When I was in Vancouver in February I ate so many of these, they were the perfect quick lunch and they kinda made me forget it was still winter and back in Charlottetown it was
freezing cold! I made them for the first time this summer and I was so pleased with them, perfect snack, side dish, or lunch!
Makes 8 rolls
1 1/2 oz cellophane noodles (also called 'bean thread' noodles)
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
1/2 cucumber, peeled and cut into very thin strips
1 carrot, peeled and cut into very thin strips
1/2 red bell pepper, cut into very thin strips
1 green onion, chopped
1/2 tablespoon rice vinegar
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon fish sauce
Juice of half a lime
salt and pepper
2 tablespoons cilantro leaves, chopped
16 fresh mint leaves
8 rice paper wrappers, can be found at Superstore in the Ethnic Cuisine section
Cook noodles according to package directions. If your noodles don't have directions or they are in another language, a good method is to bring a pot of water to a boil, turn of the heat, and add the noodles, let them sit for about 10 minutes and then drain. Toss drained noodles with sesame oil.
Combine all the vegetables, green onion and cilantro in a large bowl. Whisk together rice vinegar, sugar, fish sauce, lime juice, and some salt and pepper. Pour over vegetables and toss to coat. Taste it, if it doesn't taste good now it's not going taste good when you're done. Add salt if it's needed or any of the other marinade ingredients.
Fill a round cake pan or pie plate halfway with hot water. For each wrapper, immerse it in the hot water until it softens, about 30 seconds. Lay it on your work surface and fill it with 1-2 tablespoons of noodles. Then add 1/8 of the veggie mixture. Add 2-3 mint leaves. Roll it up like a burrito! Might take a couple of trys to get a 'nice' roll, keep at it, experiment with putting veggies on first, or placing ingredients in different areas or the rice paper (middle, front). Eat immediately or store in the fridge, covered, for at most 2 days.
Very important notes:
1. Originally this recipe came with a dipping sauce, the first time I made it I was taking them 'togo' and didn't want to have to deal with spilling sauce, so I just doubled the vegetable marinade so they veggies were extra juicy and even poured a bit on the noodles. They were juicy and flavourful enough to not need a sauce.
2. If you want a sauce you can use and Asian dipping sauce, either store bought or homemade. A peanut sauce, sweet chili sauce, etc.
3. I have made both vegetarian and non salad rolls, just omit the fish oil and add in soy sauce.
4. I used small-ish rice paper rounds that were perfect for appetizers. Experiment with what works best for you.
4. Lastly, to make this more filling I added strips of tofu that I tossed with the vegetable marinade and seasoned. You could also use cooked chicken or shrimp.
