this is how you roll

The first time I made these rolls, I made them for a cooking club dinner and they were a big hit. I was pretty impressed with Tyler Florence’s recipe, so I knew I’d be making them again. I haven’t played with variations on these yet because these have been so great, but if you’re not a shellfish lover, mango would substitute well for the texture and sweetness of shrimp.

While this is a multi-step recipe, the results are well worth it. These also make a great side dish or main meal. If you don’t want the hassle of making rolls, I’ve also made the interior of these rolls as a salad alone and used the dressing to coat the entire vegetable noodle mixture.

The freshness of the mint in combination with the soft shrimp and crunchy vegetables dipped into the sweet chili dipping sauce below, makes for an explosive flavor combination.

vietnamese shrimp rolls

3 ounces Vietnamese cellophane noodles, cooked
2 cups bean sprouts (optional)
2 carrots, julienned
1 large beet, julienned
1 fresh red chili, diced (no seeds and wear gloves)
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
3/4 cup chopped salted peanuts
2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
1 lime, juiced
sea salt and freshly ground pepper
32-40 medium shrimp, cooked, tails off, shelled and sliced lengthwise
32-40 6″ round rice paper wrappers
32-40 fresh mint leaves

Set aside your cooked noodles into a large bowl and add sprouts, beets, carrots, cilantro, chili, peanuts, sesame oil and lime juice. Season with salt and pepper and combine well. When you slice the shrimp, slice them on the outside and don’t cut all the way through. Boil a teapot of water and set aside. Into individual bowls, place the mint, shrimp and wrappers. Have ready a plate or surface where you’ll be wrapping and another plate where you’ll be placing the wrapped rolls. I find that the 6 and 8″ wrappers are the perfect size for a finger food cocktail party.

When you’re ready to start rolling, put some of the hot water into a bowl for the wrappers. Eventually, the water will cool off and you’ll have to replace it with fresh hot water.

Set up everything in front of you, as you’ll be placing each item into the wrappers like an assembly line. Holding one edge of the wrapper, place the rest into the hot water and keep moving it around until the entire wrapper has softened. Be careful to not leave it in too long as it will tear easily. Place the softened wrapper on a plate and put in a bit of the noodle mixture toward the front third of the wrapper, bringing one edge over the noodles. Next, put the halved shrimp, close the sides in, and put the mint leaf on top. Start rolling from one end to end, holding the inside firmly so the roll stays tight. As they dry out a bit in the air while you’re preparing the next rolls, the wrapper will adhere to itself.

Sweet Chili Dipping Sauce

1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons fish sauce
1/4 cup hot water
2 tbps sugar
1 lime, juiced
1 tbsp minced garlic
1-2 tsps of sambal
2 tbsps grated carrot
2 tbps grated daikon radish

Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl until combined. If you’re vegan or don’t want to use fish sauce, this can be substituted with soy sauce or ume plum vinegar. Serve with the shrimp rolls. Yield: 1 1/2 cups

*Recipe adapted from Tyler Florence’s Real Kitchen.

Related posts:

1. do you soba?
2. spicy shrimp in thai fusion broth
3. quick cold cucumber soup with shrimp

Tagged as: Asian, beet, shrimp, spring roll, Thai dressing, Vietnamese

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