Where Did Egg Rolls Get Their Name?
Whether it's fresh from a restaurant, pulled out of a takeout container, or cooked at home in the air fryer, an egg roll hits the spot when you're looking for something crunchy, salty, and filling. If you've ever eaten an egg roll though, you've also probably wondered why this thing that doesn't have any eggs in it is called an egg roll.
As it turns out, the answer is relatively simple: Egg rolls are called egg rolls because there are eggs in the dough. That answer doesn't paint the whole picture, though, because plenty of recipes (like cookies or cinnamon rolls) include egg as a dough ingredient, yet they don't feature the word "egg" prominently in their name. The term "egg roll" likely came about to differentiate the dish from spring rolls in the early 1900s. According to Sampan, a New England-based Chinese-English newspaper, egg rolls are likely an American variation of the traditional Chinese spring roll.
Eggs differentiate egg rolls from spring rolls
Egg rolls are typically made of a crunchy, fried outer dough filled with cabbage, carrots, onions, celery, and often meat such as pork, chicken, duck, or beef, though vegetarian egg rolls shouldn't be overlooked either. Similar to spring rolls, the filling for egg rolls is stuffed into a dough, but while spring rolls are made of a thinner rice flour dough, egg rolls are made of a thicker dough that's made of flour and eggs. The addition of eggs is key because it makes the dough thick and able to withstand being fried. The result is a dough that bubbles and gets crunchy when fried instead of falling apart.
Because egg rolls are so similar to spring rolls, something had to differentiate them when they were first created. While not extremely creative, the name "egg roll" definitely does the job. It is possible to make the dish without egg for people looking for a vegan option, but most traditional versions will have egg in the dough.
When were egg rolls named?
As for when egg rolls were first named and created, history isn't entirely clear. One of the earliest references to "egg rolls" comes in a 1917 cookbook by Shiu Wong Chan called "The Chinese Cook Book." This version of the egg roll included fillings wrapped in an omelet-like covering, which explains its name, though might be the dish's only connection to the deep-fried egg rolls we know and love.
Still, it wasn't long after that Chinese-American chefs began making egg rolls more reminiscent of what we know today. In the 1920s, a chef named Lum Fong at Lum Fong's Restaurant in New York City served a dish called "Lum Har Chun Guen," which was a lobster egg roll. A reference to a similar dish created by Lum Fong was pictured in the October 11, 1934 issue of Pennsylvania's Bradford Evening Star newspaper, as reported by The Passionate Foodie, which described the dish as "egg-dough capsules." Then in 1938, chef Henry Low included a recipe for egg rolls in his 1938 cookbook, "Cook at Home in Chinese." Many credit the naming of the modern egg roll to either Lum Fong or Henry Low. Regardless of where or when egg rolls got their name, they're certainly a delicious comfort food for many.