Vietnamese Spring Rolls

Keeping it in the family, this is Charles Phan's mother's recipe. "The nuances are in the sauce, everything else
is pretty straightforward. There is some technique-if the roll is the size of a burrito or like a cigar it's not go-
ing to work-it has to be somewhere in between." The spring rolls are light and fresh-shrimp, pork, lettuce,
mint, and rice noodles all rolled up tight in rice paper with Mom Phan's mayonnaise, to be dipped in the spicy
peanut sauce. I haven't yet managed to recreate exactly the ones Phan and I shared in his restaurant's kitchen,
but I'm going to keep trying-they are pretty darn close-"it's all in the details," or so he kept saying.

Peanut Sauce To Make the Peanut Sauce

1/4 cup uncooked sweet rice 1. Prepare the sweet rice by washing it three times in cold water; drain. Add 3/4
(aka: glutinous rice)
cup water to a small saucepan, add the rice, bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low,
3 tablespoons red miso paste
and gently simmer for about 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and cover the saucepan;
1/2 cup roasted peanuts
the rice will continue to cook.
1 to 2 Thai chili peppers
2. Add all the ingredients to the bowl of a food processor and grind to a fine
2 cloves garlic
paste, adding a little water occasionally until the texture has a smooth and creamy
3 tablespoons ketchup
consistency.
3 tablespoons sugar
3. Refrigerate the sauce. Garnish with the chopped roasted peanuts when ready
2 tablespoons oyster sauce
to use.
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed
lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil To Make the Spring Rolls
2 teaspoons chopped roasted 1. Beat the egg yolk. Slowly drizzle and whisk in the oil, a little at a time, to form
peanuts, for garnish
the mayonnaise and set aside. (You can substitute store-bought mayonnaise.)
Makes about 2 cups sauce
2. Prepare the mint and lettuce. Refrigerate until needed.

Spring Rolls 3. Bring three pots of water to a boil on the stovetop: one for the noodles
(4 quarts), one for the shrimp (1 quart), and one for the pork (2 quarts).
1 egg yolk
1/2 cup canola oil 4. Place the rice noodles in its pot of boiling water, reduce the heat to medium,
1 (a-ounce) package thin rice and hard simmer 5 to 7 minutes, or until the noodles are soft. Drain the noodles;
noodles (rice vermicelli) rinse with cold water, then rinse with very warm water. Cover with plastic wrap or
15 whole shrimp, shell on a clean damp cloth. Set aside.
1/2 pound lean pork 5. Place the shrimp in its pot of boiling water. Turn off the heat and let sit for 3 to
10 twelve-inch round sheets 5 minutes, or until the shrimp are cooked through. Rinse with cold water. Remove
rice paper
the shell and vein. Slice the shrimp in half lengthwise. Rinse again and drain excess
15 sprigs spearmint, leaves
liquid.
picked, no stems
1 head red leaf lettuce, 6. Place the pork in its pot of boiling water, simmer for 10 to 12 minutes, or until
washed, leaves separated, cooked through; it will depend on the thickness of the meat. Remove the pork
and trimmed to 5 to 6
inches long
from the water and place in cold water to cool. When cooled thinly slice the pork.

7. To assemble the spring rolls, fill a large bowl of warm to very hot water or
MAKES 10 SPRING ROLLS
as directed by the package instructions, dip one sheet of rice paper to make it
pliable. Remove and spread it out on a flat tabletop. The rice paper will absorb the
moisture and become soft, thus ready for use. Do not prepare more than two wet
rice papers at a time because the paper may dry out and be difficult to roll.

8. Lay one piece of lettuce over the bottom third of the rice paper and spread a
thin layer of mayonnaise over the lettuce. Place a small amount of rice noodles on

152 SMALL PLATES & SNACKS CHARLES PHAN [The Slanted Doorl
top of the lettuce. Place 2 to 4 slices of pork and 3 to 6 mint leaves on top of the
noodles. distributing them in even proportions.
9. Fold left and right sides over the filling to contain it. Roll up the rice paper
halfway into a tight cylinder. Place 3 shrimp halves. orange side down. along the
crease, then finish rolling the paper into a cylinder.
10. Place the spring rolls on a platter, covered with a lightly dampened towel so
they will stay moist.

11. Cut the rolls into thirds, straight across the roll, and serve immediately with
peanut dipping sauce.

Chef Phan's TIps

"Even something as simple as cutting the roll has to be done correctly. People
have learned from somewhere that you cut Asian spring rolls diagonally, but if
you do this everything falls out. You never see a Vietnamese person cut it on
the diagonal."

"Don't make the spring rolls ahead of time, at home we make them at the
table."

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