Vietnamese Summer Rolls with Shrimp

June 13, 2013

Author: KatieChin

As the Culinary Ambassador to City of Hope, I just demonstrated how to make Vietnamese Summer Rolls at an “In the Kitchen” event held at a private residence. The event was co-sponsored by the City of San Marino in celebration of its centennial. We had an amazing turnout of enthusiastic guests excited to learn all about Super Foods.

I was so honored to have Dr. Michael Friedman, President and CEO of City of Hope, accompany me during the demo and serve as a most excellent sous chef. Before we began the demo, Dr. Friedman provided our guests with an overview of some of City of Hope’s amazing breakthroughs in the fight against cancer, diabetes and HIV/AIDS.

My Summer Roll recipe calls for enoki mushrooms which City of Hope researchers have identified as being a powerful Super Food meaning they contain compounds which may help fight and prevent cancer. This recipe I’m about to share calls for shrimp, lettuce, carrots, enoki mushrooms and beansprouts, but you can use pork, chicken or roast beef (I love getting store-bought thin slices of roast beef from the deli counter when I’m pressed for time) and your choice of veggies. It’s also super yummy to add mango to this shrimp version. Mint and basil add the perfect herbalicious touch.

Here we are getting ready to roll up our summer rolls. As I explained to the crowd, the key to making summer rolls is to make sure you don’t soak the rice paper wrappers for too long and to lay them flat on a dampened paper towel so they don’t stick to your cutting board. The hoisin peanut sauce is killer and addicting. You can get hoisin sauce in the gourmet section at Cost Plus World Market.

Ingredients

Hoisin Peanut Sauce:

½ cup (125 ml) hoisin sauce

2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter

2 tablespoons water

1 tablespoon rice vinegar or white vinegar

Crushed roasted peanuts for garnish

Summer Rolls:

2 oz (50 g) dried rice sticks or rice vermicelli

1 teaspoon dark sesame oil

16 medium-sized raw shrimp

1 package 12-in (30 cm) round rice paper wrappers

1 cup (100 g) fresh bean sprouts, ends trimmed

1 cup (105 g) carrots, cut into matchsticks

4 tablespoons fresh mint leaves

4 tablespoons fresh basil leaves

8 large or 16 small red leaf lettuce leaves, cut in half lengthwise

Instructions

Make the sauce: Bring the hoisin sauce, peanut butter, water and vinegar to a boil in a saucepan over moderately high heat. Immediately remove the saucepan from the heat. Transfer to a small serving bowl. Garnish the sauce with crushed peanuts. Set aside.
Place the rice sticks in a large bowl. Pour enough hot water over to cover. Let stand until softened, about 10 minutes. Drain and rinse with cool water. Toss with the sesame oil.
Add the shrimp to boiling water; reduce the heat to medium. Cook the shrimp until it turns pink, about 2 to 3 minutes. Drain. When cool, remove the shells. Cut each shrimp in half lengthwise, devein and set aside.
Fill a large, flat bowl with warm water, making sure it is large enough to fit the rice paper wrappers. Lay a clean towel on the workspace in front of you. Carefully dip a rice paper wrapper into the water, just to get it wet all over, trying not to crack it. It will still be slightly hard. Remove it from the water and lay it onto the clean towel, where it will continue to soften.
Layer a small amount of each of the ingredients on the bottom 1/3 of the wrap. Start with a lettuce leaf, then about 1 tablespoon of bean sprouts, then 2 to 3 pieces of shrimp, then some noodles, followed by some pieces of carrot, and then top with 2 leaves of the basil and 2 leaves of the mint. Fold up the bottom 1/3, fold in the sides and roll up the rest of the length to make an egg roll shape. Set aside and continue with the rest of the ingredients until all of the rice paper wrappers are used. Cut rolls in half on a diagonal. Serve with hoisin peanut dipping sauce.