Fresh Spring Rolls with Peanut Sauce

 I love fresh spring rolls! There's just something about them that I love. I think it's the incredible freshness that they have.

And then there's the peanut sauce. I LOVE that! I made these for dinner one night when it was just mom and I, and we both literally licked the sauce off our plates. By the end we were just eating it by the spoonful! haha. Good times.

These are also great as leftovers for lunch or a snack the next day.

Fresh Spring Rolls
Yields: as many as you want to make!

Ingredients:

 rice paper

rice vermicelli noodles

 pork, chicken, beef, fish, or shrimp (cooked and shredded or thinly sliced)

shredded carrots

shredded/sliced thinly zucchini or cucumber 

lettuce (sliced, chopped, or shredded)

parsley (optional)

mint leaves (optional)

Directions:

1.     Cook rice noodles according to package.

2.     Place 1 or 2 rice papers in cold water for several seconds or until no longer firm. Lay on flat surface.

3.     Layer lettuce, meat, rice noodles, carrots, and zucchini, parsley, and mint in the middle of the paper. Carefully fold the sides over. Then roll it up with the other sides.

 Serve with peanut sauce and sweet chili sauce. Enjoy!

*Notes: I like to boil the meat as it is easy and doesn’t require oil or anything. You can add or take out any ingredients you want/have. Personally I don’t like parsley or mint. Only put a little bit of each ingredient in the roll. If there is too much they will break. Don’t worry if they don’t look that big-they fill you up!

Peanut Sauce (from my Cambodian cookbook)

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp. oil

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 red chillies, seeded and finely chopped (according to spiciness desires)

generous 1/2 cup unsalted roasted peanuts, finely chopped

2/3 cup coconut milk (we used soy milk cause coconut milk hurts my stomach)

2 Tbsp. hoisin sauce ( i don't think we used this)

1 Tbsp. soy sauce

1 Tbsp. sugar

Directions:

To make the sauce, heat the oil in a small wok or heavy pan. Stir in the garlic and chillies, stir-fry until they begin to color, then add all the peanuts . Stir-fry for a few minutes until the natural oil from the peanuts begins to weep. Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat  and cook gently until the sauce begins to thicken a little and specks of oil appear on the surface.