​I remember filling out the “Get to Know Me” sheets in kindergarten to maybe 3rd or 4th grade. Every sheet had about the same, favorite movie, your name, favorite place you’ve visited, but I always got so excited to share my favorite food, which had always been Lumpia. My grandmother would call me down, spending the entire day washing, peeling, and cutting all the different vegetables. I would sit on the counter watching her in pure awe as she stirred them around in a steaming pan, it was like art to me. The folding was my favorite part, me and her would snack on the vegetables while stuffing them onto the paper, dabbing drops of water along the edges. I had always been so proud of my cultural background, but I had never got the chance to experience it with my friends. The first time I wrote down “Lumpia” in big bold letters, my classmate asked me what it was. I replied confidently, “It’s my favorite food! My grandmother and I make it together every time something big happens, we make it with vegetables then you fry it. It’s like a spring roll.” After I had said that I realized people had been looking at me. I was confused, I didn’t understand what was so different. I looked over at everyone’s papers while receiving confused looks and comments, each of my classmates had written some American food, and that was when I accepted that things are different for me. I grew a bit ashamed of my culture, especially the food. Dumping my home-cooked asian food down the trash because my American classmates weren’t accustomed to the look, the smell, whatever they didn't understand. As I grew up, my grandmother made sure to continue my love for the Philippines, reminding me every day to love and remember my culture and where I’m from. She also reminded me of the importance of food in our culture, it isn’t seen as an indulgence but rather a celebration for the people around you and the origins of what you’re putting into your body. She made sure I could never forget to cherish my culture, setting that in stone by gifting me this recipe. 

Ingredients:

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- ​Small onion
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 2 Carrots
- ¼ head of Cabbage
- 1 cup Fresh mungbean sprout 
- 1 cup green beans 
- 1-2 tablespoons Soy sauce
- Pepper to taste
- Medium firm tofu (cut into small strips)
- Filipino lumpia wrapper

Instructions:

Instructions:

  1. Wash and set aside sprouts.
  2. Wash, drain, and julienne all the other vegetables.
  3. Sauté onion and garlic in a pan with a small amount of neutral oil until onion is translucent.
  4. Add your carrots, green beans, cabbage, and tofu to your pan.
  5. Add soya sauce and ground pepper to taste
  6. Cover and steam the veggies until half cooked. 
  7. Turn off heat and let cool.
  8. Once cooled, mix in your sprouts.
  9. Put a spoon full of the veggies onto one side of the wrapper.
  10. Wrap like you would a burrito and add water to the edges to seal it.
  11. Add neutral oil to a pot and fry your lumpia, serve, and enjoy!