Vietnamese: Spring Rolls (aka Summer Rolls)

Recipe by Paul Young <info@cooking-with-paul.com>

(makes 8 rolls)

Spring roll ingredients:

• 2-3 oz dried rice noodles
• 4 strips of cooked bacon
• 16 medium shrimps, cooked, peeled, deveined, tail removed
• 2 cups cold water
• 8 dried spring roll wrappers (rice paper) (approx 8 inches or 22cm in diameter)
• 1 cup shredded carrots (or pre-cut matchstick carrots)
• 8 small leaves of lettuce (green or red leaf)
• Fresh herbs (i.e. cilantro, Thai basil, mint)
• 8 green onions, cut lengthwise (use only the green part)
• Chili garlic sauce or Sriracha (optional)

Procedure:

1. Make the peanut sauce: combine all ingredients (except the water and crushed peanuts) and mix well; add a little water at a time until desired consistency is reached; garnish with crushed peanuts
2. Cook rice noodles according to package instructions, drain, cool, set aside
3. Cook bacon, set aside on paper towels to absorb extra grease
4. If using frozen shrimp: defrost under running cold water (about 10 minutes)
5. If using raw shrimp: cook in cold water until barely boiling; remove from heat, rinse under cold water; peel, devein, remove tails
6. Slice shrimps in half lengthwise, set aside
7. Add cold water to a large frying pan and soak one rice paper sheet for about 1 minute
8. Transfer soaked rice paper to a plate and begin to assemble your roll
9. Add the ingredients in the following order: shrimp (orange side down), carrots, lettuce, herbs, noodles, bacon
10. Fold the left and right sides towards the middle so that it's snug; add green onions letting one end stick out
11. Fold the bottom up to cover the filling, squeezing lightly as you roll
12. Transfer finished roll to serving platter (do not let rolls touch each other)
13. Repeat until all ingredients are used
14. Serve with peanut sauce and chili garlic sauce (if desired)