Nicole Is Cooking

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Summer Rolls are Vietnamese in origin and typically contain pork, shrimp, rice vermicelli and some vegetables rolled in rice paper. Unlike Spring Rolls, they are not fried and are instead served cold or at room temperature.

One day in the store during the summer before I started this site, I came across rice paper wrappers. Having always been a fan of the cold rolls in Thai and Vietnamese restaurants, I decided to give my own version a try. I found this useful site for tips on how to use the wrappers. I made many tasty batches of rolls with the summer vegetables I had on hand.

I had not made any for a while until I was inspired again one night flipping through my new copy of Veganomicon and there was a recipe for rice paper rolls using butternut squash, among other things. I decided to use the butternut squash and go from there.

I went to the farmers’ market but there were less vendors than normal since it was the Sunday after New Year. I picked up some butternut squash and red onions which I supplemented with some kale from the grocery store.

I also decided to thinly slice the kale stems to add in for a bit of crunch.

I cubed the squash and roasted it at 400 degrees (Fahrenheit) for about 45 minutes until it was cooked through and beginning to brown on the outside.

I decided to caramelize the onions and added the kale stems to the cooking onions. I cooked the kale stems with the onions the entire time and they retained their crispiness which was a nice contrast to the other ingredients.

I just lightly steamed the kale in some vegetable broth.

I also added one of my packages of mock duck that I mentioned in the grilling post.

Once everything is ready, mix and allow to cool.

I have used two different brands of rice roll wrappers and found each has its own quirks. The basic concept is you want to soften them in hot water, add the filling, and roll. I have found that as the water cools the wrappers will become harder to work with so I keep some water heating on the stove while I work so I can periodically refresh my soaking water. I set a plate out to contain the water to dunk the wrappers in.

One of the biggest tricks is to not let the wrapper fold back in on itself. Once it does, it will stick together. I leave them in the water long enough for the pattern on the wrapper to start to fade. Then I transfer the wrapper to a work surface covered with some wet paper towels. Add a few tablespoons of filling on the wrapper toward the bottom leaving about half an inch to an inch of free space to the edges of the wrapper (when I have spinach, I will put down some raw spinach first and the topping on top of it).

Then fold the sides of the wrapper in (there might not be enough contrast in this photo to see it easily).

And then roll up the remaining wrapper. If you see any holes, don’t worry- the rolling usually covers them up.

I keep mine in a large baking dish and put some wet paper towels between layers to prevent them from sticking to one another.

I may not make the prettiest ones, but they are good!

Typically when I make these I eat them all within three days at the most so I do not know how long they are really good for. I did keep some of this batch around for an unprecedented 6 days so Fantôme Chocolat could try them out (he had been sick so did not try them sooner). They seemed to hold up well enough, but it was quite a challenge not to eat them because this was a really good flavor combination.

For dipping, I usually go with some Thai Chili sauce or Fantôme Chocolat whips something up. I was filling inspired so mixed a dipping suace out of soy sauce, sesame oil, Thai chili sauce and rice wine vinegar that was quite tasty.

Six of them made quite a hearty and plentiful meal on their own!