Cha Gio Chay / Vegan Tofu Egg Rolls

Since the release of my Dear Mam vegetarian fish sauce, I’ve been sharing more and more vegan Vietnamese recipes across my social media platforms, and your response to them has been nothing short of incredible. Reading all of the messages and comments about how much you love them has inspired me to continue sharing more vegan/vegetarian recipes. So today, we’re keeping the ball rolling with this cha gio chay, my take on vegan tofu egg rolls.

Golden and crispy on the outside and filled with crumbled tofu, shredded carrots and jicama, wood ear mushrooms, and bean thread noodles. The result is a seriously delicious egg roll. And honestly, if you are a carnivore through and through like me, you won’t miss the meat one bit, because these egg rolls are just that good.

Why You’ll Love These Vegan Egg Rolls

• They are insanely crispy, not soggy. The secret to the filling is moisture control: making sure you squeeze out the excess water from the veggies and making sure the tofu is dry will result in an egg roll that will stay crispy long after it’s fried.
• The filling tastes like the real thing. Wood ear mushrooms bring that signature snap and earthiness, bean thread noodles add a delicate chew, and firm crumbled tofu stands in beautifully for the traditional pork. Jicama and carrot round it all out with a natural sweetness.
• They freeze like a dream. Roll a big batch, freeze them raw, and fry straight from frozen whenever a craving hits. This is exactly how Vietnamese families have always done it, and they’ll last in the freezer for months on end.
• That dipping sauce. A vegan nuoc cham sweetened with monk fruit keeps things bright and low in sugar without losing an ounce of that salty, sour, spicy magic.

Ingredient Notes

Egg roll wrappers. Read the label before you buy. Despite the name, some egg roll wrappers really do contain egg, which would keep this recipe from being vegan. Look for wrappers made simply from wheat flour, water, and salt. My go to brand of wrappers have been Spring Home.

Firm tofu. Firm tofu crumbles into meaty, satisfying pieces and soaks up the seasoning. Press and pat it very dry so it does not water down your filling.

Cornstarch. This might be the secret ingredient that hold its all together. Literally. It binds the filling and absorbs any lingering moisture so your rolls stay crisp.

Dear Mam Vegetarian fish sauce. In my very biased opinion, this is the closest you can get to fish sauce without using any fish. For recipes like this, it honestly works as a 1:1 subsitution.

How to Make Cha Gio Chay, Step by Step

Prepwork

Rehydrate the wood ear mushrooms and bean thread noodles. Place the dried wood ear mushrooms in one bowl and the bean thread noodles in another. Cover both with water and let them soak until soft and pliable, about 5-10 minutes. Drain them well, and then using a pair of scissors cut them up into smaller pieces.

Shred and squeeze the carrot and jicama. Peel and then shred the carrot and jicama on a box grater or in a food processor. This is the most important moisture step, so do not skip it. Pile the shreds into a clean kitchen towel or just in your hands and wring hard over the sink until the water stops dripping. Wet filling is the number one reason egg rolls turn out soggy, so squeeze like you mean it.

Pat the tofu dry, then crumble it. Press the block of firm tofu and pat it really dry with paper towels or a clean towel. The drier the tofu, the crispier your rolls. Once it is thoroughly dry, crumble it into small, uneven pieces with your hands.

Mix the Filling

In a large bowl, combine the crumbled tofu, chopped wood ear mushrooms, bean thread noodles, shredded carrot, and shredded jicama. Add the cornstarch, Dear Mam vegetarian fish sauce, MSG, black pepper, and oil. Mix everything together with your hands until all the ingredients are evenly distributed. The filling should feel moist but not wet. If it looks watery, give it one more gentle squeeze.

Make the Vegan Nuoc Cham

In a small bowl, combine the Dear Mam Vegetarian fish sauce with monk fruit sweetener and water. Add minced garlic, chopped Thai chilies, and lime juice, then whisk to combine.

Roll the Egg Rolls

Set up a rolling station, and seperate each layer of the egg roll warpper so that it’s ready to be rolled. Place one wrapper on your work surface with a corner pointing toward you, like a diamond. Fold up that bottom corner towards the center of the wrapper.

Spoon about 2 to 3 tablespoons of filling into a log shape right on top of the fold.

Roll the wrapper over the filling.

Then fold in the two side corners snugly.

Roll upward into a tight cylinder. Dab the top corner with water and press to seal. Repeat with the remaining wrappers and filling.

Fry Until Golden

Pour enough oil into a heavy pot or wok to submerge the rolls, about two inches deep, and heat it to 350F. Fry the egg rolls in small batches so the oil stays hot, turning them occasionally, until deep golden brown and crisp all over, about 4 to 6 minutes per batch. Do not overcrowd the pot. Lift them out with chopsticks or a spider and drain on a wire rack. Serve hot with the vegan nuoc cham. Enjoy!

Tips for the Crispiest Vegan Egg Rolls

Dry filling wins every time. I know I keep saying it, but moisture is the enemy of crunch. Squeeze the carrot, jicama, mushrooms, and noodles, and pat that tofu bone dry.

Mind your oil temperature. Too cool and the rolls drink up oil and turn greasy. Too hot and the outside burns before the inside cooks. A thermometer holding steady between 325F and 350F is your best friend for this recipe.

Roll them tight. A loose roll traps air and can burst in the oil. A snug, firm cylinder fries evenly and holds its shape.

Fry in batches. Adding too many rolls at once drops the oil temperature fast. Give them room and the heat stays where you want it.

Make Ahead, Storage, and Freezing

Refrigerate the filling up to two days ahead in a sealed container, then roll and fry when you are ready.

Freeze raw egg rolls in a single layer on a tray until solid, then transfer them to a freezer bag for up to three months. Fry straight from frozen, adding a minute or two, with no thawing needed. This is the way to always have chả giò on hand.

Store leftover fried rolls in the fridge for up to four days. Reheat in an air fryer or oven at 375F until hot and crisp again. Skip the microwave, which turns them soft.