chanukah
Abby Ricarte | JTA.org
T here’s no question that the most
delicious, comforting recipes are
the simplest, especially if they come
with a bushel of history and soul.

My Jewish husband Miki’s grand-
mother (Grandma Esta) made the best
brisket I’ve ever tasted. I know that these
might be fighting words, but hear me
out. It was complex, sweet and tender —
everything that Grandma Esta embod-
ied. I was honored that she passed down
her recipe to me, but also surprised that
the world’s best brisket could pretty much
be made only with carrots and onions.

My own Filipina mother makes
the best lumpia. Hands down. World’s
best, even. Lumpia is a Filipino spring
roll filled with meat (or vegetables)
rolled skillfully and fried to golden
perfection. My earliest food memories include
platters of lumpia at family parties
with relatives raving while inhaling as
my mom basked in the compliments.

Preparing for parties typically meant
that my mom would make the fill-
ing ahead of time. Eventually, I would
lose many of my weekend mornings to
hours of rolling lumpia for her in front
of that never-ending bowl of filling. I
had no idea what was in the filling. It
wasn’t until I was an adult, throwing
my own parties, that I was able to pull
back the curtain on the mysterious,
world’s best lumpia recipe and call my
mom to just ask.

After Rosh Hashanah, when I
have leftover brisket in my fridge and
guests coming over, my first thought
is: Let’s turn this into lumpia! Lumpia
is always a crowd-pleaser and easy to
fry ahead and serve at room tempera-
!חמש הכונח
- The Rothenberg Family
 MANHATTAN | LAKEWOOD | PHILADELPHIA
BROOKLYN | MONSEY | HACKENSACK | CHERRY HILL
20 DECEMBER 8, 2022 | JEWISHEXPONENT.COM
ture. My brisket lumpia was merely a
quick Filipinx/Jewish experiment, but
it tasted so wonderfully familiar. I had
forgotten that my mom’s lumpia’s rec-
ipe is really mostly carrots and onions
just like Grandma Esta’s brisket. As I
look forward to creating my own spe-
cial Jewish home with my husband,
I’m comforted by these unexpected
connections between his family and
my own.

Note: You can find spring roll pas-
try for this recipe in the freezer aisle
at Asian food markets. It is similar to
phyllo dough, but not the same as egg
roll wrappers.

1 pound ground beef
1 cup raw walnuts
2 yellow onions, roughly chopped
1 carrot, roughly chopped
1 teaspoon of salt (plus more to
taste) 1 packet spring roll pastry (found in
the freezer aisle at Asian grocery
stores — similar to phyllo dough)
2 tablespoons neutral oil (such as
avocado, grapeseed, vegetable)
plus about ½ cup more for
shallow frying
Store-bought sweet chili sauce for
dipping To make the filling:
1. In a food processor, add the wal-
nuts, onions and carrot. Pulse until
finely minced.

2. In a large wok or sauté pan
on medium-high heat, heat 2 table-
spoons of oil. Add the vegetable mix-
ture and saute for 2 minutes.

3. Add the ground beef to the pan,
and combine thoroughly. Cook until
the beef is just about brown, and
there is no more red. Add salt to taste.

Remove the filling from the pan and
set it aside to cool.

4. Roll the lumpia. Place a single
pastry sheet onto a cutting board
or clean counter. Point one corner
toward you so that the sheet is posi-
tioned like a diamond. Add about two
teaspoons of the cooled filling to the
lower triangle that is closest to you.

Use your fingers to shape the filling
into a log. Pull the bottom corner up
and over the filling, and roll tightly,
tucking in the sides like a burrito.

5. Use a dab of water on your finger
to seal the final edge. Repeat and roll
the rest of the lumpia.

6. To a large wok or pan on medi-
um-high heat, add enough oil so that
it reaches about ½ inch from the
bottom of the pan. Gently heat the
oil, and fry the lumpia until golden
brown. Serve the lumpia with a side of
sweet chili sauce for dipping. JE
This story was originally published on
The Nosher.

Courtesy of The Nosher
This Fried Filipino Delicacy
Is Perfect for Chanukah