Despite the name, these are a great light snack that you can eat at any time of year. They can be filled with almost anything but I chose to just add vegetables. Forming the rolls takes some finesse, but with practice – you will be making tons of rolls ahead of time ( a day at most) and slicing them when you’re ready for a nutritious snack.
The peanut sauce is a nice addition which adds a punch of flavor. As someone who doesn’t really use recipes – I only started with this one as a base to get it going. I then added a little more of this and a little of that to get it to my liking. You should do the same.
Peanut Sauce
1/2 cup natural-style creamy peanut butter (I had chunky and just pureed it)
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
2 tablespoons hoisin sauce (I didn’t have any so I just added some more of the other ingredients)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 small garlic clove, mashed to a paste
1 teaspoon chile-garlic paste (Also didn’t have this so I just added red chili flakes)
1 tablespoon dark sesame oil
Juice of 1 lime (didn’t have, so I used a lemon and rice vinegar)
1/4 cup water
Salt to taste
Mix all ingredients together to your liking. Add more water if necessary to thin out the sauce. Keep in mind it tastes different on its own than it does with the rolls, so if you make the sauce ahead of time (which you should) taste it with a piece of lettuce or something instead of on the spoon.
Vegetarian Summer Rolls
Spring/Summer roll wrappers – Rice paper
Bean thread noodles (mung bean or glass noodles)
Lettuce leaves (romaine, bibb, iceberg)
Cucumbers – sliced into strips (julienne)
Red cabbage – shredded
Green apple – sliced into strips (julienne)
With the bean thread noodles, you need to soak them in warm water for about 10 -15 minutes. Because they are so thin – you don’t really cook them but rather reconstitute them in the water. Meanwhile, prep your vegetables and have another bowl of warm water nearby. Once ready, align all your ingredients and place one of the wrappers in the water until it becomes pliable – 15 to 20 seconds.
The peanut sauce is a nice addition which adds a punch of flavor. As someone who doesn’t really use recipes – I only started with this one as a base to get it going. I then added a little more of this and a little of that to get it to my liking. You should do the same.
Peanut Sauce
1/2 cup natural-style creamy peanut butter (I had chunky and just pureed it)
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
2 tablespoons hoisin sauce (I didn’t have any so I just added some more of the other ingredients)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 small garlic clove, mashed to a paste
1 teaspoon chile-garlic paste (Also didn’t have this so I just added red chili flakes)
1 tablespoon dark sesame oil
Juice of 1 lime (didn’t have, so I used a lemon and rice vinegar)
1/4 cup water
Salt to taste
Mix all ingredients together to your liking. Add more water if necessary to thin out the sauce. Keep in mind it tastes different on its own than it does with the rolls, so if you make the sauce ahead of time (which you should) taste it with a piece of lettuce or something instead of on the spoon.
Vegetarian Summer Rolls
Spring/Summer roll wrappers – Rice paper
Bean thread noodles (mung bean or glass noodles)
Lettuce leaves (romaine, bibb, iceberg)
Cucumbers – sliced into strips (julienne)
Red cabbage – shredded
Green apple – sliced into strips (julienne)
With the bean thread noodles, you need to soak them in warm water for about 10 -15 minutes. Because they are so thin – you don’t really cook them but rather reconstitute them in the water. Meanwhile, prep your vegetables and have another bowl of warm water nearby. Once ready, align all your ingredients and place one of the wrappers in the water until it becomes pliable – 15 to 20 seconds.
Next, lay it down on your work surface and add all your ingredients on the wrapper. Fold the bottom of the wrapper over the filling, fold in the sides totally covering the filling and then fold the wrapper upwards to form a neat roll shape. Depending on your ingredients – you could deep fry it at this point but this is the fresh, raw version.
You can slice it into smaller, bite size pieces like sushi – in which case you need a very sharp knife and I would wet the blade with some water; or you can also just slice it in half. Either way, when served with the peanut sauce, it is delicious and refreshing.
