Photo courtesy Maggie Heyn Richardson
During halftime of that delicious LSU-Auburn game this past Saturday, my friend Sara and I headed into the kitchen to work on appetizers while our combined six kids and two husbands headed outside. It was beastly hot, as you’ll recall, and something cool and refreshing was in order. We set out the ingredients to make Gulf shrimp spring rolls.
My husband grilled fresh large-count shrimp on skewers seasoned with salt, pepper and olive oil, while Sara and I set up an assembly line of soft rice noodles, shredded carrots, thinly sliced radishes and cucumbers and lots of fresh mint and basil from our garden. We also had a water bath nearby for soaking the hard round sheets of rice paper so they’d become pliable enough for rolling.
Some years back, Baton Rouge discovered its love for Vietnamese food through mom-and-pop eateries largely on the east end of Florida Boulevard. And while I love venturing to them, you’d be surprised at how easy and satisfying it is to make your own version of Vietnamese food at home.
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Spring rolls, in particular, are really fun to make with friends.
Ingredients you’ll need to make spring rolls:
• A large pan of water for softening spring roll wrappers
• A large cutting board where you can lay the softened wrapper flat
• A pile of softened rice noodles (Cook according to package, but taste first. If they don’t taste soft enough leave in the hot water a little longer. They should be spongy, not stringy.)
• Cooked shrimp, pork or chicken
• Other ingredients that add flavor and texture, such as cucumbers, radishes, shredded carrots, lettuce and fresh mint, basil and cilantro
Sara and I took turns, each of us taking a softened wrapper and gently adding small amounts of ingredients in a horizontal pile on the lower third of the sheet. Then we gently rolled each wrapper from the bottom up, while also folding in the outside flaps. Softened wrappers are naturally adhesive, and once you make a few rolls, you’ll see how easy it is. The trick is not to overfill the roll, or to put anything wet inside, either of which will cause the sheet to rip.
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A few of ours didn’t look so great, but who cares? They all tasted wonderful. We served them with peanut sauce and a traditional dipping sauce of fresh lime juice, fish sauce, water, chili flakes and garlic. If you don’t feel like making a homemade sauce, there are plenty of tasty sauces on the market, including peanut, hoisin and sweet chili.
Enjoy!
Maggie Heyn Richardson is a regular 225 contributor and the author of Hungry for Louisiana, An Omnivore’s Journey. Reach her through her website, hungryforlouisiana.com.