Okay, forget everything you thought you knew about spring rolls being a deep-fried ordeal hiding under layers of grease! I’m telling you, my heart nearly leaped out of my chest the first time I pulled a batch of these out of the machine. They are genuinely golden, shatteringly crisp, and miles better for you. That’s right—we are mastering truly crispy **Air Fryer Spring Rolls** right now! Seriously, the cleanup is such a breeze compared to dealing with hot oil splatter everywhere, which is why this recipe is my go-to. If you’ve been nervous about making homemade rolls, this quick method is your ticket to appetizer heaven!

Why You Will Love Making Air Fryer Spring Rolls

They cook up faster than takeout runs—seriously, 10 minutes, tops!
That crackle you hear? Pure, beautiful crispiness without drowning them in oil.
Cleanup is a dream. Just wipe down the basket when you’re done.
You get to control exactly what goes inside, making them healthier and tastier.

This recipe is my favorite for impromptu movie nights. I always have the filling veggies on hand, and when I need a quick fix, I jump over to see what other speedy snacks are possible over here. Trust me, once you try these, you won’t go back to the old ways!

Essential Ingredients for Perfect Air Fryer Spring Rolls

Gathering your supplies is half the battle, and honestly, this filling is super straightforward. It’s all about texture and getting a nice, savory base before we roll them up tight. You’ll need 12 spring roll wrappers—make sure they are the thin kind meant for rolling, not the thick wrappers for lumpia, or they won’t get that perfect crunch!

For the heart of the filling, grab 1 cup of shredded cabbage, and make sure you chop it a little finer so it cooks evenly. Follow that with 1/2 cup of shredded carrots. For the protein, you have options! I usually use 1/2 cup of cooked, shredded chicken, but feel free to swap in finely crumbled tofu if you’re keeping it vegetarian. We’re adding 1/4 cup of sliced mushrooms for earthiness. If you’re looking for general kitchen wisdom while you prep these veggies, sometimes I think about all the basics I learned right here.

Finally, the flavor boosters! Mix in 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, 1 teaspoon of sesame oil, and just 1/2 teaspoon of ground ginger. That’s it! Mix it all until the veggies are lightly coated and ready to go. Don’t over-mix, though; we want the vegetables to stay distinct!

Expert Tips for Rolling Your Air Fryer Spring Rolls

Rolling spring rolls can feel a little fiddly at first—I always remind myself it’s like wrapping a tiny, delicious burrito! The absolute biggest mistake people make is overstuffing them. Trust me, when you see how much they puff up in the air fryer, you’ll realize that only about two tablespoons of filling is really what you need per wrapper. Anything more, and you’re asking for a blowout!

When you fold up the sides to enclose the filling, make sure you keep the tension snug. This is key for nice, even cooking later on. If they are too loose, the hot air gets inside and puffs them up unevenly, making them floppy instead of crisp. If you are curious about common kitchen hiccups, I learned a ton about avoiding failure points by reading up on this mistake avoidance guide.

Achieving the Best Seal on Your Air Fryer Spring Rolls

The final step is critical! Once you’ve rolled it up tightly, you need to lick your finger and moisten that final edge of the wrapper. That little bit of water acts like glue and seals the roll completely shut. If you skip this, those beautiful rolls will definitely unwrap themselves mid-air fry, and nobody wants that mess. A tight seal ensures the hot air works on the outside wrapper, guaranteeing crispiness!

Step-by-Step Instructions for Crispy Air Fryer Spring Rolls

Alright, now that we’ve got our perfectly rolled little packages, it’s time for the magic part! Don’t worry if you feel anxious about the air frying part; it’s so much easier than deep frying. Remember, we want them golden and crackly, not soggy, and the air fryer is fantastic at that. If you’ve ever made anything remotely tricky in your air fryer, like my favorite cod recipe, you already know the drill!

First things first: you need to make sure your air fryer is ready to rumble. While we assemble stuff, preheat it up to 380°F (195°C). The heat needs to be established before those rolls go in to get that instant crisp. Once they’re ready, we start with the spray. You must make sure you lightly spray the assembled rolls all over with cooking spray, or if you prefer, give them a thin brush of oil. This is what gets the wrapper beautifully golden brown!

