I don't want to exaggerate, so I'll just say this: the spring rolls I made for NYE might be one of the top 5 best foods I've ever made (I know spring rolls don't generally have meat, but I don't have anything better to call them). I made 17 of them because that's how much filling I had to use up, and Mike and I ate 15 of them that night. That's after we ate giant servings of my homemade lo mein. I didn't even get to take pictures because they were gone in a blink.
I could eat the entire 14 pounds of my ham and still want to eat one of them. I might not even miss egg rolls anymore because these were so good. So without any further ado (my horoscope today, as read to me by a co-worker said modesty would bring people to my cause - ha! There's no modesty in cooking), I present to you the (approximate, as always) recipe.
Stephane's Spring Rolls
- 1 pkg rice paper wrappers
- 1 pkg chicken breast tenders
- 6-7 baby carrots
- 1/2 head of green cabbage (you can use napa or red too - I just prefer green)
- 3 green onions (I use the white part and the green part, but if you don't like one or the other, just leave it out)
- 1/2 c vegetable broth
- 2 Tbsp rice vinegar
- 2 tsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp powdered ginger (obviously you can use fresh garlic or ginger. Just adjust the amount)
- 1 tsp garlic powder
Pre-heat oven to 300. Cut up cabbage, carrots and chicken (I cut the baby carrots lengthwise, cut the halves in half lengthwise, and then chopped). Spread in a baking dish. Combine broth, vinegar, soy sauce, garlic powder, and ginger and pour over chicken mixture. Bake for 45 minutes to an hour, until chicken is thoroughly cooked. You can also do 350 for half an hour - I just did lower and longer so the chicken would be a bit more tender.
Wet one of the rice paper wrappers (careful, they tear easily - thankfully I only ruined one), and place it on a plate. The wetting should literally be submerging it fully in water and taking it right back out. The one I ruined was from over-soaking. Let it sit on the plate for 30 seconds until it's pliable. Spread 2 Tbsp of the chicken mixture in the middle of the wrapper in a line. Fold up the bottom of the wrapper over the filling. Fold in the sides, and then carefully roll up, pressing down on the filling to get a tight roll. This site gives good instructions (I didn't use the egg wash, and mine were fine. But you may want to. I also used round wrappers, not square). Make your husband help, if you have one - mine actually enjoyed it.
Preheat oven to 400. Thoroughly spray a baking sheet, and spread out rolls in a single layer. Spray rolls generously with cooking spray. Bake for 15-20 minutes. Gently turn with tongs (these should also be sprayed to prevent sticking), and bake for an additional 10-15 minutes.
It may seem like a lot of work, but it was actually pretty fun. And it was definitely worth it. So get rolling!
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