Southwestern Egg Rolls with Avocado Cilantro Sauce

Easy to make southwestern egg rolls! Filled with a colorful array of veggies, chicken, and black beans! You can bake, air fry, or fry these Southwestern egg rolls! And that avocado cilantro dipping sauce is so creamy and delicious!

Southwestern Egg Rolls!!

Loaded with all sorts of delicious ingredients like corn, baby spinach, red bell peppers, scallions, black beans, and chicken. These cute little egg rolls are sure to be a hit with the fam! We love making a large batch of these when we have friends and family coming over because you can prep these well in advance, freeze them on a parchment-lined baking sheet and then, bake, fry, or air fry them as needed! They taste just like the one they sell at restaurants, only much more flavorful!

The avocado cilantro dipping sauce puts these on level 10. Double-dipping these isn’t frowned upon; it’s almost encouraged (as long as you flip that egg roll around!) Not gonna lie; most of the time, I consume more sauce than egg rolls in each bite because it’s that good!

What ingredients do you need to make southwestern egg rolls?

• Chicken: you can use boneless skinless chicken breasts or thighs for this recipe. I like to cut the chicken into tiny pieces so that the egg rolls fold easily and so that you get some in each bite.
• Garlic, scallions, and jalapeños: minced garlic, chopped scallions, and chopped jalapeños are just some of the ingredients that add flavor to these. You can omit the jalapeños if you aren’t a fan of spicy food or use less of them.
• Black beans: drained and rinsed black beans get added into the mixture for added protein and flavor.
• Veggies: I use chopped red bell peppers, corn, baby spinach, and chopped scallions to add color, crunch, and flavor to the southwestern egg rolls.
• Seasonings: there are only a few. We’ll use ground cumin, chipotle chili powder to add smokiness and kosher salt. If you don’t have chipotle chili powder, just use Mexican chili powder with a pinch of smoked paprika!
• Shredded cheese: I like to use shredded pepper jack cheese to add a kick. If you prefer to keep these really mild, you can swap the pepper jack cheese for Monterey Jack cheese.
• Egg roll wrappers: The egg roll wrappers are available in the refrigerated produce section of most grocery stores. You’ll need anywhere from 20-25 egg roll wrappers, depending on how much you fill them.

How to make southwestern egg rolls from scratch:

1. It starts with the filling. Add a drizzle of oil o a deep skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook until the chicken is almost done. Then, add the scallions and red bell peppers and let them soften before adding all the remaining ingredients, except the cheese and egg roll wrappers. Then, stir to combine and let the filling cool completely. Once it’s cooled, you’ll stir in the shredded cheese.
2. Make egg rolls. Start by placing the egg roll wrapper in front of you. Place 1 ½ tablespoon of the prepared filling on the wrapper and wrap the egg rolls. There’s a picture below showing the process. Repeat until you’ve wrapped all of them.
3. Serve it with sauce. The sauce is super easy to make!  Just toss all the ingredients in the blender and blend until smooth.
4. Fry, bake, or air fry them! If you want to fry them, add about an inch of oil in a large skillet. Once the temperature reaches 350ºF, add 3-4 egg rolls at a time and fry them until golden brown. You can also bake them in an oven preheated to 400ºF for 15-20 minutes or add them to an air fryer preheated to 375ºF for 10-12 minutes.

FAQs about southwestern egg rolls:

1. Can you air fry these egg rolls? You can! Heat the air fryer to 375ºF. Spray the egg rolls with cooking spray or lightly brush with oil and air fry for 10-12 minutes (flipping halfway through.) If the egg rolls aren’t brown and crisp, you can let them cook for another minute or two. Everything is cooked on the inside so it’s just about cooking the wrapper!
2. Do you have to use egg roll wrappers? I think the southwest egg rolls that you get at Chili’s are wrapped in tortillas – not actual egg roll wrappers. You’ll want to use the tortilla wrappers that are sold in the refrigerated section that are uncooked as they’ll be much, much easier to fold than cooked flour tortillas from the bread aisle. Keep in mind that the tortillas will need to be pinned down with a toothpick to close them before frying.
3. Can I make and freeze these for later? Yes! You can freeze them spread out on a sheet pan until hard and then pop them into a freezer bag for later. They’ll take slightly longer to bake, fry, air fry than what is listed but they’ll work out just fine! Perfect for an after school snack or for when you’re hosting guests!
4. Do you have any other sauces I can use for these? You know, a batch of homemade queso would go delicious with this! You can also make my blender salsa, or my guacamole salsa which is a Texas favorite!

