Recipe developed and contributed by Maureen Gualtieri
As the thermometer goes up this summer, the will to spend time over a hot stove making dinner goes waaaay down. Lean into freshness, coolness (and portability!) with this month’s recipe—Vietnamese-style salad rolls. Chewy rice paper wraps around crunchy veggie fillings, vermicelli, and your protein of choice, with the flavours brought together by fresh herbs and a healthy dollop of DFC’s Coconut Chili Lime sauce. This recipe makes a dozen large rolls (three will fill you up), so serve alongside something light and similarly cooking-free, like a gazpacho (link: https://dfcbbq.com/recipes/sauces/chunky-garden-gazpacho/). Dip them in hoisin sauce, crushed roasted peanuts, and/or more Coconut Chili Lime, and enjoy your cool dinner!
Coconut Chili Lime Salad Rolls
(Yield: 1 dozen rolls)
1 350 g. block of extra firm tofu
OR
approx. 36 small cooked shrimp
1/2 English cucumber, julienned into pieces matching the width of your tofu
1/2 carrot, peeled and julienned similarly to the cucumber
300 g. dried rice vermicelli noodles
small bunch cilantro
12 large fresh basil leaves
12 med. sized round rice wraps
1/4 c. DFC’s Coconut Chili Lime Sauce
Boil your vermicelli noodles according to the package directions. When done, drain, rinse with cold water, and drain again. If using tofu, slice the block into 12, width-wise; if using shrimp, ensure they are thawed and cleaned as needed. Assemble your mise en place so everything is close at hand: drained noodles, julienned carrot, and cucumber, rinsed herbs, tofu/ shrimp, and DFC’s Coconut Chili Lime sauce with a teaspoon in it.
Fill a wide bowl with warm water, then grab your first rice wrap and rehydrate it by dunking it in for about 10 seconds. Place flat on your work surface. (The wrap still may feel a little stiff, but the water will keep doing its thing as you assemble the fillings, don’t worry!). Begin stacking a tower of fillings in the exact middle of the wrap—small pinches of cuke and carrot, topped with one piece tofu or three shrimps in a line, topped with sprigs of basil and cilantro to taste, topped with a healthy pinch of noodles, then about one teaspoon of Coconut Chili Lime sauce to finish.
Fold one butt end of the rice wrap over the filling, then the other, then roll the top flap and the bottom over everything envelope-style, as tight to the filling as possible. (The wrap should be quite sticky, enough to seal.) Plate, and repeat with the rest of your wraps and fillings.
Serve your fresh salad rolls immediately with dipping sauce galore—Try a mix of equal parts hoisin, crunchy natural peanut butter, and Coconut Chili Lime. Enjoy your delicious rolls as far away from your stove as possible, with a lager-style beer or an iced green tea accompanying!
