RECIPE / A.C.E.
October 2, 2017
THE ASIAN REPORTER n Page 13
Marie Kondo is back with a
manga about decluttering
Sever egg rolls from the restaurant
by making these at home
By Sara Moulton
By Katherine Roth
The Associated Press
The Associated Press
ho doesn’t love an egg roll? For
generations it’s been Chinese
cuisine’s No. 1 hit in America.
And why not? They’re ubiquitous, they’re
fried, they’re delicious, and you can eat
them with your hands. Unfortunately, egg
rolls are restaurant food. Making them at
home can seem too daunting. First, there’s
a ton of prep. Second, you have to deep-fry
them in a big pot of hot oil. Here’s a
solution in two easy steps; make the filling
ahead of time and sauté the rolls instead of
deep-frying them.
Even if you weren’t in a rush, you’d want
to make the filling ahead of time. It needs
to cool down before being added to the
wrappers. Otherwise, it’ll sog them up. So
why not plan ahead and prepare this dish
on a weekend? (With the new school year
upon us, I’ll note that filling and rolling the
wrappers can be a fun task for the kids,
almost as much fun as eating them.)
Here the egg rolls are filled with sautéed
pork, red pepper, carrots, and Napa
cabbage. But if you fill them with leftovers
instead — shredded chicken, cooked
broccoli, peas, etc. — you’ll save yourself
the trouble of having to slice and dice a
mountain of raw ingredients. Do keep in
mind, however, that all the ingredients
need to be cooked before being stuffed into
the wrappers. This step eliminates excess
ust when it seemed Marie Kondo
had spread her gospel on the
“life-changing
magic”
of
decluttering as far is it could go, the author
— whose two previous books remain
international best-sellers — is back with a
different audience in mind.
Kondo’s message that you should keep
only things that “spark joy” is now in
manga form, with a love story as a
backdrop. Her new book, The Life-
Changing Manga of Tidying Up (Ten
Speed Press), features the work of artist
Yuko Uramoto and seems designed to
attract a younger set — including teenage
boys — many of whom probably missed out
on her earlier volumes.
And she may be on target.
While my two sons, ages 12 and 14, had
zero interest in her earlier books, they
battled over who could rip through Kondo’s
manga as soon as they spotted it on the
dining room table.
And while they rolled their eyes when I
asked if it had made a difference in their
lives, my younger son was soon putting his
desk in order and going through his
drawers, and my older son packed for a
family trip by carefully rolling his clothes
into neat little packets in his suitcase. He
also commented on a recently acquired
cabinet in our living room, noting Kondo’s
advice that additional storage furniture
should be unnecessary in a properly
decluttered home.
Then my boys passed the book on to a
friend, who also rolled his eyes and
shrugged when asked if he’d learned
anything from it. But within days, he’d
packed up no less than seven bags of
unwanted toys and clothes from his room.
A coincidence? Perhaps.
Manga is a form of graphic novel in
Kondo’s native Japan. “In Japan, manga is
a form of artistic expression and
entertainment that connects people across
generations,” Kondo wrote in an e-mail
when asked about the book.
“Creating the manga has been such a
fun and gratifying experience for me, and I
hope that it sparks joy for new readers and
fans alike!”
The fictional story tells of Chiaki
Suzuki, 29, single and living in a tiny
W
J
HOMEMADE EGG ROLLS. A serving of
Sara Moulton’s Not-Fried Egg Rolls with Soy Sesame
Dipping Sauce is seen in New York. Moulton says the
rolls are great as appetizers or a main dish. (Sara
Moulton via AP)
moisture and guarantees that everything
is thoroughly cooked.
The great thing about a deep-fried egg
roll is its crackly crisp shell. I’d never claim
that sautéing them delivers the same
crunch, but you’ll get close. That said, you
need to turn over each egg roll frequently
as it cooks in the skillet to make sure that
every part of its surface becomes nicely
browned.
