So Easy Summer Rolls/Fresh Spring Rolls

Jennifer & Allison in Hoi An - Viet Nam

My attempts fall short in the looks department - but the rolls still tasted yummy!

This fall, Allison and Jennifer traveled around Asia and had the time of their lives. They did it on the cheap by staying in hostels and avoiding fancy restaurants. Taking advantage of all the local culture had to offer, they visited lots of museums and explored each area they visited. One fun thing they did was partake in some cooking classes in Thailand and Vietnam. When they got home, we had a great time going to an Asian market and then cooking up some of dishes they had learned to make. One of them was what restaurants here call Summer Rolls - but their cooking school in Vietnam called them Fresh Spring Rolls. I was surprised that they were so easy to put together. I have had summer rolls in the States made of lettuce and rice noodles, and my Vietnamese friend Kim makes the absolutely best ones I have ever had with pork and pickled vegetables. I imagine this recipe could be used as a starting point and anything that sounds could good be put in a spring roll such as avocado or even cooked asparagus. It would be fun to let guests or kids assemble their own. Likewise, the dipping sauce here is great, but any number of different sauces could be used. Kim serves her's with a divine peanut sauce.

Ingredients and Procedure for Fresh Spring Rolls

Recipe from Gioan Restaurant & Family Cookery School in Hoi An - Viet Nam

5 pieces of hard rice paper (the first one might be unusable as part of learning curve)
1 cucumber grated into long strips (we ended up using a spiralizer)
1/2 carrot grated into long strips
5 tablespoons fresh mint
1 tablespoon white rice vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar
5 teaspoons of onion flakes (optional but nice)
5 pinches of pepper
10 shrimp, cooked and peeled

Dipping Sauce

1 fresh chili, crushed
2 choves of garlic, crushed
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 tablespoonlemon juice or lime juice
1 tablespoon fish sauce or soya sauce

Combine and mix well

*Side note - the recipe the girls were given says "serves four" but note all the "5s" 

Love the name!

Mix cucumber, carrot, salt, sugar, and vinegar in a bowl. Then put in a cloth and squeeze the liquid out.

Soften a piece of rice paper in cold water and put on a plate. (We turned it around so it got nice and wet every where. After it is on the plate it continues to soften.)

Place a heaping tablespoon vegetable mixture onto the edge of the rice paper.
Place pinch pepper, 1 tablespoon mint, l teaspoon onion flakes on top of vegetable mixture.
Fold both sides into the middle.
Roll twice.
Add 2 shrimps on top.
Roll up the rest of the way.

*Side note - as seen above, we didn't follow the directions exactly. It's forgiving!

Serve with dipping sauce and enjoy!

Fun (But) Faux Pho

In past posts, I've written about my fun, fun friend Kim and my efforts to come close to duplicating her wonderful Vietnamese food. Although she now lives in another part of the country we keep in touch through an occasional text or email. I had the chance to contact her a few days ago with a question about some photos she had taken for the organization we both had volunteered for. While I was looking over old files, I found this picture of Kim and the honorable mayor of our city, taken at a charity golf outing. Before that day, I didn't know her very well, but by the end of it I realized that she was a ball of fire with energy that never ran out. When I got to the event, I noticed Kim had added her own sense of style to the frumpy t-shirts all the other volunteers were wearing. She had turned hers into a v-neck, added a wide belt, and brought the ensemble to a whole new level with the addition of boots. She had commandeered a golf cart and said, "Are you here to help take photos? Well, hop in!" Then she took me all over the golf course. At one point we almost flipped the cart when we drove into a sand trap. She got us out safely however -  while she was roaring with laughter!  Kim introduced me to the deliciousness of Pho, the soup that is traditionally served as breakfast in Vietnam. Done right, the secret is the fabulous broth that is cooked for hours. I can't even begin to know how to truly make authentic broth for pho, but the recipe for my fake version posted here satisfies my craving. It's quick, easy, and light. Everyone can garnish it individually to fit their own tastes, so it's a fun and different kind of family meal. I've also included a sauce recipe from Saveur magazine that is great to dip the chicken in as you are enjoying the soup.

Ingredients and Directions for Four Large Bowls of Pho

For Soup:
2 to 4 pieces of chicken (boneless breasts are easiest)
8 cups unsalted or homemade chicken broth
1 tablespoon fish sauce (I used Thai Kitchen brand)
2 thumb sized pieces of ginger, peeled
1 package of thin rice noodles
8 green onions, sliced
1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves, chopped

For Garnish:
2 cups bean sprouts
1 bunch fresh basil, washed
1 tablespoon sriracha hot sauce
1 lime, sliced 

For Dipping Sauce:
1 jalapeno pepper, sliced
1/4 cup fish sauce
2 tablespoons lime juice
pinch black pepper
 

Put the chicken pieces in a soup pot along with  the chicken broth, 1 tablespoon fish sauce and 2 thumb sized pieces of fresh peeled ginger. Bring to a boil and then turn the heat down to medium low and allow the soup to simmer for 20 minutes.

