SPRING ROLLS
Spring rolls in the summer time are a great idea, the only issue is a lot of the time I find them to be lacking in flavor. In this recipe we season things along while still balancing the crisp, freshness of the raw vegetables. You can technically stuff your spring rolls with anything, this is just the version I’ve made recently that was a hit.
Here’s a link to my @Kusina.Mia video so you can see how I roll them
SAVORY SPRING ROLL RECIPE makes 6-8
INGREDIENTS
1 pack of rice paper sheets
28-32 pieces of medium to large shrimp
3 cloves of garlic
1 tsp ginger powder
2 tbsp neutral oil
vermicelli noodles
3-4 lettuce leaves
1 jumbo avocado or 2 mediums
1 bundle cilantro
1 cucumber
1 carrot
salt and white pepper
ikura(or salmon roe) optional
DIRECTIONS
Clean and devein your shrimps.
To a medium sized pan on medium heat, add the oil and cook the shrimps. After 2 minutes add the garlic and season with ginger powder, salt, and white pepper. Continue cooking for another 4-5 minutes or until the shrimps are cooked through and opaque. Remove the shrimps from the pan and set aside to cool. Keep the used pan and any shrimp juices, we will use this later.
Soak the vermicelli noodles and cook as per package instructions. Once they are cooked, place them into the used pan with shrimp juices. Season with a pinch of salt. Place the noodles into a bowl and set aside to cool.
Knife cuts: now you will prepare the vegetables. Shred the lettuce into thin ribbons, set aside in a small bowl. For the carrots I use a peeler to remove the skins and then shave it down with the peeler to produce ribbons. If they’re longer than two inches I’ll cut the ribbons in half one time. Set aside in a small bowl. Cut the cucumber in half length wise, scrape out the seeds with a spoon, and cut them into thin match sticks or you can opt to shave it down with the peeler as well. Set aside in a small bowl. Cut the avocado in half. Remove the pit. Using a large spoon scoop out the flesh in one whole piece. Place it pit side down on a cutting board. Cut into slices lengthwise.
Almost done! Now that you have all your ingredients in small bowls (this is called your mise en place) find a comfortable table with a chair and we can begin assembling. The last thing you will need is a dish large enough to fit a rice paper sheet and deep enough to hold at least 1/4 inch of water.
Once you have everything in place, dip your rice paper sheet in the cool water making sure it gets completely submerged for 4-5 seconds. Lift up the sheet and let any excess water drip. The sheet should be softened but still a little stiff. It should not be completely warped or lose its shape immediately. If it is, you are soaking it too long.
Place the wet sheet onto a plate, cutting board, piece of parchment, or right on the table. Put 3-4 shrimps in a line in the very center, making sure to leave 2 inches of space on both sides of the rice paper. If you are using salmon roe, take 1/2 tbsp and tuck them in close to the shrimp. Next, take a good pinch of shredded lettuce and place this on top of your line of shrimp. Use enough to cover the shrimp but not so much that it becomes an overflowing mound. Afterwards, place 2-3 slices of avocado over the lettuce and follow with vermicelli noodles on top of that. You are aiming for equal parts noodles to lettuce. Lastly, tuck 4-5 strips of cucumber underneath the pile of ingredients you made and 4-5 strips of carrot above it, tucking everything as close to the center line as possible.
Once all your fillings are in place, take the bottom flap of the rice paper wrapper with your left hands and bring it forward, stretching it slightly over the vermicelli noodles. Holding it in place with your left hand, use your right hand to bring the right flap of the rice paper wrapper to the center. Release your left hand and use it to bring the left flap of the rice pepper wrapper to the center. And finally, use both hands to push the roll forward until you no longer see the top flap.
If you’ve never wrapped a roll or a burrito or anything similar before, the movement will feel strange. Keep on practicing until you get it! If you find the rice paper tearing or getting too soggy, try reducing the amount of time you are soaking it. You could also be overfilling the rolls so remove any excess fillings if they keep bursting out of the wrapper.
If you’ve made it to the end and finished making your rolls. Pat yourself on the back. You can stop here and eat these rolls with soy sauce or ponzu sauce. BUT…if you want to go all the way (since you went through all the trouble) a spring roll really isn’t complete without a peanut sauce…
