egg roll

Noun

egg roll (plural egg rolls)

1. Chinese-American variant of the spring roll (春卷); food made made by wrapping a combination of chopped vegetables, possibly meat, and sometimes noodles, in a sheet of dough, dipping the dough in egg or an egg wash, then deep frying it.
2. (Malaysia, Singapore) A thin crispy biscuit roll similar to the Spanish barquillo, Dutch kniepertjes, and Norwegian krumkake. Usually made from coconut milk, eggs, flour, sugar, and oil. This food item has many names: in Malay, kuih/kueh/kue kapit/sepit/sapit/semprong (literally "clamped/tongs/roll cake/snack"); in Chinese, 蛋卷 (literally "egg roll"); also often called "love letter" in Singapore and Malaysia (probably arising from the flowery patterns, Chinese characters, animals, etc. that were probably introduced by Peranakans). Usually eaten only around festivals such as Chinese New Year or Hari Raya Puasa. Sometimes also folded (rather than rolled). Note: while "egg roll" is a name sometimes used for this food item in Singapore and Malaysia, in the West, the name "egg roll" usually refers to a very different, savoury Chinese-American food item that is usually served hot and has little or no egg.
3. An African snack resembling a Scotch egg.
4. An instance of the egg rolling tradition.