administratorA delicious snack straight from China, packed full of crunchy vegetables and bursting with flavor. I found this recipe on Jamie Oliver’s website. These are some of the most aromatic spring rolls I’ve ever tasted. Their crispiness comes from the pastry sheets, made from flour and slightly reminiscent of filo dough.
The dough I used is versatile — perfect for spring rolls, Indian samosas, or Tunisian brik. In previous recipes, I used rice paper sheets. They’re more flexible but slightly chewy in texture. In this recipe, I’ll only cover how to prepare the filling — the folding and frying technique can be found [here].
Note: Unlike rice paper, these pastry sheets do not need soaking. Jamie recommends using double sheets per spring roll to prevent tearing, but I used single sheets and had no issues..
Ingredients
40 g dried mushrooms (e.g., shiitake)
50 g thin rice noodles
200 g finely chopped Chinese cabbage
1 peeled carrot, cut into thin matchsticks
3 spring onions, white parts finely chopped, green parts cut into thin strips
A cherry-sized piece of ginger, peeled and grated
1 chili, finely chopped
1 large bunch Thai basil, coarsely chopped
1 large bunch coriander, coarsely chopped
20 ml sesame oil
75 g mung bean sprouts
3 tbsp roasted peanuts, chopped
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp corn starch
16 large spring roll pastry sheets
1 tbsp five-spice powder
0.5–1 l peanut oil (or sunflower/rapeseed) for frying
Sweet chili sauce for serving
Preparation
Soak the mushrooms in hot water for about 10 minutes until soft. Place the rice noodles in a large bowl, cover with boiling water, and let sit for 1 minute. Drain, rinse with cold water, and cut into shorter pieces.
In a large bowl, combine the Chinese cabbage, carrot, white part of the spring onions, ginger, chili, coriander, basil, and rice noodles. Add sesame oil, mung bean sprouts, peanuts, soy sauce, and oyster sauce. Mix well. Drain the mushrooms, chop them, and add to the filling. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed.
In a small bowl, mix the corn starch with 2 tbsp water. This mixture will act as a “glue” for sealing the spring rolls.
On a clean, dry surface, lay out one pastry sheet and lightly sprinkle with five-spice powder. Spread a little of the corn starch mixture along the top edges. Place about 2 tbsp of filling on the bottom portion of the sheet and fold it up, sealing the edges. Repeat with the remaining ingredients.
Heat oil in a pan and fry the spring rolls until golden brown and crispy. Serve hot with sweet chili sauce.