Chinese restaurants classify egg rolls as
appetizers, but I see no reason to confine
them to a supporting role. These rolls are
quite substantial and, with the addition of
a simple side dish, they’ll do a stellar job in
the center of your dinner plate.
Not-Fried Egg Rolls with Soy Sesame Dipping Sauce
Servings: 4 to 6
Start to finish: 1 hour, 15 minutes
For the dipping sauce:
3 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoons rice vinegar (unseasoned)
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon sesame oil
For the egg rolls:
1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons minced ginger
2 teaspoons minced garlic
8 ounces ground pork
Kosher salt
1/3 cup thinly sliced scallions
1 cup finely chopped red pepper
1 cup coarsely grated carrot
2 cups finely shredded Napa cabbage
1/3 cup chicken broth
2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
14 egg roll wrappers
Make the dipping sauce: In a small bowl combine all the ingredients. Set
aside.
Make the egg rolls: In a large nonstick skillet, heat two tablespoons of the oil over
medium-high heat. Add the ginger and garlic and cook, stirring one minute. Add the
pork and a hefty pinch of salt, reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring, until it
turns white, about two minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to a medium bowl.
Add another tablespoon of the oil, the scallions, red pepper, and carrot to the
skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly softened, about two minutes.
Add the cabbage, stock, and soy sauce and simmer, stirring, until all of the liquid
has evaporated and the vegetables are tender but not mushy. Add the mixture to
the pork bowl, stir well, and set aside to cool to room temperature. Clean the skillet
and set it aside.
Working with two egg roll wrappers at a time, arrange them on the counter with
one of the corners facing you. Place a level 1/4 cup of the filling in the center of the
wrapper and bring up the bottom corner that is facing you halfway up to cover the
filling. Fold in the left and right corners of the wrapper snuggly over the filling.
Moisten the top corner and bring it down to form a rectangular package, pressing
firmly to make sure the top corner is well glued.
Heat two tablespoons of the oil in the large nonstick skillet over medium-high
heat. Add half the rolls to the skillet, reduce the heat to medium, and cook the rolls,
turning them frequently until they are golden brown on all sides, about six to eight
minutes total. Transfer them to paper towels to drain and repeat the procedure
with the remaining oil and egg rolls.
Transfer to plates and serve right away with the dipping sauce.
Nutrition information per serving of egg rolls: 459 calories (186 calories from fat);
21 g fat (4 g saturated, 0 g trans fats); 34 mg cholesterol; 746 mg sodium; 51 g
carbohydrate; 4 g fiber; 3 g sugar; 16 g protein.
Nutrition information per serving of sauce: 21 calories (10 calories from fat); 1 g
fat (0 g saturated, 0 g trans fats); 0 mg cholesterol; 432 mg sodium; 2 g carbohydrate;
0 g fiber; 1 g sugar; 1 g protein.
LIFE-CHANGING MAGIC. Marie Kondo is
spreading her gospel on the “life-changing magic” of
decluttering with a different audience in mind, in her
new book, The Life-Changing Manga of Tidying Up,
which is illustrated by Yuko Uramoto. (Ten Speed
Press via AP)
hoarders’ den of a Tokyo apartment. She
develops a crush on the handsome — and
minimalist — young man next door, a
professional cook whom she can’t bring
herself to invite over because of her messy
apartment.
The two meet when he complains about
the mountains of trash on her balcony.
Chiaki is a workaholic and never has
time to cook, but she dreams of preparing
delicious meals at home. Will she ever be
able to tidy up enough to invite her Prince
Charming to dinner?
Thanks to Kondo, who appears as a
character in the book — a sort of magical
decluttering fairy — the answer is yes.
Kondo, teaching her method of sifting
through belongings one category at a time,
helps Chiaki transform her apartment
and, in the process, her life. Chiaki learns
to appreciate the things around her,
recognize her forgotten dreams, and value
herself.
In short, she discovers the life-changing
magic of tidying up.
And yes, she does end up with the cute
guy next door, a role model for any reader,
of any age, who ever doubted that cooking
and tidying up was a certain way to one’s
heart.
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