Every time our CSA gives us collards I make them into wraps. I love them. But when it comes to spring roll wrappers I’m not the best.
My friends made fun of me for stuffing it too full like a burrito when we went out once last summer.
FYI, Quan nem ninh hoa is a total hole in the wall gem that my friend told us about. It’s so far out in Sac that it may as well be another city, but it’s cheap and delicious Vietnamese food, so what else do you need to know?
She did the ordering and we just enjoyed what showed up at the table.
Those fresh herbs! I got so overwhelmed I wanted to put everything into my spring roll and then it totally fell apart because it was way too big. I learned my lesson the second and third times around.
What I took from that dinner was a “less is more” approach to making rice paper rolls.
Which is why these turned out so lovely!
Back at home, I was inspired to do some non-collard wraps.
To make the meat, I used ground pork (but beef, turkey, or tofu would be fine too), which I sautéed in rice vinegar, fish sauce, salt and sugar. I also added fresh basil and cilantro, plus one chili pepper (of unknown heat because it was from the CSA).
I used both rice paper and cabbage to wrap them up – mainly because I had a few pieces of cabbage to use up – and then made an almond butter based sauce for dipping.
It had almond butter, tamari, rice vinegar, and sugar which I thinned out with a tiny bit of hot water (which also helps the sugar dissolve).
They were soooo good.
I should definitely take Kyle and the kids to quan nem ninh hoa so they can try their own hand at rolling spring rolls and taste the real deal Vietnamese flavors for themselves.