If you like this recipe, you might also like:

• BBQ Chicken Nachos
• Coconut Shrimp (Fryer + Air Fryer)
• Creamy Mexican Corn Dip (Elotes Dip)
• Addicting Jalapeno Popper Dip
• Slow Cooker Honey Chipotle Meatballs

Original recipe shared April 2015. New pictures with minor recipe updates and easier to follow directions added April 2021.

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Yield: ~22-25 egg rolls

Southwestern Egg Rolls with Avocado Cilantro Sauce

Prep Time 40 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 1 hour

Easy to make southwestern egg rolls! Filled with a colorful array of veggies, chicken, and black beans! You can bake, air fry, or fry these Southwestern egg rolls! And that avocado cilantro dipping sauce is so creamy and delicious!

Print

Ingredients

Egg rolls:

• 1 tablespoon oil
• 14 oz boneless skinless chicken breast (or thighs), cut into tiny pieces
• ¼ cup chopped red bell peppers
• 4 scallions, thinly sliced
• ½ cup EACH: frozen corn, black beans, AND pepper jack cheese
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• ¼ cup EACH: chopped cilantro AND packed baby spinach, chopped
• ½-2 jalapeño, seeded and diced (based on spice preference)
• ¾ teaspoon ground cumin
• ½ teaspoon EACH: chipotle chili powder AND kosher salt
• 22-25 Egg roll wrappers

Avocado Cilantro Sauce:

• 2 haas avocados
• ½ cup cilantro, packed (leaves + stems)
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• ¼ cup EACH: water AND Greek yogurt
• ½ teaspoon EACH: kosher salt AND ground cumin

Instructions

1. THE FILLING: Heat the oil in a large deep skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook until browned, about 3-4 minutes. Add the scallions and red bell peppers and continue to cook for an additional minute. Add all the remaining ingredients except the cheese and egg roll wrappers. Let cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove from heat and cool completely. When the mixture is cooled to room temperature, stir in the cheese. You can make the egg rolls immediately or refrigerate the mixture overnight if you want to make the egg rolls later. If you find the filling gets liquidy, see notes for a solution.
2. THE EGG ROLL: Place the egg roll wraps in front of you with a point towards you. Spoon the mixture (about 1 ½ tablespoon) in the center of the egg roll wrapper. Fold in the end closest to you, then the two on the side, rolling tightly as you fold towards the end farthest from you. Brush the edge with water to help seal the egg roll. See pictures in post. Place rolls on baking sheet. Let refrigerate for several hours before frying.
3. SAUCE: Place all the ingredients in a blender/food processor and blend until smooth. Adjust seasonings to taste.
4. TO FRY: Heat 1 inch of oil in a large skillet. When the oil reaches 350ºF, fry egg rolls in batches. Do not overcrowd the skillet. Turn egg rolls every 1-2 minutes for even browning. When browned remove to a paper towel-lined plate.
5. OR BAKE OR AIR FRY: Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Place a wire rack on top of a baking sheet. Spray egg rolls with cooking spray on all sides and bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown and crispy. To the air fryer, preheat the air fryer to 375ºF. Spray or brush the rolls with oil and air fry for 10-12 minutes, flipping halfway until golden brown on all sides.

Notes

• Feel free to omit the jalapenos, chili powder, or use monterey jack cheese if you do not like a lot of spice.
• If at any point, you feel that the prepared mixture is starting to let out water, simply place the filling in a mesh strainer over a bowl and continue filling the egg rolls.
• If you'd like to freeze egg rolls for later use: place the baking sheet in the freezer for 3-4 hours, when frozen, remove egg rolls and place in a zip-top bag and freeze for later use. Egg rolls can be frozen for up to 4 months.
  

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