Vietnamese fried spring rolls

These spring rolls are great to whip up for a party, or as a crispy topping for Vietnamese noodle salads.

How to make Vietnamese spring rolls. Credit: One World Kitchen

• makes

  20

• prep

  30 minutes

• cook

  10 minutes

• difficulty

  Mid

Ingredients

• 1 egg
• 3 tsp fish sauce
• ¼ tsp salt
• ½ tsp pepper
• 1 shallot, minced
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 scallion, chopped 
• ¼ cup minced pork
• ¼ cup minced shrimp
• ½ cup shredded fresh crab meat
• ¼ cup wood ear mushrooms, rehydrated, dried and chopped  
• 1 carrot, shredded
• 60 g mung bean noodles (glass noodles), soaked in water
• 1 cup (250 ml) water
• 3 tsp sugar
• 20 rice paper wrappers
• Vegetable oil, for deep-frying
• Nuoc cham, for dipping (see note)

Instructions

1. Crack the egg into a bowl. Add fish sauce, salt, pepper, shallot, garlic, and scallion, and mix well. Add pork, shrimp, and crab meat and mix. Add mushrooms, carrot, and noodles, and mix.
 
2. In a large pie plate or flat-bottomed bowl, add water and sugar and stir to dissolve sugar.
 
3. Place one rice paper wrapper into plate and allow it to soften in the water. Remove from water onto a clean kitchen towel.
 
4. Spoon some filling onto one third of the wrapper. Roll over once. Fold in top and bottom. Roll until you get to the end of the rice wrapper.
 
5. Heat oil in a wok or deep saucepan. Add spring rolls and fry until crisp.
 
6. Wrap in lettuce.
 
7. Serve with Nuoc Cham dipping sauce (see note).

Note:

• Combine 1 tablespoon sugar, 2 tablespoons of fish sauce and 2 tablespoons of rice vinegar in a small heatproof bowl. Pour ½ cup hot water over top and stir until sugar has dissolved. Let cool. Meanwhile, add 1 minced garlic clove and 1 chopped Thai chilli to a bowl or mortar. Add 2 tablespoons of lime juice and use a pestle or fork to mash together. Add garlic mixture to fish sauce mixture and stir well to combine.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.