Chicken Spring Rolls with Peanut Sauce

I’m slightly obsessed with the textural side of fresh spring rolls. The wrapper is made up of a delightfully soft and gummy sheet of rice paper, and the filling consists of fresh greens and herbs, rice noodles, and ground chicken. You take the whole thing and dip it in a creamy and rich peanut sauce, so you end up with crunchy veggies, a soft spongy wrapper and noodles, and a warm and thick sauce, covering all the best textural sensations of food. • makes about 12 spring rolls, serving 4

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Chicken Filling

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 pound ground chicken
• ⅔ cup sliced green onions
• ½ cup diced shallots
• 2 tablespoons minced lemongrass
• ¼ cup freshly squeezed lime juice
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 tablespoon fish sauce
• 1 to 3 teaspoons chili garlic sauce, depending on your heat intensity preference

Peanut Sauce

• ¾ cup full-fat coconut milk
• ½ cup well-stirred unsweetened natural creamy peanut butter
• ¼ cup granulated sugar
• 3 tablespoons water
• 2 tablespoons red Thai curry paste
• 1 tablespoon white vinegar
• 1¼ teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon chili garlic sauce

Spring Rolls

• About 12 round dried rice paper wrappers
• 36 fresh mint leaves
• 24 fresh Thai basil leaves
• 12 lettuce leaves, or other tender raw green
• 2 cups freshly cooked rice vermicelli noodles, cooled to warm

For the chicken filling, heat the vegetable oil in a medium frying pan over medium heat. Add the ground chicken and cook, stirring, until partially cooked, about 6 minutes, breaking it apart with the end of a wooden spoon as it is cooking. Add the green onions, shallots, and lemongrass and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is cooked through and no longer pink. Remove from the heat and drain the excess liquid from the pan. Empty the ground chicken mixture into a bowl and cool to room temperature. Add the lime juice, cilantro, fish sauce, and chili garlic sauce and toss. Set aside.

For the peanut sauce, in a small saucepan, heat all of the ingredients over medium-low heat, whisking constantly. Bring to a simmer and cook until completely smooth, about 3 minutes. Let cool to room temperature.

To assemble the spring rolls, soften one rice paper sheet by dipping it into a large bowl of very warm water and rotating the rice paper constantly for 30 seconds. Place the rice paper on a clean flat surface, such as a plastic cutting board. Arrange 3 of the mint leaves and 2 of the basil leaves in a straight line near the bottom of the circle, leaving about 2 inches of space on each side. Place a lettuce leaf on top of them and then place a few tablespoons of the chicken mixture on top of the lettuce leaf. Top with a small handful of the noodles, still maintaining the 2 inches of empty space on either side of the filling.

Fold the empty sides on either side of the filling inward to partially cover the filling. Tightly roll the rice paper around the filling, beginning at the bottom and rolling towards the top, until sealed. Repeat with the remaining sheets of rice paper and filling to make about 12 spring rolls. Serve immediately along with the peanut sauce for dipping.