Spring Roll Madness

As some of you know, Vietnamese spring rolls are one of my most favorite dishes. They are super simple and so much fun to eat with other people. It’s what I – and most other people – call a communal (or family) meal, one where everyone shares from the main pot. Nguyen introduced this type of eating to me long ago. It is a part of his family’s culture and I love sharing it with our friends and family. Communal meals are generally slow-paced, cook as you eat type meals. They are designed for fellowship and conversation. Nguyen says their is even a specific Vietnamese word for this type of meal because it is such an integral part of the culture.

Spring rolls can vary greatly from beef or pork to fish or other seafood. Pretty much anything. Among our favorites is a very simple beef and shrimp roll. The flavors are simple and not masked by any sort of marinade or spice. It is accompanied by fresh herbs, cucumber and green apple. Traditionally spring rolls are eaten with a lemon sauce (actually lime, but called lemon). However, we make a peanut/hoisin dipping sauce to go with it. All this goodness is wrapped in a sheet of rice paper, which is not actually made from rice but mostly tapioca.  The table is set with all the raw ingredients around hot cooking surface such as an electric skillet, hot plate, or portable electric burner with a skillet. Cook, wrap, eat, share, repeat, enjoy!

The basic recipe for two is as follows:

1/2 lb raw shrimp

1/2 lb beef (anything that is not too fatty and that can be sliced very thinly)

1 green apple sliced thinly(or another tart fruit like starfruit)

1 cucumber sliced thinly

1 head green leaf lettuce

1 onion sliced

cilantro

rice paper

butter

optional: fresh pepper, fresh mint, other herbs

Sauce

1 part peanut butter to 2-3 parts hoisin sauce

sprinkle of garlic powder

dash of chili garlic sauce or sambal

add warm water 1 tb at a time until a nice dipping consistency (1/4 to 1/2 cup)

adjust peanut butter and hoisin sauce to taste

-I just play with the ratios until I like the taste and its not too thick. Start off with about 1 tablespoon of peanut butter then expand as needed.

To Cook:

1. Add onions and tab of butter to hot cooking surface – medium to low heat – adjust temperature to suit your eating pace (it takes a few minutes for the onions to get nice and caramelized… that’s the way I like them to best. I put them on first so that by my second or so roll they are nice and cooked)

2. Add meat and shrimp

3. Add more butter when the surface looks a little dry

To Roll Rice Paper:

Rolling techniques vary from person to person. You have to find something that works for you and it does take a little practice. The end result should look similar to a tightly rolled egg roll or mini burrito. Wet the rice paper in a bowl of water. It takes just a few moments for the paper to soften enough to begin to roll. You can lay it on a plate or just roll it in your hand.

My method – Fold moistened rice paper almost in half. Lay it in right hand (I’m a lefty). Add lettuce, cucumber, apple and cilantro perpendicular to fingers. Add 2-3 slices of beef and two shrimp on top of veggies. Fold rice paper from bottom of hand over and under part of the filling. Then I roll up my hand towards my fingers. I pull the paper tightly around the filling so that it doesn’t fall out as I dip in the sauce.

Nguyen’s Method - This is Nguyen here guest authoring this section of the post. Please skip this section if you’re not a visual/spacial learner. I’ll likely over explain this process. I hold my rice paper with the rough side up. Like Emily, I valley fold my sheet of spring roll wrapper not quite in half… leaving about 1-2 inches of the rough side exposed. I drape the folded wrapper lengthwise along my left hand. With my hand in front of me, palm up, and my fingers pointing right, the folded edge of the paper is away from me. I layer my ingredients off centered to the right and perpendicular to my fingers. If I visually divided the paper surface into 4 sections, left to right, the ingredients would be cradled in the curls of my fingers at section 3 with the short flap to the right. Generally I’d layer with lettuce at the bottom, other veggies and fruits, onions, and then meat(s). The veggies at the bottom is to prevent the hot meat from burning my hands. I like to leave fold or tear my lettuce in large enough pieces that it extends well into section 2… that is, covering 50-70% of the rice paper and making sure to leave a couple of inches of the rice paper on the left exposed. The flat slices of meat on top will help sandwich the thinner, and sometimes more slippery, ingredients in the center. At this point I will occasionally add a leafy something atop the meat slices… maybe a few leaves of basil. Then I would use my right hand to fold the short finger-side flap of rice paper over the filling.  Here’s the hard part. With the ingredients pinched by my right hand, I would rotate the whole thing clockwise 90 degrees. At this point, the entire thing would be cradled in my fingers of both hands and my thumbs would be pressing down the short flap that is securing the filling. The ingredients would now be sideways and parallel to my fingers. The larger flap of rice paper would be draped over my index fingers. I use my thumbs and index fingers to tighten as I roll upward and away from me. Sometimes, I would free my index fingers from below the wrapper to aid in tightening my roll. The end result would have filling in the middle and lettuce somewhat uniformly distributed all around. This way the wetter ingredients like the meat and cucumbers won’t make parts of the rice paper too soggy, the sharper ingredients like the apple or starfruit wont tear the rice paper, and each bite is more consistent in texture. The roll also comes out more uniform. That’s it. Was that confusing?  OK, now back to Emily.

This meal is so much fun! You can find all of these ingredients at a local super market (Wal-Mart even carries this stuff).

I hope I have inspired someone to be brave and try something new. Hopefully Nguyen and I will be able to share this experience with more of you soon!