The heat is on! It’s June and it’s hot as you know what here on the coast of Georgia. So, I find myself reaching for cool drinks and cold, easy to prepare meals. These crisp, cool and flavorful Veggie Summer Rolls are among our staples for Summer living. I like to serve them with a homemade Peanut Hoisin Sauce or a bottled Thai sweet chili sauce. Of course, I love Sriracha, so I usually have that on hand as well. No matter what you dip these guys in, I guarantee you will love them!
Whether you call them summer rolls, spring rolls or salad rolls, I bet you will call them tasty! I first tasted delicious, fresh rolls like this when my friend, Beth, made them for The Carolina Cup one year. They were so amazing and the perfect addition to our usual spread of fried chicken, ham delights and other more heavy foods. Back then, I had hard time finding rice wrappers. I had to order them online. Now, thankfully, I find them in my grocery store!
Beth’s rolls had shrimp and rice noodles in them. A lot of times I make them that same way, but I decided that this time I wanted to lighten them even more and just do veggies and some basil. Feel free to make them with your favorite Summer veggies. I used carrots, red bell pepper and cucumber. I have also used zucchini, onion, scallions, etc. That is one of the genius things about these veggie summer rolls, you can customize them to fit your taste.
These rolls are vegan, gluten-free and packed with vegetables. No cooking required! Give them a try and let me know in the comments how much you love them.
Veggie Summer Rolls with Peanut Hoisin Dipping Sauce
Ingredients
For the Peanut Hoisin Sauce
- 1/3 cup hoisin sauce
- 1/3 cup creamy peanut butter
- 1/3 cup warm water
- 2 TBSP low sodium soy sauce or tamari
- 2 TBSP fresh lime juice or rice wine vinegar
- optional: a dash of Sriracha or a pinch of dried red pepper flakes
For the rolls
- 12 6 " Vietnamese Spring Roll Rice Wrappers
- 12 big basil leaves
- 2 cups of julienned carrot
- 2 cups of julienned seedless cucumber
- 1 cup of julienned red bell pepper
Instructions
For the sauce:
- Whisk together the hoisin sauce, peanut butter and warm water until well combined. It will look like it's too watery at first, but keep whisking until it is smooth and creamy. Add soy sauce, lime juice and if you like it spicy, add some Sriracha or pepper flakes. Whisk until combined. Set aside.
For the rolls:
- Soak one rice wrapper in a dish of warm water until wrapper is soft and pliable. Remove it from water and place it on your work space.
- Place one large basil leaf near the middle bottom third of the wrapper.
- Take some of your julienned carrots, cucumber and peppers and make a small tight bundle on top of the basil.
- Begin wrapping by folding the sides into the center and then fold up the bottom over the filling, much like you would when rolling a burrito. Continue rolling until filing it completely enclosed. It might take some practice to get it down if you have never made these before, but you will be a pro in no time!
- If you need a visual of how to do them, here is a great video! http://www.finecooking.com/videos/how-to-make-summer-rolls.aspx
- Serve with Peanut Hoisin Dipping Sauce. Enjoy!
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