fresh springroll salad

There are many interesting salad ideas but this is just one of the many ways I have found that's easy to make and elegant to serve as well. I have since made these with a variety of filling combinations, some with cooked pork, chicken or beef or just vegetarian with a simple tofu and vegetable filling. The original Vietnamese and Thai fresh rolls are usually made with cooked shrimp. This batch was made with scrambled eggs which I sliced into strips along with carrot, cucumber, red bell pepper cut into very thin strips and vermicelli noodles which has been blanched in boiling water to soften. They were layered over some crunchy iceberg lettuce leaves then rolled in rice paper. Before rolling, the filling may be sprinkled with some salt and pepper or some soy and hoisin sauce combination for flavor but this step is optional. The rice papers are available in most Asian and Oriental markets. They are very delicate and can break easily so they must be handled lightly. Soak about 3-4 of them in a container of warm water ( I used a 9" round cake pan which was a perfect size for the rice papers ) then blot them on a clean towel before using. They were served with a sweet, salty and spicy dip. Sweet chili or peanut sauce work great as well. The photo (above) was taken by my husband with his new camera that he's been enjoying lately.

FRESH SPRINGROLL SALAD

Slice the following into thin strips and set aside:

red bell pepper

cucumber

carrots

scrambled egg

Blanch some vermicelli noodles in boiling water to soften. Wash a few iceberg lettuce leaves and drain. Take 3-5 rice papers and soak them in warm water for about a minute or until they become soft. Blot with a clean towel. Layer the vegetable strips, scrambled egg and noodles on the rice paper and roll tight. Cut diagonally before placing on a serving platter. Serve with dipping sauce (below).

DIPPING SAUCE:

(this dip has a sweet, salty and spicy flavor)

rice vinegar

warm water

fish sauce

lemon or lime juice

finely minced garlic

sugar

salt and pepper

spicy chili sauce

Combine all ingredients together and keep refrigerated until serving time.