Friday, August 5, 2011

Summer Rolls

Hey folks, meet Miami's Gỏi cuốn. It is "made in Miami" and aka Miami summer roll, Miami Vietnamese spring roll, or Miami fresh roll. Vietnamese gỏi cuốn; literally means "salad roll" is a dish consisting of pork, shrimp, herbs, bún (rice vermicelli), and other ingredients wrapped in rice paper. They are served at room temperature, and are not deep fried. Summer roll has gradually gained popularity among Vietnam's neighboring countries and in the West. Many Western restaurants serve Vietnamese summer rolls as an appetizer.

Believe it or not, I made these myself. It wasn't too hard because I learned how to roll cigarettes when young and adventurous. This is a bit different because you don't smoke these. Now I am exhausted and can't find any good Miami photos thus this is used instead. I can certify that these are really, really really authentic. I know, I have done research at least half a day to know what should be inside.

They look amazingly ugly and unappetizing, but trust me, they were deliciously yummy. Beats Burger King any night. Of course, I didn't eat all of them. Are you crazy? Confidentially though, I don't know why they made me put in the chives. Can't eat those long things!
Summer roll

2 comments:

Chris_sez said...

Those look delicious. I would love to try them. How do you make them?

Lan said...

This is very easy to make. Read this:
http://www.hungryhuy.com/recipes/how-to-make-goi-cuon-vietnamese-spring-rolls/

Rice paper: buy 8.5in diameter Vietnamese spring roll wrapper (Red elephant brand.) It says "banh trang deo thuong hang" outside the package. These do not break when you roll. Buy pork belly (if you want fat) or pork shoulder (leaner) Buy frozen deveined large shrimps with or without shell (easy peel if shelled.) To make the dip, hoisin sauce + water in equal quantity. I use honey roasted peanut chopped with coffee bean grinder to add to hoisin sauce. The link above shows you how to roll. The trick is to get a special plastic base made specially for rice paper. This plate has bumps on its surface so the rice paper does not get glued on it and hard to roll. With this tool, your life will be much easier when you roll. Remember to slice your shrimps in halves. I didn't and the rolls are too bulging.

Try it, you'll love it. Very easy.