On the menu today—Veggie Rolls

The first time I tasted a veggie roll made with rice paper, I was quite turned off. I was used to eating spring rolls and egg rolls that are deep fried. The filmy, see-through, sticky white rice paper seemed almost gross to me and it was quite a few years before I tried it again.  

Luckily I am a firm beliver in trying something at least three times before swearing it off totally. With that rule I find there are only a few things in the food realm that I absolutely do not like after multiple attempts—parsnips, herbal teas and cilantro (being top contenders) That being said, my second attempt at trying veggie rolls (with rice paper) met with better success.

 To buy one, pre-made Veggie roll at the sushi section in my local supermarket it costs about $5 (includes dip) for one roll. If you make them from scratch you could probably make 6-8 roll for the same price. Needless to say I have since started making them at home.

Here's how I make mine:

Veggie Rolls
6 large, round rice papers
6 leaves of romaine lettuce
3 avacados
1 large English cucumber
1 super large carrot (shredded)
1-2 tablespoosn of rice vinegar

Preparation:
You can purchase already shredded carrots, but it is cheaper to do it by hand. If you have a mandoline the slicing is made a bit easier.

Once shredded, pour a tablespoon or two of rice vinegar over the carrots and mix well. I will sometimes prepare this a day ahead, leaving the carrots in the fridge until I'm ready to put the rolls together.

When you are ready to assemble, then cut the ends off of the English cucumber then split in in half down the entire length. Split each half into three separate pieces, lengthwise.

Wash and pat dry enough romaine letuce leaves - one piece per roll.

To assemble:
Dip a single sheet of rice paper in water for about 20 seconds. Place the wet sheet on a large plate.
Place a single lettuce leaf  in the middle of the sheet. Line the middle of the leaf with the shredded carrot. Try to make sure that the carrots are not too wet from the rice vinegar (strain or pat dry if neccessary ). Place one piece of cucumber lengthwise down the centre and then place slices of avacdo along the strip of cucumber.

You are now ready to roll! Working with rice paper can be difficult but gets easier with practise. If the paper was soaked enough, it should be filmy and slightly elastic. Pull the paper as taught as possible while rolling, tucking the ends in as you go.

Goma—Sesame seed dressing

Enjoy with a Goma dipping sauce—a Japanese salad dressing that is made with sesame seeds.