Take your first batch of sprayed spring rolls and gently place them inside the air fryer basket. This next part is non-negotiable: they cannot touch! They need space for the hot air to circulate completely around them.
Cook them for 8 to 10 minutes in total.
Around the halfway mark—maybe at the 5-minute point—you’ll need to carefully pull the basket out and flip every single roll over. This ensures both sides get that glorious, even brown color.

Prepping and Cooking Your Air Fryer Spring Rolls

The single-layer rule is honestly the most important thing to remember when cooking anything crispy in the air fryer, especially when dealing with crowd-pleasers like these rolls. If they are piled up, the middle ones steam, and we end up with sad, limp wrappers, and nobody wants failure when they’re craving something wonderfully crispy!

Stick to the specified temperature: 380°F (195°C). Going much higher, and you risk burning the thin wrapper before the filling heats through. That 8 to 10-minute window is perfect for achieving that golden brown finish. When they look deeply golden and sound hollow when you gently tap them, they are absolutely done and ready to serve right away!

Ingredient Notes and Substitutions for Air Fryer Spring Rolls

So you’re missing one ingredient? No sweat! That’s the beauty of homemade food, right? If you happen to be out of cabbage, finely shredded Napa cabbage works wonderfully, or even thinly sliced bok choy adds a nice crunch. For the protein, if you’re skipping the chicken or tofu, ground pork or finely diced shrimp are amazing additions, just make sure whatever you choose is already cooked through before mixing!

If you are curious about how to swap ingredients in other recipes, I often look back at tips about substitutions, like the ones I found useful when I need a quick fix for a dairy swap. It reminds you that cooking should be flexible!

Here’s my biggest tip for wrapper freshness: if your wrappers feel stiff or crack easily when you unroll them, they are too dry. Don’t try to force them! You can quickly refresh them by laying the whole stack between two slightly damp (not soaking!) paper towels for a minute or two. Happy rolling!

Serving Suggestions for Your Air Fryer Spring Rolls

These rolls are delicious all on their own, honestly, but the sauce makes the whole experience! You absolutely need a good dipping sauce ready to go. Sweet chili sauce is my forever favorite—I love the sweet heat contrasting with the savory filling. A simple splash of soy sauce mixed with a tiny bit of rice vinegar is also perfect if you want something tangier.

If you’re trying to stretch this appetizer into a full light lunch, don’t just serve the rolls solo. Pile them up next to a quick, crunchy cucumber salad or a fresh bed of mixed greens tossed with a light peanut dressing. We need that freshness to balance the crispy wrapper!

If you are exploring other easy sauces to pair with these, I really suggest checking out how to whip up a great homemade sauce; sometimes the quality of your sauce is everything. You can find my favorite quick recipe inspiration right here—though I use it for tacos, it’s surprisingly good with the rolls too when you skip the spice!

Storage and Reheating Air Fryer Spring Rolls

We all know the struggle: you made a massive batch because you couldn’t stop eating them, and now you have a few lonely rolls left over. Don’t worry, these are fantastic the next day if you store them correctly! Once they are completely cooled down—and I mean stone-cold—tuck them into an airtight container. Keep them in the fridge; they should be good for about three days this way.

Now, here’s the important part: you absolutely cannot eat refrigerated spring rolls cold. They get chewy, and that beautiful crispness is totally lost. Don’t even try the microwave; you’ll regret it instantly!

The only way to bring these back to life is back into the air fryer. Yes, it’s worth the five minutes! Pull them out of the container and place them back in the basket, again making sure they aren’t touching. Set the temperature slightly higher this time—around 390°F (200°C)—and let them cook for just 3 to 4 minutes. You are just reheating and crisping them, not cooking them from scratch. They come out piping hot and crunchy again, good as new!

Frequently Asked Questions About Air Fryer Spring Rolls

Can I freeze these Air Fryer Spring Rolls before cooking?

Oh, that’s a brilliant question for meal prepping! Yes, you absolutely can assemble them and then freeze them, but you have to follow a couple of rules for them to stay easy when you want to cook them later. Once the rolls are perfectly sealed, place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper so they aren’t touching. Flash freeze them until they are totally solid—that usually takes about an hour in my freezer.

After they’re frozen solid, transfer them to a heavy-duty freezer bag. When you’re ready to cook, pull them out of the freezer and cook them straight from frozen! You’ll need to add about 3 to 5 extra minutes to the total cook time, but don’t thaw them first. They still need that cooking spray treatment right before they go in!

