolls is actually a lot easier than one might assume. At the most it is time consuming, and possibly annoying for those that don’t like frying things at home. But as far as recipes go, this is quite easy. And it makes a great appetizer or party snack when friends come over!
The idea for cheeseburger spring rolls comes from the plethora of Americanized dishes that one can find all over the country. From Chinese-American orange chicken, to Italian-Mexican-American tequila chicken penne pasta, there is a tendency to create fusion food (even if it was never asked for).
I love making untraditional spring roll recipes so you might have seen others on this site before. However rolling a spring roll skin with a cheeseburger filling somehow is one of my more popular recipes. If you have any cool spring roll ideas let me know down below!
What You’ll Need
For this recipe I recommend store-bought spring roll wrappers. Not that you can’t make them at home, it is just an unnecessary amount of work and buying pre-made ones are really no different (perhaps even better) than homemade. You should use wheat based spring roll wrappers as opposed to the rice paper used for summer rolls. I know it’s confusing, a lot of people thing spring rolls are not fried when that’s usually not the case.
You can buy wheat spring roll wrappers online but it is much cheaper to find them at a local Asian grocery store – not to mention they’re guaranteed to be properly frozen.
Ingredients
The other ingredients are fairly standard. Just the things you would find in a classic American style cheeseburger. Feel free to get creative and adjust the recipe to suit your preferences. There are so many things you can alter: bacon for a bacon cheeseburger, pickled jalapenos and avocado for a more southwestern approach, or a fried egg and ham for a moo-cluck-oink burger! The possibilities are endless.
- 500 grams Ground Beef – I suggest a standard 80/20 ground beef, but you can use something leaner if you prefer. If you do use something fattier, make sure to strain it a bit or the spring rolls can squirt hot oil at you when you bite into them.
- 2-3 Yellow Onions – You can get away with a lot of onion in this recipe as long as you properly cook them down. I used three small-ish onions which was the perfect amount, however if you want to spend the time with a full caramelization you can easily use more.
- 2 tbsp Mayonnaise – homemade or store bought.
- 2 tbsp Mustard – I used one tablespoon of classic American yellow mustard and one tablespoon of whole grain. You can use whatever you like although I would recommend staying away from sweeter versions like honey-mustard.
- 15 slices Processed Cheese Product – Yes, there is a time and place for these normally revolting plastic wrapped squares. The superior meltability is perfect in these cheeseburger spring rolls. Now, if you had some sodium citrate you can make your own processed version with a higher quality cheese, but buying it is so much easier not to mention more authentic.
- Salt & Pepper – To taste.
- Wheat Spring Roll Sheets – I found with this recipe I could make about 15 spring rolls, but you might be able to make more or less. It depends on how much filling you use per roll and the size of your wrapper. Just know if you want to make more of them but smaller, you will need to increase the cheese slices as well.
- Oil – As needed
- Hot Sauce – Optional. If you wanted to kick the heat up a notch you can add a few drops of your favorite hot sauce after removing the meat from the pan. I like to add a few drops of my homemade ghost pepper hot sauce since it is what I usually drip on my cheeseburgers anyways!
Instructions
The first step in making these tasty cheeseburger spring rolls is to finely dice and brown your onions. You can place a little oil in a pan on medium heat, add the onions, and stir until they are cooked to your desired doneness. You don’t need a full caramelization, just a simple browning, but you can go as far as you want with it.
When the onions are at the desired color add in the beef, mustard, salt&pepper, and mix everything up. The fat will render very quickly which should help the beef brown nicely.
Spoon the contents of the pan into a large mixing bowl and add the mayonnaise. This will add more fat to the dish, replacing what was left in the pan. I prefer adding mayonnaise than using the rendered fat in the pan as the liquid fat has a tendency to leak or even explode when you bite into a spring roll. It is personal preference though, you can mix in the beef fat as well.
To roll a cheeseburger spring roll by hand simply lay out a sheet of wheat based spring roll wrapper. Place a square of processed cheese product in the lower middle, and a couple tablespoons of burger filling in a roll shape.
Roll the bottom up until you have a tube, fold in the sides, then continue to roll. Use a bit of water on the top edge to help with the sealing.
Place them seam side down on a board for easy transport. I like to work at the dining table which is a distance from the frying station. Trust me, if you are making a lot of these things you are going to want to sit down for it.
You can deep or shallow fry these. I tend to go for shallow frying as it saves oil and I only have to turn the rolls once. Get the oil to 175c / 350f and gently place a spring roll inside. Fry until golden brown (about 1 minute per side), then remove to a paper towel lined plate. Repeat until you have fried all the rolls.
I love to serve these cheeseburger spring rolls as an appetizer for parties so I usually cut them in half (or on the bias) so people can see the inside. I also serve them with some homemade burger sauce since who doesn’t love that for presentation!
What To Serve With These Cheeseburger Spring Rolls
I often go for a burger sauce, but there are so many different types. You can also just go for ketchup, mustard, mayo, or a mix. Personally I love Nagi’s recipe so I just make that quickly to pair with these spring rolls.
Here are some other choices you might like:
More Great Party Recipes You’ll Love
- Miso Butter Chicken Wings
- Summer Peach Bruschetta
- Fried Rabbit Nuggets
- Papas Criollas
- Caprese Crostini
- Whipped Feta Dip
Cheeseburger Spring Rolls
Ingredients
- 500 grams Ground Beef
- 2-3 Yellow Onions Diced
- 2 tbsp Mayonnaise
- 2 tbsp Mustard I suggest one tablespoon of classic American yellow mustard and one tablespoon of whole grain.
- 15 slices Processed Cheese Product Yes
- Salt & Pepper To taste.
- Wheat Spring Roll Sheets I found with this recipe I could make about 15 spring rolls but you might be able to make more or less. It depends on how much filling you use per roll and the size of your wrapper. Just know if you want to make more of them but smaller, you will need to increase the cheese slices as well.
- Oil As needed
- Hot Sauce Optional.
Instructions
- Place a little oil in a pan on medium heat, add the onions, and stir until they are cooked to your desired doneness
- When the onions are at the desired color add in the beef, mustard, salt&pepper, and mix everything up.
- Spoon the contents of the pan into a large mixing bowl and add the mayonnaise.
- To roll a cheeseburger spring roll by hand simply lay out a sheet of wheat based spring roll wrapper. Place a square of processed cheese product in the lower middle, and a couple tablespoons of burger filling in a roll shape.Roll the bottom up until you have a tube, fold in the sides, then continue to roll. Use a bit of water on the top edge to help with the sealing.
- You can deep or shallow fry these. I tend to go for shallow frying as it saves oil and I only have to turn the rolls once. Get the oil to 175c / 350f and gently place a spring roll inside. Fry until golden brown (about 1 minute per side), then remove to a paper towel lined plate. Repeat until you have fried all the rolls.
- Plate, and serve with a sauce of your choice.
