Spring Rolls with Chile–Garlic Sauce

Boh Biah Tote

Crunchy fried spring rolls like these, stuffed with pork, mushrooms, and rice noodles and served with a sweet and spicy dipping sauce, are a popular midday snack in Thailand. Be sure to keep the reserved spring roll wrappers covered with a damp towel while you’re working, to prevent them from drying out.

FOR THE CHILE-GARLIC SAUCE:

1 cup sugar

½ cup distilled white vinegar

2 tbsp. minced garlic

2 tsp. kosher salt

1 tsp. cayenne pepper

FOR THE SPRING ROLLS:

3 dried mushrooms, such as cloud ear, porcini, or shiitake

2 oz. rice vermicelli noodles

¼ lb. ground pork

¼ lb. medium shrimp, peeled, deveined, and minced

2 tbsp. fish sauce

2 tbsp. minced shallots

½ tsp. freshly ground white pepper

½ tsp. sugar

1 clove garlic, minced Kosher salt, to taste

7 6-inch square spring roll wrappers, quartered into small squares

1 egg, lightly beaten Peanut oil, for frying

Makes 28 rolls

1. Make the chile–garlic sauce: In a 2-qt. saucepan, bring the sugar, vinegar, garlic, salt, and ½ cup water to a boil over medium heat. Stir to dissolve the sugar and reduce the heat to low. Simmer until the liquid is thick and syrupy, about 20 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat, stir in the cayenne, and transfer to a serving bowl. Chill until ready to use.

2. Make the spring rolls: Put the mushrooms into a small bowl, cover with hot water, and let soak until soft, about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, put the noodles into a large bowl and cover with hot water; let soak until soft, about 6 minutes. Drain and roughly chop the noodles; set aside. Drain the mushrooms and finely chop them. In a large bowl, combine the noodles and mushrooms along with the pork, shrimp, fish sauce, shallots, white pepper, sugar, and garlic. Mix the filling together and season lightly with salt.

3. Working with 1 small square of spring roll wrapper at a time, put the wrapper on a work surface so that one corner faces you. ^{See Image A} Put 1 scant tbsp. of filling in the center of the wrapper, and brush the far edge of the wrapper with a little of the beaten egg. ^{See Image B} Fold the near corner up over the filling to make a cylinder, and cinch the cylinder to make sure the filling is tightly wrapped. ^{See Image C} Fold the sides of the wrapper into the center of the cylinder. ^{See Image D} Roll the cylinder toward the far corner until the spring roll is sealed. Transfer the spring roll, seam side down, to a plate. Repeat with the remaining filling and wrappers; set aside.

4. Pour oil to a depth of 2 inches into a 6-qt. heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Heat until a deep-fry thermometer reads 350°F. Working in batches, fry the spring rolls, turning, until golden, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel–lined plate. Serve the spring rolls with the chile–garlic sauce.

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