Spring rolls are made of dry dough filled with fillings and fried or deep-fried. It evolved from the custom of eating spring dishes on the first day of spring.

According to the "Fengtu Ji" written by the Jin and Zhou Dynasties: "Wu Xin Plate is made on New Year's Day", which means five kinds of pungent and meaty vegetables for people to eat in spring, so it is also called "Spring Plate". In the Tang Dynasty, its content developed and changed. "Four Seasons Treasure Mirror" said: "On the first day of spring, people eat radish, spring pancakes, and lettuce, called spring dishes." After that, the development became more and more sophisticated, and as late as the Yuan Dynasty, there was already stuffing stuffing. Deep fried spring rolls recorded.

Spring Rolls

Spring Rolls

The "Complete Collection of Household Necessities" compiled by Anonymous in the Yuan Dynasty records that "rolling pancakes": "Spread thin pancakes with walnut kernels, Pine nuts, peach kernels, hazelnuts, young lotus meat, dried persimmons, ripe lotus roots, ginkgo, ripe chestnuts, and terminalia nuts. Chop all the above finely except for the chestnut slices. Mix with honey and icing sugar, add minced mutton, minced ginger, salt, and green onions. Mix it into a filling, roll it into pancakes, and blanch it in oil. This is the early method of making spring rolls. There are similar records in the Ming Dynasty cookbook "Yi Ya Yiyi".

The name spring rolls appeared in the Qing Dynasty. Although "Tiao Ding Ji" is still named "Spring Pancake", it has been made into a roll shape. The original text is: "Dry dough is wrapped with ham, chicken, etc., or cabbage sum in four seasons, and fried for guests. Also, Chop bacon loin, garlic flakes, black dates, walnut kernels, and sugar into pieces, roll into spring cakes and cut into sections. Use only peeled persimmons to mash, add cooked bacon, and fat strips, roll the spring cakes into small rolls, and cut into sections. You can also just use peeled persimmons and cut them into strips to make rolls. "Here are three methods of making them, including stuffing (both salty and sweet) and rolling. It is a typical spring roll shape and production method, very similar to today's spring rolls. .

Spring rolls are called spring cakes in modern times

Eating spring rolls at the beginning of spring is a traditional custom among Chinese people, just like eating rice dumplings on the Dragon Boat Festival and eating dumplings on New Year's Eve, it has accompanied people for thousands of years. Continuing throughout the years, spring rolls are also called spring pancakes. In addition to expressing the meaning of welcoming the New Year, spring rolls usually contain a lot of fresh spring vegetables, so their nutritional value is very high.

Historical development

Spring rolls

Spring rolls

Spring rolls have a long history in our country, and northerners also call them "spring pancakes". It is said that it existed in the Eastern Jin Dynasty. It was called "Spring Pan" at that time. At that time, every time on the first day of spring, people would spread pancakes made of flour on a plate and add exquisite vegetables to eat, so it was called "spring plate". At that time, it was not only eaten on the first day of spring, but people also brought "spring plates" during spring outings. In the Tang and Song Dynasties, this trend became more popular. The famous poet Du Fu's poems "Spring plate with thin lettuce" and Lu You's "Spring plate with new things" truly reflect this living custom of people in the Tang and Song Dynasties. In the Tang Dynasty, Chunpan was also called Wuxin Pan.

Wu Zimu of the Song Dynasty described it this way in "Meng Liang Lu": "Changshu rice cakes, wontons, spring cakes, vegetable cakes, and dumpling soup." By the Qing Dynasty, wealthy or scholarly families also Eat more spring cakes.

Spring Rolls

Spring Rolls

Li Shizhen of the Ming Dynasty said: "It is a mixture of onions, garlic, leeks, polygonum, artemisia and mustard that are pungent and tender. It is called "Wuxin Pan." Later, spring pan and Wu Xin Pan evolved into spring cakes.

Fucha Dunchong of the Qing Dynasty recorded in "Yanjing Years' Notes: Fighting Spring": "In those days, rich families ate more spring cakes, and women bought more radishes and ate them. They called them biting spring, which means they can "It's spring time." In this way, eating spring pancakes has gradually become a traditional custom to bring good luck and ward off disasters.

With the development and improvement of cooking technology, "spring cakes" have evolved into small and exquisite spring rolls. At this time, it not only became a folk snack, but also became a palace cake and entered the hall of elegance. Among the 128 dishes in the "Manchu-Han Banquet" in the Qing Dynasty court, spring rolls were one of the nine main snacks.