Fresh Spring Rolls and Chilled Tomato Salad

I almost always have to have fresh herbs when I cook and that’s probably why I enjoy making and eating fresh spring rolls. Plenty of fresh herbs and other fillings all wrapped up in Vietnamese rice paper and dipped in sauce is so delicious. Add chilled tomato salad with home made ginger onion dressing and you got a healthy meal good for lunch or dinner.

Tableware

I thought plates from the Spode Blue Room collection was perfect to bring out the bright colors of spring rolls and tomato salad. There are different series in the Blue Room collection and my two plates are from the “Victorian” series. I believe this series is now retired but you can still find them on sites like Etsy and Replacements.

Italian leaf shaped bowls like my cabbage bowl are from Williams-Sonoma and these small bowls are perfect for condiments and sauces.

Spring Roll Fillings

Pork & Shrimp

With my spring rolls I like to include both shrimp and pork. I always like different flavor combination in my food and this way I get mouthful of meat, shellfish, herbs, veggies and some carbs all rolled into one.

 For my pork filling, I find country style pork ribs work the best. These “ribs” are boneless section of shoulder area of the pork.  Cooking pork ribs in garlic and soy sauce will make your spring rolls even better. As I said before on my post where I cooked shredded pork, it does not take hours to cook pork like this if you use high quality Dutch oven. I also used a traditional Japanese technique to speed up the cooking process even more. I placed a piece of parchment paper over the meat then put the cover on the Dutch oven. You create an extra layer of insulation with parchment paper to tenderize and flavor the meat. Total time it took to cook this tender teriyaki glazed pork ribs was about an hour.

For shrimp, I usually use two pieces of large shrimp per spring roll. If you are using medium sized shrimp, you’d want to use three pieces to ensure you have shrimp packed from side to side in your spring roll.

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Herbs and Vegetables

Spring rolls are beautiful and so appetizing when it’s stuffed with herbs and veggies. I used cucumbers and three different types of herbs (shiso, mint & basil) ,  but you can also use purple cabbage, carrots, red and yellow bell peppers along with cilantro which are popular fillings for spring rolls.

Vietnamese rice paper

Using good Vietnamese rice paper is crucial to making good spring rolls. Spring roll rice papers from Vietnam in my opinion are the best quality. Rice papers can be found in the Asian section of your grocery store but If you can’t find them at your local store, they are available on Amazon.

Assemble Ingredients, Wrap and Roll

When you’re ready to make your spring rolls, make sure to only dip the rice paper for 1-2 seconds in the water. Any longer and it will become too sticky and will tear.

To get beautifully wrapped spring rolls, you need to assemble your ingredients neatly in groups. Group your cucumbers and chopped pork on the bottom half of rice paper then on top half, group your shrimp and herbs together. Some people wrap and roll spring rolls differently, but I like to grab the bottom edge of rice paper and wrap cucumbers and pork first. Then I fold the sides inwards and roll all the way to the end. Make sure your spring roll is nice and snug, otherwise it will fall apart. It’s also important to remember to keep your spring rolls under damp paper towels until it’s ready to serve so they don’t dry out.

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Dipping Sauce

I decided to try sweet chili sauce that I found at Trader Joe’s as a dipping sauce.  I normally don’t care for store bought chili sauce because it’s too sweet and I can barely taste any chili, but I was pleasantly surprised when I tried this.  It has the right amount of sweetness and you can definitely taste the chili. It’s become my favorite dipping sauce for spring rolls and other dishes.

Chilled Tomato Salad with Ginger Onion Dressing

I had big ripe beefsteak tomatoes chilling in my fridge and thought sliced tomato salad with tangy ginger onion dressing would taste so good with spring rolls. Asian style dressing is simple to make with chopped green onions, fresh ginger, garlic, some sesame oil and apple cider vinegar. Add the dressing over chilled sliced tomatoes and you’re all set.