Vietnamese noodle rolls

 I got this recipe from Sunset magazine. I made a few changes such as the addition of red cabbage because I had it on hand and it's so good for you. I added a few small, pre-cooked shrimp to each roll and I omitted the canned french-fried onions.This was actually pretty fun and simple to make. There is no cooking involved making for a great throw together summer dinner. I forgot to picture the shrimp. You can omit it if you prefer all veggies. I happen to love shrimp so in it went. It wasn't hard to find the rice noodles or rice-paper wrappers, they were in the Asian section of my Fry's.

 

MAKES 10 rolls TIME 30 minutes


You Will Need:

3 1/2 oz. thin dried rice noodles (vermicelli)


1/4 English cucumber, unpeeled


1/2 large carrot, peeled


1 cup 71-80 count pre-cooked shrimp, washed and tails removed


Ten 8 1/2 in. rice-paper wrappers (bánh tráng)


5 red lettuce leaves torn in half legthwise


30 mint leaves

40 cilantro leaves (about 1/4 cup)

*Sweet and Spicy Sesame Sauce (recipe follows) You could also use a peanut sauce. Try to avoid pre-made, jarred sauces. They have a TON of added sugar and preservatives. It's super simple to throw together your own sauce. Most of the ingredients in this sauce are pretty common in most Asian dishes so you will use them again.

1. Put noodles in a large bowl and cover with just boiling water. Let noodles sit until tender, 5-8 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, cut cucumber and carrot into 4-in. lengths and then into match-sticks, using a mandoline if have one (I used my KitchenAid shredder attachment) to yeild1/2 cup of each.

3. Drain noodles, rinse with cold water, and spread them out on a baking sheet lined with a kitchen towel. Pat dry.

4. Divide noodles into 2 long "logs; cut with scissors to total 10 equal portions. ( I was lazy and just snipped chunks as I filled the rolls.)

5. On a work surface, set out all ingredients except the sesame sauce. Pour very hot tap water into a large shallow bowl such as a pie plate. Submerge1 rice paper wrapper at a time in the hot water until moistend and softened but not completely pliable, about 5 seconds ( it will continue to soften as you work with it.).

6. Lay wrapper on work surface and put 1/2 lettuce leaf in center. Mound 1 portion of noodles on lettuce followed by about 1/10 of the cuk, carrot and apple slices; a few shrimp, 3 mint leaves ( I roughly chopped my mint so as not to get a big bite of mint) and 4 cilantro leaves.

Arrange ingredients into a rectangle about 4in. long. Fold paper over short ends of filling, then roll up tightly from a long side (just like a burrito). Repeat with remaining rolls. Serve with sauce.

Nutrition Info:
per serving

119 CAL., 1.8 G protein; 1.5 G fat; 24G carbo 1.1 G fiber; 29 MG sodium 0 MG chol.

Sweet and Spicy Sesame Sauce:

This sauce has quite a kick which we love! I left out the red chile flakes from the younger kids sauce. They loved it!

3 TBSP hoisin sauce

1 TBSP toasted sesame seeds

1 tsp red chili flakes

1 TBSP Asian (toasted) sesame oil (you can use sesame oil for stir fry's, salad dressings etc)

1 TBSP Tamari (similar but thicker than soy sauce, it is fermented and contains no MSG or preservatives)

1/2 cup hot water

Whisk all ingredients together in small bowl.

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