What if my spring rolls aren’t getting crispy?

If you are looking at your basket and thinking, “These aren’t crispy enough,” don’t panic! Usually, there are two main culprits here. First, you are overcrowding the air fryer basket. Seriously, they need space to breathe, or they steam! If they are touching, pull some out and cook in another small batch later.

Second, you might have skipped the fat entirely. You truly need that light coating of oil or cooking spray. It’s what mimics the hot oil bath needed for that golden color and amazing texture. If you want to see how I get other things incredibly crispy in the air fryer, check out my tips for making mushrooms perfectly crunchy—the basic principles of not overcrowding and using enough spray are the same!

Can I skip the cooking spray/oil altogether?

Technically, you *could*, but then they won’t be crispy, and that defeats the whole purpose of making these easy spring rolls at home, right? Without some kind of fat on the wrapper, the hot air just dries them out instead of crisping them up. They’ll likely tear or turn pale and tough. For the lowest fat option possible, use a good fine-mist cooking spray rather than brushing on a thick layer of oil. It gives you enough coverage for that golden crunch.

My filling is soggy—what did I do wrong?

That would almost always trace back to the filling being too wet before you even started rolling. Remember, the veggies release a little moisture as they sit, and if you didn’t mix them right before rolling, that moisture sneaks out into the wrapper. To prevent this next time, make sure you taste your filling and adjust the soy sauce sparingly first. Also, try setting the already mixed filling aside for just five minutes; if any excess liquid pools at the bottom of the bowl, gently drain that before you start wrapping. Keep it easy and delicious!

Estimated Nutritional Information for Air Fryer Spring Rolls

Now, I always keep things real with you all, and when it comes to the nutrition breakdown for dishes like these wonderfully easy spring rolls, you have to take it with a grain of salt—or, in this case, a grain of soy sauce!

The ingredient list, especially whether you use chicken or tofu, and exactly how much sesame oil dares to cling to that wrapper, plays a huge role. What I show on the recipe card is generally calculated based on the most standard approximations for 12 rolls. But listen, homemade food is a moving target, and that’s okay!

So, please treat these figures as a helpful starting point, not a gospel truth. If you are counting religiously, you might want to calculate it exactly based on the specific brand of wrappers or the exact amount of oil spray you use. For most of us, though, knowing it’s a lower-fat appetizer than the deep-fried stuff and enjoying it guilt-free is the real win!

Air Fryer Spring Rolls

Author: freddyrecipes.com
Total Time: 30 min
Yield: 12 rolls 1x
Diet: Low Fat

Print Recipe

Description

Crispy spring rolls made quickly in the air fryer.

Ingredients

Scale

12 spring roll wrappers
1 cup shredded cabbage
1/2 cup shredded carrots
1/2 cup cooked, shredded chicken or tofu
1/4 cup sliced mushrooms
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
Cooking spray

Instructions

Combine cabbage, carrots, chicken or tofu, mushrooms, soy sauce, sesame oil, and ginger in a bowl. Mix well.
Place about 2 tablespoons of the filling onto one corner of a spring roll wrapper.
Fold the corner over the filling, then fold in the sides. Roll tightly to seal the wrapper. Lightly moisten the final edge with water to seal. Repeat with remaining filling and wrappers.
Lightly spray the assembled spring rolls with cooking spray.
Place the spring rolls in a single layer in the air fryer basket, ensuring they do not touch. You may need to cook in batches.
Air fry at 380F (195C) for 8 to 10 minutes, flipping halfway through, until golden brown and crisp.
Serve immediately.

Notes

For extra crispiness, you can lightly brush the rolls with a thin layer of oil instead of using cooking spray.
Serve with sweet chili sauce or soy sauce for dipping.

Prep Time: 20 min
Cook Time: 10 min
Category: Appetizer
Method: Air Frying
Cuisine: Asian

Nutrition

Serving Size: 1 roll
Calories: 110
Sugar: 1
Sodium: 180
Fat: 3
Saturated Fat: 0.5
Unsaturated Fat: 2.5
Trans Fat: 0
Carbohydrates: 17
Fiber: 1
Protein: 4
Cholesterol: 5

Keywords: air fryer, spring rolls, appetizer, crispy, easy, vegetable rolls