The first time I heard mention of a summer roll, I thought it was a mistake. My fri/files/storyimages/Kate, who had returned from an Asian study course, said to me, "To hell with spring rolls. You’ve got to taste a summer roll." This occurring in Owensboro, Kentucky, in the early 1980s, there were of course no summer rolls to be had. I asked her to describe them. She said they were like a salad in a hand roll, a crispy bunch of vegetables wrapped in rice paper. I had no idea what rice paper was, but it did not sound edible. It sounded like something art students would use for watercolor work.
Was I ever wrong. Fast-forward 10 years to the dining room of Vietnam Kitchen, where I finally ordered my first pair of summer rolls. What Kate didn’t tell me was that the rice paper is translucent so that just under its surface you can see the shrimp and fresh vegetables it is filled with. The inside is bursting with the flavors of shrimp, avocado, and various fresh herbs. To top things off, it comes with a marvelous peanut dipping sauce that you can add other condiments to, as well. I haven’t ordered a fried spring roll since. But I can’t go a week without these summer rolls. Whenever the owner of Vietnam Kitchen sees me coming through the door, he knows to bring me an order as a starter. When he hears my voice on the phone ordering carryout, he says, "Okay, one A4 and. . . ."
Despite my familiarity with most Asian cuisine and my willingness to experiment with almost anything Vietnamese or Thai, I continued, until very recently, to shy away from using rice paper. I didn’t trust myself with its delicacy. I feared soaking it with too much water would turn it into a gummy mess or, conversely, not getting it wet enough would result in dry, crumbling flakes. This was silly of me. Rice paper is actually far easier to deal with than, say, phyllo dough.
You’ll need to make a trip to an Asian market for some of the ingredients in summer rolls, including the rice paper and rice vermicelli, aka rice-flour noodles. (There are several Asian markets in the vicinity of Vietnam Kitchen, in the Iroquois Manor Shopping Center.) Rice paper rounds are labeled banh trang, and usually come in a plastic container, with rounds of various diameters. The eight-inch-diameter size will work best for the summer roll recipe below. The rounds are hard, brittle and semi-translucent when you buy them, so they are delicate, but if you soak them according to the directions for softening them, you’ll get the hang of it. There are plenty in each package, so don’t worry if you mess up a few of them along the way.
VIETNAMESE SUMMER ROLLS WITH CASHEW DIPPING SAUCE
(adapted from a Gourmet magazine recipe)
1 pound large shrimp (about 15), shelled and deveined
? cup finely shredded carrot
? cup finely chopped scallion greens
2 avocados, peeled and diced
1 teaspoon rice vinegar
12 8-inch rounds of rice paper
? cup of any or all of the following fresh herbs: basil, mint, cilantro
? cup finely shredded Bibb lettuce
3 oz. rice vermicelli, soaked in hot water until soft
Coriander and mint sprigs for garnish
Cashew dipping sauce:
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 small fresh chile pepper, seeded and minced
1 cup water
? cup soy sauce
1/3 cup unsweetened chunky peanut butter
1 teaspoon packed light brown sugar
3 tablespoons chopped unsalted roasted cashews
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh mint leaves
In a saucepan of boiling salted water, boil the shrimp until just cooked through, one to two minutes; then drain and let cool before cutting each into quarter-inch pieces.
In a small bowl toss the carrot with scallion greens, avocado, rice vinegar, and salt and pepper to taste.
Fill a small shallow baking pan or cake pan with warm water. Working with four sheets of rice paper at a time, immerse them in the water until very pliable (but not falling apart), about 45 seconds. Carefully arrange the soaked sheets in a single layer on paper towels to drain. Working with one soaked sheet at a time (keeping the remaining sheets covered with dampened paper towels), put each sheet on a clean dry work surface and arrange about one tablespoon of the herb leaves in a horizontal line across its bottom, leaving a one-inch border on the bottom edge and on each side. Top the herbs with about two tablespoons of chopped shrimp, and top the shrimp with one tablespoon of the carrot mixture. Add a small chunk of lettuce and several strands of vermicelli. Roll the filling tightly in the sheet, folding in the sides of the sheet to enclose the filling completely (the way you would with a burrito), and continue rolling.
Transfer the four assembled rolls to a tray and cover with dampened paper towels. Repeat the procedure twice more with the remaining eight rice paper sheets and the filling ingredients. Now tightly cover the tray with plastic wrap (keeping the dampened paper towels directly on the spring rolls). The spring rolls may be made six hours ahead and chilled but will be best if served immediately.
For the dipping sauce, heat the vegetable oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic cloves and chile pepper and stir for five seconds. Add the water, soy sauce, peanut butter, brown sugar and roasted cashews, making sure that all is mixed together well. Remove from the heat and stir in the mint leaves. Let the sauce cool to room temperature. (This sauce will keep, covered and refrigerated, for up to one week.)
Just before serving the summer rolls, using a serrated knife, cut them in half diagonally. Arrange the diagonals on a platter and garnish with more cilantro sprigs. Serve the rolls with the cashew dipping sauce.