Several weeks ago, my husband and I walked into an out-of-town restaurant specializing in Asian cuisine. The restaurant seemed to appear like a mirage in a long stretch of highway, and at 2 p.m., it was still full of diners who, like us, were trying to catch a late lunch.

 

This place must serve good food, we thought. No restaurant serving lousy meals would still be full of customers at this late hour.

 

And, indeed, the food we had was more than passable. One of them was a shrimp dish which reminded me of camaron rebosado, an old-fashioned dish that’s hardly served in restaurants these days. The combination of pork and shrimps was encased in lumpia wrapper and was served with a piquant sauce.

 

At home I recreated the dish, with much success and to the delight of my family. It’s really quite simple to make, especially if you prepare the ingredients ahead.

 

You can, for instance, peel the prawns and cook the pork early in the day, then keep them in the refrigerator so they don’t spoil. When ready to cook, remove them from the refrigerator and bring to room temperature for about 15 minutes. Wrap as instructed and fry in hot oil just before serving.

 

This is also a good dish to take to parties and potluck dinners.

 

Pork and prawn ‘lumpia’

Makes 6-8 servings

 

24 medium-size prawns

2 tbsp cooking oil, for sautéing

1 medium onion, chopped

5 cloves garlic, chopped

½ k ground pork

Salt and pepper

24 pieces lumpia wrappers

Water, for brushing on the wrappers

1-2 c cooking oil

 

Peel the prawns. Remove the heads of the prawns but leave the tails intact. Slit the back of the prawns slightly and remove the thin black vein. Set aside.

 

In a large cooking pan, heat the two tablespoons cooking oil over low heat. Sauté the onions for one to two minutes. Add the garlic and sauté a further one minute, just until they turn golden brown.

 

Stir in the ground pork and season with salt and pepper. Stir quickly over low heat until the pork is fully cooked. Transfer the mixture to a clean bowl. Let cool.

 

Stretch the peeled prawns slightly to straighten them. Into each lumpia wrapper, arrange a prawn on one side, with its tail slightly sticking out of the wrapper. Spoon about one to two tablespoons of the cooked pork beside the prawn.

 

Brush the edges of the lumpia wrapper with a little water. Carefully roll the wrapper to enclose the fillings completely. Press to seal. Repeat with remaining pork mixture and wrappers.

 

In a large wok, heat the one to two cups cooking oil. Fry the wrapped lumpia in the hot oil, in batches of four to five (depending on the size of your wok), until they turn golden brown, then transfer them to a plate lined with paper towels.

 

Serve with sweet and sour sauce.

 

Sweet and sour sauce

½ c white sugar

½ tsp salt

½ c white vinegar

¼ c tomato ketchup

2 tbsp cornstarch

1 c water

 

In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, salt, vinegar and ketchup. Turn the heat to low. Combine the cornstarch and water in a bowl and stir well until the cornstarch is completely dissolved. Pour into the vinegar-ketchup mixture.

 

Bring to a boil then lower heat to a simmer. Stir well. Let simmer until the sauce is smooth and thick. Serve with the lumpia.