Egg Roll in a Bowl That Tastes Like Takeout in 20 Minutes

Egg roll in a bowl is the filling of a takeout egg roll, cooked in one skillet and eaten with a fork: browned ground meat, garlic, ginger and shredded cabbage tossed in a soy-sesame sauce. This version uses lean ground turkey and a bag of coleslaw mix, takes 20 minutes, and gives you about 24 grams of protein per serving.

The one thing most recipes get wrong is the cabbage. Cook it too long and the bowl turns into soggy, watery slaw. Pull it while it still has a little bite and it tastes like the inside of a fresh egg roll. That timing is the whole trick, and the steps below are built around it.

Egg roll in a bowl ingredients

Serves 4. Prep 8 minutes, cook 12 minutes.

• 1 tbsp (14 g) toasted sesame oil
• 1 lb (454 g) 93% lean ground turkey (or lean ground pork)
• 4 green onions (60 g), whites and greens sliced separately
• 4 garlic cloves (12 g), minced
• 1 tbsp (6 g) grated fresh ginger
• 1 (14-oz) bag (400 g) coleslaw mix (shredded cabbage and carrots)
• 3 tbsp (48 g) low-sodium soy sauce
• 1 tbsp (15 ml) rice vinegar
• 1 to 2 tsp sriracha, to taste
• 1 tsp (3 g) sesame seeds, for topping

How to make egg roll in a bowl

1. Stir the soy sauce, rice vinegar and sriracha together in a small bowl and set it next to the stove.
2. Heat the sesame oil in a large skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Add the ground turkey and press it into an even layer. Let it sit 2 minutes so the bottom browns, then break it up and cook until no pink remains and it reaches 165°F (74°C), about 6 minutes total.
3. Add the green onion whites, garlic and ginger. Stir for 1 minute, until fragrant.
4. Add the coleslaw mix and toss with tongs so the cabbage touches the hot pan. Cook 3 to 4 minutes, just until it wilts but still has some crunch.
5. Pour in the sauce, toss for 30 seconds and take the pan off the heat.
6. Divide into 4 bowls and top with the green onion greens and sesame seeds.

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Per serving (1/4 of the recipe, made with turkey): about 250 calories, 24 g protein, 9.5 g carbs, 13.5 g fat, 3 g fiber and 540 mg sodium. Made with regular ground pork instead, it comes to about 378 calories, 22 g protein and 28 g fat.

These numbers are calculated from USDA FoodData Central values for each ingredient, with the coleslaw mix counted as 350 g cabbage and 50 g carrots. Sriracha, rice vinegar and any added salt are not included.

Tips for a better egg roll bowl

• Use the biggest pan you own. A 14-ounce bag of slaw looks like a mountain. In a small skillet it steams instead of searing and you get a puddle at the bottom.
• Brown the meat before you stir it. Lean turkey has little fat and almost no flavor of its own. Those 2 minutes of hands-off browning are where the savory taste comes from.
• Add the sauce last. Soy sauce added early pulls water out of the cabbage. Added at the end, it coats instead of pooling.
• Taste before salting. Even low-sodium soy sauce carries most of the sodium in this dish, so you probably will not need any extra salt.

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Ground turkey or ground pork?

Traditional egg rolls are usually filled with pork, and pork does give a richer, juicier bowl. The trade-off is fat. Per 100 grams raw, USDA lists 93% lean ground turkey at 150 calories and 8.3 g fat, and regular ground pork at 263 calories and 21.2 g fat. Over a full pound, that is the difference between the two per-serving numbers above.

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My pick for weeknights is turkey with the full tablespoon of toasted sesame oil, which brings back the nutty, takeout-style flavor that lean meat lacks. If you use pork, you can cut the sesame oil to 1 teaspoon and drain off some fat before the vegetables go in. Ground pork needs to reach 160°F (71°C); ground turkey and chicken need 165°F (74°C).

Ground chicken works exactly like turkey. Peeled shrimp work too: cook them last, for 2 to 3 minutes, so they do not turn rubbery.

The coleslaw mix shortcut (and what to use instead)

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A bagged coleslaw mix is the reason this recipe takes 20 minutes and not 35. It is already shredded thin, it has carrots for color, and it cooks evenly. Grab the plain mix, not a kit with dressing.

• Shred your own: about half a medium head of green cabbage plus 1 large carrot, both cut into thin strips, replaces one bag.
• Napa cabbage: softer and sweeter. Cut the cooking time to 2 minutes.
• Broccoli slaw: crunchier and holds up better in meal prep containers.
• Extra vegetables: sliced mushrooms, bean sprouts or a handful of shredded red cabbage can go in with the slaw without changing the method.

Easy variations

• With egg: push the cooked cabbage to one side, scramble 2 eggs in the empty space and fold them in. It adds protein and makes the bowl taste even more like fried rice.
• Over rice: serve on brown rice or cauliflower rice for a more filling dinner.
• Crispy topping: crumble a few baked wonton strips on top for the crunch of the wrapper.
• Spicy: add a pinch of red pepper flakes with the garlic and finish with chili crisp.
• Gluten-free: swap the soy sauce for tamari or coconut aminos and check the label on your sriracha.

Egg roll in a bowl for meal prep

This is one of the fastest lunches you can batch cook. For the containers, take the cabbage off the heat a minute early, since it softens more when you reheat it. Keep the green onions, sesame seeds and any sriracha for serving day.

Cooked leftovers keep 3 to 4 days in the fridge, according to FoodSafety.gov’s cold storage chart, and should be reheated to 165°F (74°C). Freezing is safe, but thawed cabbage turns limp, so I prefer eating this one fresh within the week. Raw ground turkey or pork keeps only 1 to 2 days in the fridge, so cook it soon after buying or freeze it.

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If you want a full week of turkey lunches, pair this bowl with the taco bowls and meatballs in our ground turkey meal prep ideas, or add baked turkey meatballs for a second protein. For more ideas that stay light, see our low calorie high protein meals.

What to serve with it

On its own, a bowl is a light dinner. To make it heartier, spoon it over rice, serve it with a side of steamed edamame, or put out a cucumber salad dressed with rice vinegar. If you are cooking for people who want something more familiar, our healthy stuffed peppers with ground turkey use the same pound of meat in a completely different way.

Sources

• USDA FoodData Central via getfoodfacts.com: Turkey, ground, 93% lean, 7% fat, raw (FDC 172850)
• USDA FoodData Central via getfoodfacts.com: Pork, fresh, ground, raw (FDC 167902)
• USDA FoodData Central records for the other ingredients via getfoodfacts.com: cabbage (169975), carrots (170393), sesame oil (171016), low-sodium soy sauce (172473), garlic (169230), ginger (169231), green onions (170005), sesame seeds (170150)
• FoodSafety.gov: Cold Food Storage Charts
• FoodSafety.gov: Safe Minimum Internal Temperatures