Fresh Spring Rolls

If you have eaten Thai or Vietnamese food at a restaurant, you have probably seen fresh spring rolls on the menu. Unlike their deep fried cousin, they are packed with fresh raw vegetables. They are also a great vehicle for that fabulous peanut sauce I make.

With a little patience fresh spring rolls are easy to make and you can fill them with whatever you have on hand or what is in season. They will impress anyone at your next potluck or dinner party.

You will need to find the rice paper wrapper. These days most large or natural food grocery store have them in their Asian section or go to one of those amazing Asian food emporiums like Ranch 99.

We like our rolls stuffed with thin rice noodles or rice sticks sometimes called maifun. You can find these in the same Asian section of your grocery store.

Fresh Spring Rolls

Ingredients:

rice wrapper
thin rice noodles ( soy sauce, sesame oil)
ripe avocados
fresh cilantro
grated carrot
finely sliced cabbage
other possible fillings: baked tofu, cooked crab meat, fresh spinach leaves, fresh basil leaves, green onions, cucumbers, shrimp, bean sprouts, mint leaves, lettuce leaves.

1) Usually the rice noodle package comes with more that you will need even for a dozen spring rolls. Don't be shy about breaking off a third of the noodles, remember too, they will expand. Bring water to a boil, toss in your noodle and cook for 1-2 minutes.
2) Drain your noodle and toss with a tablespoon of sesame oil and 2 tablespoons of soy sauce. This is optional but I find the noodles pretty bland without something on them. Set them aside to cool while you prepare the vegetables.

3) Grate the carrot, finely chop the cabbage, stem the cilantro, peel and slice the avo.
4) Now you are ready to assemble them. I like to use a plate to soak the rice wrappers. They take about 30 to 60 second to rehydrate, make sure they are completely covered in water. Do them one at a time, as you take one out, put another one in.

5) I like to have a couple of clean dishtowels handy. One goes down under the rice wrapper and the other I use to blot it before I fill it. Handling the rice wrappers are a bit like handling wet paper towels. They rip easily if you are not careful. Small holes are OK, big ones are not ;-)

6) DO NOT OVER FILL your wrapper, that is the key to success. You are not going for the burrito grande !! Just layer your veggies with restraint, slightly to the top of the wrapper.
7) Fold the top of the wrapper toward you, then each side toward center, then wrap the bottom flap up. Place on a plate flap down.

8) Repeat until all your filling is gone. You will find you get the hang of it after the first few.

9) You can serve them whole or cut them in half on the diagonal. Use the peanut sauce I mentioned above or make your own version. These wrappers last for several days in your fridge !! They are great the next day for lunch !