summer/autumn rolls (vegan)

[ninjaTRON]

OMNOMNOMNOM

hallo glitters. i am eating deliciousness right now and thought i would share.

i've never given summer rolls proper credit (as sadly, i'm usually one of Those People who are all "cool, some lettuce. where is the real foodz?") but recently it has been hot as hades and summer rolls are the best for that!!

i made some. they are delicious, but possibly very non-traditional. mostly i guessed what our local vietnamese restaurant puts in them and them.. put in other stuff instead.


rice paper
tofu
mushrooms
carrots
bean sprouts
peanut butter
sesame oil
sugar
soy sauce
garlic
vinegar
regular oil
chili sauce/chilies
mint
cilantro
maybe lettuce if you consider it a real thing

method:
drain tofu and pat dry. cut into lengthwise strips that are thin (your theme for cutting). cut mushrooms in a similar-ish fashion. chop up garlic however you like. saute these three things in some oil until the mushrooms take up less space and the tofu is goldeny.

meanwhile, mix up some soy sauce, sugar (1- 2 tsp, optional?), 1 tsp of dark sesame oil, chili sauce (i used sambal cause it was in my fridge) and vinegar. add half to the tofu mixture and set half aside.
cook on med-high heat until the sauce is reduced and coats the tofu and everything is sort of crumbly and not-wet. but not "dry".

grate the carrots on the "fine" side of the grater. rough chop the mint and cilantro. chop the lettuce into ribbons if using. wash the bean sprouts.

finally, take the "sauce" mixture you set aside and heat gently in the microwave or over the stove. gently, cause burning vinegary things smell bad (not that i would know..just saying..).
when the mixture is warm, mix in a few tblsp of the peanut butter. i used "natural" peanut butter (just peanuts) cause it mixes more easily and is sort of crunchy. you can use whatever you like!


assembly:

have 3 bowls set up - 1 with hot water, 1 with cold water and 1 empty. dip the rice paper in the hot water bowl until it is soft. transfer to the cold water bowl to cool it down (just a dunk) and then "drape" over the third empty bowl like you are making a drum.

in the centre, plunk some bean sprouts, vegetables, and a spoonful of the tofu mixture. bring the right and left sides of the rice paper to cross in the middle and make sure they overlap. the top and bottom part will sort of "bunch" naturally. bring them together in the middle.

VOILA! summer roll!! serve w/ dipping sauce!

this seems like a ton of work, but if you are with a group of people, you can delegate the tasks, prep ahead and then eat delicious summer rolls.

also i made all the stuff in advance this week so am eating this for lunch. its awesome.

<3 and ponies, zonies, sloths

TRON
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[drainCosmetics]

This sounds soooooo good. I am definitely trying this sometime this week. Thanks for sharing!!!
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[arabella]

ooooh sounds fantastic! must try this weekend!

[puck]

for me the most important part is the peanut sauce to dip.
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[petunia_843]

Tron those sound AMAZING!!

[Barbeegrrll]

Tron- thanks so much for posting this! I had already purchased all of the ingredients, because we love to eat these when we go out for Thai food, but I didn't know what kind of sauce to make to go with it. This is perfect! Also, I didn't know the exact method for wrapping, so this helps me out a lot!

[Nemesis]

Mmmm, I make a version of this - I put shrimp in mine (not Vegan, I know) instead of the tofu, and wrap it up like I would a burrito. I don't use the second bowl of cooling water - I like my rice wraps to be warm. I also use hoisin sauce and a spread of the peanut sauce inside the wrapper as I find the ingredients fall out if I use the peanut sauce for dipping.

Yum! Am going to have for dinner tomorrow night!
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