CRUNCH, TEXTURE AND HEAVENLY BITES

Spring rolls offer a blank canvas for creative flavor and ingredient combinations

By Lauren Kramer

Spring rolls are the ultimate comfort food. With a long history that reaches into cultural origins in South Asia, East Asia and Southeast Asia, these staples have been easily adopted by Western diners and today are just as likely found at mainstream American restaurant menus as they are at Asian eateries.

Served fresh or fried, spring rolls are beloved for their mouthsatisfying crunch, their combination of multiple vegetables and proteins, their accompaniment of delicious dipping sauces and their versatility. Whether vegan, vegetarian or filled with different proteins, they accommodate many different ingredients and flavors.

At Sweet Basil, an Asian-inspired restaurant in the Boston area, Chef Dave Becker doesn’t dare remove his crispy spring rolls from the menu. Earlier this year he introduced the rolls, filled with braised beef and charred pineapple and served with a roasted jalapeno aioli. “People love them; they flip over them,” he says. “For the culinary team, the real beauty of having spring rolls on the menu is that the ingredients can all be prepared in advance, and they don’t require much skill. The labor involved is more relaxing and methodical than it is technical or stressful; you can make a massive quantity and then freeze them without sacrificing any quality.”

Chef Becker says spring rolls accommodate many variations of ingredients easily, with a few caveats. “Choose ingredients that break apart easily, like shredded and chopped vegetables or meats, so you don’t inadvertently pull out all the stuffing on your first bite,” he cautions. “I avoid ingredients that contain a lot of liquid, like cucumbers, because these ingredients tend to get soggy.”

When assembling his braised beef spring rolls, Chef Becker is cognizant of the need for every component of this dish to stand the taste test alone. “The shredded beef is good with rice and the caramelized pineapple and onions could be a topping for a short rib entrée,” he says. “But the combinations of stuffing ingredients are endless.” He has even considered doing a riff on a Reuben, using chicken skin as the wrapper.

Fried versus fresh

Chef Uno Immanivong, owner of RedStix Street Food in Dallas, stuffs fried spring rolls with ground chicken, cabbage, onions, carrots, garlic, ginger, mushrooms and vermicelli. “Our fried spring rolls sell better than the fresh ones because people are more familiar with them,” she says. “They’re easy and more resilient than fresh because you can eat them warm, and they hold well. With fresh spring rolls, if the skin is dry and you don’t eat them within 24 hours, they’re no good.”

Fresh spring rolls offer a healthier choice for customers.

Chef Immanivong’s “Kale Yes!” rolls are stuffed with kale, onion, cilantro, Thai basil, fried tofu and rice noodles tossed with garlic chips. Wrapped in rice paper, the rolls are served with a choice of peanut sauce or sweet and sour sauce.

“Adding ingredients like kale and collard greens gives the rolls a memorable look and adds important macronutrients for a balanced diet,” she says.

Chef Yia Vang, who menus Hmong food from Union Hmong Kitchen, a pop-up restaurant in Minnesota, fills his fresh spring rolls with carrots, cucumbers, mint, vermicelli noodles and shrimp, ingredients that serve well cold.

“It’s great knife skill practice chopping those vegetables so small, and if you’re going to add tofu, make sure you flavor it well first,” he says.

For fried spring rolls choose ingredients that will easily withstand frying, and throw egg in as a binder.

“Stay away from putting fish inside a fried spring roll, but anything you can grind down, such as chicken, beef or pork, will work well,” says Chef Vang, who notes that it’s also important to know when you have enough stuffing for your spring rolls, a judgment that only comes with trial and error. “Less is more with spring rolls; chefs often get excited with all the ingredients, throw them all in and find the rolls break when they try to roll it up.”

Don’t skip the dip

Dipping sauces are an important accompaniment to spring rolls of all types. “Use something as simple as hoisin and sriracha, or combine simple syrup, fish sauce, lime juice, garlic and chilies to make your own,” Chef Immanivong says.

Chef Becker describes himself as a ‘condiment guy’ because he’s keen on making his own sauces. “Get a jug of sambal, mix it with some mayo and put that on anything,” he suggests. “Some people just use fish sauce for a dip, or creamy peanut butter mixed with mayo or even a hot mustard.”

Whatever your filling and spring roll style, this nostalgic food offers chefs the chance to showcase authentic flavors and play with modern variations in a format that is low cost, fun to eat and continues to remain popular among diners.