Vietnamese Style Summer Rolls Recipe

Ingredients

• Summer rolls
• 2 ounces (about ¼ 8.8-ounce box) vermicelli noodles
• 8 Vietnamese rice paper circles
• ⅓ cup fresh mint leaves
• ⅓ cup fresh cilantro leaves
• ⅓ cup fresh basil leaves
• ½ head green leaf lettuce, washed and cut into small pieces (about 1½ cups)
• 4 ounces ready-to-eat (pre-packaged, pressed) tofu, cut into ½-inch cubes
• ½ cup mung bean sprouts
•  
• Dipping sauce
• ½ cup water
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• Juice of 1 lime
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1 small garlic clove, finely chopped
• ¼ jalapeño, finely chopped (seeded for less heat)

Directions

1. Bring a medium pot of water to a boil and add the noodles. Turn off the burner and allow the noodles to soak in the hot water until soft, about 5 minutes. Drain the noodles through a colander, rinse under cold water and shake the colander to drain as much liquid as possible. Set aside.
2. Fill a large bowl with hot water. Place a kitchen towel on the countertop. Working one at a time, place a sheet of rice paper in the warm water until it just begins to soften, about 15 seconds, then remove and lay on the kitchen towel.
3. In the center of the paper, about ⅔ of the way down, place about 2 tablespoons of noodles. Top with a few leaves of mint, cilantro, basil and lettuce, a few pieces of tofu and then a few sprouts. Roll the bottom of the wrapper over the filling, pulling on the top portion of the wrapper to gently tighten, then fold over the sides and roll like a burrito, keeping the summer roll as tight as possible.
4. Repeat with the remaining rice papers and the remaining filling ingredients. Place the summer rolls on a plate, cover with a damp paper towel and plastic wrap. Store in the refrigerator until ready to use.
5. Make the sauce: In a medium bowl, whisk together the water, fish sauce, rice vinegar, lime juice, sugar, garlic and jalapeño until the sugar dissolves. Serve in a small bowl alongside the chilled summer rolls.