While the chicken is cooking, prepare dipping sauce, rice noodles, and garnish platter. To make the sauce whisk the 1/4 cup fish sauce, lime juice, and pinch pepper together in a small bowl. Float the jalapeno pepper slices on top of the sauce mixture. For the noodles, rinse them under running water and then drop them into a pot of boiling water and cook for about 5 minutes. When done the noodles should be tender but still have a bite to them. Drain the noodles and set aside.

On a platter arrange the basil, bean sprouts, slices of lime, and the tablespoon of  sriracha hot sauce.

When the broth mixture is done cooking, remove the chicken. Slice  the chicken into bite sized pieces, and set aside.  Remove the ginger pieces from the broth and discard.

Now follow this order to build a yummy bowl of quick faux pho:

First, put 1/2 cup of cooked rice noodle in each bowl.

Divide the chicken pieces up evenly between the four bowls and lay it on top of the noodles.

Sprinkle two of the sliced green onions and 1 tablespoon of the chopped cilantro in each bowl.

Evenly pour the broth over the contents of each bowl.

Add the garnishes (add more garnishes to the bowl as needed - a bit at a time to keep them crunchy) and dip chicken in the fish/lime sauce as the soup is eaten.

Grilled Asian Chicken Salad and Vietnamese Iced Coffee

Nancy on the left, Kim on the right

One of the things I really enjoy is volunteering for an organization called Assistance League®.  It supports several different philanthropic programs; the largest one provides under-served children with new clothing and school & hygiene supplies. It is totally funded by grants and donations and $0.82 out of every dollar raised goes to the people it serves.  Besides working directly in the programs, I also help with public relations.  Although there are several people on the photography committee, three of us which seem to take the lion's share of the photos. Kim, Nancy, and I strive to do the best we can, but honestly, they are the "A Team" and I'm second string. They let me tag along with them and we have had some pretty hilarious times together. Once we had to choose fabric backdrop for some formal shots. The resulting shenanigans of me holding it up, Kim trying to capture the color on camera, and Nancy photo bombing the scene, had me laughing so hard, tears were actually streaming down my face. Kim is a fabulous cook and she specializes in Vietnamese dishes.  Last spring the three of us were photographing a huge event, and she brought us delicious banh mi and goi cuon since we were not going to be able to take time out for dinner.  If that wasn't enough, she also gave us small French presses and chicory coffee to make Vietnamese iced coffee which is absolutely scrumptious.  The French press and chicory coffee can be purchased on Amazon, and I included the directions for making it in this post - but strong coffee or a shot of espresso could be substituted for them.  Until I can get Kim to do a guest post, I have been getting my Asian food fix with the recipe included here for grilled chicken.  I served it to Allison and her friends last week on top of a salad with peanut sauce and Asian dressing and they just loved it.   

Directions for Vietnamese Iced Coffee

1.  Gather together the French press, 2 tablespoons sweetened condensed milk, 1 heaping tablespoon chicory coffee, 1 empty iced tea type glass, 1 iced tea glass filled with ice, and an iced tea spoon. 

2.  Put 2 tablespoons of sweetened condensed mild in empty glass. 

3. Take the top off the french press and unscrew and lift off the press attachment. Put the heaping tablespoon of coffee in the bottom of the press.

 

4. Replace the press attachment and screw it back down, but not too tightly.

5.  Place the metal saucer on top of the glass with the sweetened condensed milk in it. Place the french press on top of that. Pour boiling water up to the rim and put the top on.

6. Let all the water drip through the press.

7.  Use the iced tea spoon to mix the coffee and sweetened condensed milk together.

8. When it is all combined, pour it over the ice in the other glass.

Asian Grilled Chicken

Ingredients and Directions:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1/2 cup reduced sodium soy sauce

1/4 cup rice wine vinegar

2 teaspoons fish sauce

2 teaspoons sesame oil

Mix together soy sauce, vinegar, fish sauce, and sesame oil and marinate the chicken breasts in the mixture for about 20 minutes at room room temperature. (If longer, put in the refrigerator.)  Grill over medium low heat, about 10 minutes per side.  Let sit at least 5 minutes before slicing on the bias to place on salad.

Salad Ingredients and Dressing for Four:

1 head napa cabbage

1 cup match stick sliced carrots

1 medium sized cucumber sliced thin

1/4 cup thinly sliced red onion

1/4 cup match stick sliced jicama

2 tablespoons fresh cilantro leaves

Ingredients for Dressing:

1/2 cup olive oil

2 tablespoons reduced sodium soy sauce

2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar

1 tablespoon fish sauce

1 tablespoon honey

Toss the salad ingredients together in a bowl.  Whisk dressing ingredients together and pour just enough of it over the salad to lightly coat.

Peanut-Sesame Sauce - from The Working Mother Cookbook

1 clove garlic, put through a press

1/2 cup peanut butter

2 tablespoons reduced sodium sou sauce

1 tablespoon rice vinegar

1 tablespoon sesame oil

1/4 teaspoon red-pepper flakes

1/2 cup very hot water

Blend or food process all the ingredients together.  Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.