The ube jam and cheese combination works? It sure does. But the key here is finding a good balance between sweet and salty.
Some ube jams are sweeter than others while some cheeses are saltier than others. You’ll have to source an ube jam and a cheese variety that will go well together. For better control, you can always make your own ube jam.
Purple yam (ube) and halaya (jam)
It is Dioscorea alata, a purple-colored tuber (not be confused with taro or purplish sweet potato). We grow it in the garden to make halaya (jam).
For best results, chill the ube jam well before use. Cut the cheese into strips, arrange on a tray, cover with cling film and freeze until rock hard. That way, the cold ube jam will just warm a bit during frying and not soften to a thin paste. And the cheese will soften without melting totally so it does not seep out of the wrapper.
When you’re ready to make your ube jam and cheese spring rolls, take out the cold ube jam and frozen cheese. Spread ube jam on a spring roll wrapper and top with a stick of cheese.
Fold one end of the spring roll wrapper to cover the fillings then fold the side inward before rolling the parcel to form a log. Folding in the sides minimizes the chance of the fillings seeping out during frying. It also prevents too much oil from seeping into the spring roll.
Don’t forget to moisten the edges of the spring roll wrapper with a little water (or egg wash) to completely seal in the fillings.
Fry the ube jam and cheese spring rolls in hot oil. Make sure you have plenty of oil in the pan so that the spring rolls can be rolled around during frying to ensure even browning and cooking. If your pan is not too large, fry the spring rolls in batches to prevent the oil temperature from dropping. You want to retain the ideal frying temperature to keep the cooking time short.
Ube (purple yam) and cheese spring rolls
Ingredients
- 16 small spring roll wrappers - separated
- ¾ cup ube jam - well chilled
- 16 sticks cheese - frozen
- cooking oil - for deep frying
Instructions
- Lay a spring roll wrapper flat on your work surface and spread a heaping teaspoon of ube halaya across the middle.
- Place a stick of frozen cheese on top of the ube halaya and fold the side of the wrapper nearest you over the filling.
- Gather the sides of the wrapper and fold in.
- Continue rolling until the filling is enfolded.
- Moisten the edge of the wrapper with water (or egg wash) and roll to completely seal the filling.
- Do the same with the remaining ube halaya, cheese and spring roll wrappers.
- In a wok or frying pan, heat enough cooking oil to reach a depth of at least two inches.
- Fry the spring rolls in batches until the surface is golden and crisp.
- Serve your ube halaya and cheese spring rolls immediately.
