Vietnamese Fresh Summer Rolls with Hoisin Sauce (24 August 2014)

Once you try these little delicacies you will love them. I still feel spicy chili on my lips and the taste of crunchy raw vegetables, fresh aromatic mints and coriander leaves and gentle noodles ...just simply stuffed into rice wrapper. It is up to you what kind of filling you will use. Today I did some roles with only vegetables and some of them have additionally slices of fried beef. When I lived in Sweden I used to make them with pork, usually belly – cooked and then thinly sliced. To make the taste even more substantial I used to add some cooked shrimps. The combination of ingredients; freshly cooked shrimps and pork together with crunchy vegetables created unforgettable taste. My suggestion is that you should try different types of ingredients and I am sure you will find your favorite. Good Luck!


8 servings

200 g lightly fried and sliced beef tenderloin
1 block of rice noodles
8 leaf lettuce
4 sprigs of mint, leaves picked
4 sprigs of coriander
4 sprigs basil leaves (optional)
1 carrot, cut into thin matchsticks
¼ cucumber, cut into thin matchsticks
1 ripe avocado, sliced lengthwise into 8 even pieces
8 rice paper wrappers
2 chili, finely sliced

Hoisin Sauce or Dipping sauce:

1 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp lime juice
1 tbsp fish sauce
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 chili, finely sliced
4 tbsp salted roasted peanuts, roughly chopped

Put the noodles in a large bowl and pour over boiling water. Add ½ tsp salt, leave for about four minutes until al dente, then rinse well in cold water and drain thoroughly.

Set out all the ingredients within easy reach of a clean, dry chopping board. Fill a wide, shallow bowl with warm water. Place one spring roll wrapper in the bowl and let it soak until limp, about 5 seconds.

Lay the wrapper down flat on your work surface. In the upper center section of the wrapper, place one piece of lettuce and a small clump of rice noodells. In a compact vertical line, arrange few piece of the carrot, cucumber, and one piece of avocado. Top with two or three slices of beef and with a line of herb leaves such as mint, basil and coriander. Finish with two slices of fresh chili.

Bring the bottom edge of the wrapper tightly up over the filling, and then fold the sides in over it. Continue to roll up tightly and place on a plate, join-side down. Cover rolls with lettuce leaves to keep them fresh.

Once all the rolls are made, make the sauce or use ready made Hoisin Sauce.
For a dipping sauce whisk the sugar into the lime juice to dissolve, then add the remaining ingredients. Adjust to taste if necessary.