Shrimp Spring Rolls

I have a thing for food that comes in its own little package. I know it's why I love ravioli, it's also why I love spring rolls.  They are little bundles of fresh and crunchy yumminess.  Fresh spring rolls, sometimes referred to as summer rolls are not fried, they are made with rice paper wrappers and filled with fresh and mostly, if not all, raw ingredients.  Add a little dipping sauce or two to accommodate different preferences and you've got what could be thought of as a handheld salad.

Some people may be intimidated by the thought of making spring rolls at home, I know I was at first, but

they are really pretty easy.  It's a matter of getting all your ingredients ready to roll in a little assembly line and then start soaking your wrappers.  I made this batch for my family of three and I have to say, if you are going to make them you want to make a good sized batch, so for us I think this will be party food. Unlike many foods, the leftovers aren't as good as freshly made.

Shrimp Spring Rolls

24 spring roll wrappers

8 oz rice stick noodles

1 lb shrimp, deveined

1/2 teapoon sesame oil

2 teaspoons olive oil

2 cloves garlic, pressed

small bunch thai basil

small bunch cilantro

6-7 romaine lettuce leaves

1 cucumber, cut into thin strips

3 carrots, shredded

hoisin sauce

peanut sauce

sriracha sauce

Steam the shrimp. Peel and slice each shrimp in half lengthwise to make a thin slice and set aside

Prepare noodles according to instructions.  Drain.

Briefly sauté noodles in olive and sesame oils with garlic until garlic is fragrant. Remove from heat and let cool.

Fill a wide, shallow bowl with very warm water. Dip 1 rice paper round into the water for a few seconds to soften, shake off excess water and then lay it flat on a plate. Dip a second round into the water and lay it directly on top of the first one. 

Center a lettuce leaf on top of the stacked rice papers. Top the lettuce with a few pieces of basil and cilantro, then top the herbs with a few pieces of the cucumber and a bit of the carrots. Next put a small bunch of noodles (about 2-3 tablespoons worth) on top. Lastly top the noodles with 4 slices of shrimp. Be careful not to over stuff the roll. Lift the bottom edge of the rice paper up and over the filling and then roll once to encase the filling. Then fold each of the sides up to close the ends and then continue to roll the the spring roll up sort of like a burrito. Sit the completed roll on a piece of parchment paper. Repeat with the remaining rice paper and filling ingredients to make 12 rolls.

I like to provide a number of dipping sauces such as hoisin, sriracha and peanut sauce.