Vietnamese Salad Rolls

My good friend Quang and his wife Eileen were so sweet to show me how to make my own salad rolls.  We made an afternoon of it, cooking some delicious food.  I cannot believe how easy they are to make, even your 5 year old could make these!  Also, if you have ever purchased peanut sauce, you will want this recipe. You will wonder why you ever purchased prepared peanut sauce in the first place.

What you will need:

Rice paper

Rice Noodles (Phad Thai Noodles Work Best)

Romaine or Iceberg Lettuce

1 Carrot Thinly Sliced

1 Cucumber Thinly Sliced

1/2 Cup Medium Shrimp Cooked and Shelled

2 Large Fresh Basil Leaves Per Roll

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You can purchase rice paper mats to prep the rolls, but I didn’t want to spend the extra money to buy them.  Instead, you can wet a dish towel with water and lay on your work surface.  The wet towel will soften the rice paper so it becomes sticky and pliable.

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Since I am a rather impatient person, I like to wet both sides of the rice paper so it will soften faster.  Try not to put too much water on the paper, otherwise it will become too slippery and wont stick to itself when you go to roll it.

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Lay down your lettuce first, noodles, then carrots and cucumbers.  I place my basil and shrimp at the bottom of the paper closest to me so they display nicely on the outside of the role when it is finished.  If you don’t care about esthetics, you can place them inside of the roll to keep them contained and make it easier to roll.

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Start by folding down the top and the left and right sides of the rice paper, enclosing the noodles and vegetables. This technique is similar to rolling a burrito.  IMG_3543Finish by rolling the rice paper from one end to the other.  The rice paper will easily stick to itself creating a good seal, so nothing will fall out.

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I usually make several of these and wrap them individually in cellophane wrap to keep them from sticking together.  They will last up to a day or two in the fridge.

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