My approach to meals during this time period we’re in, I don’t even know what to call it, is to cook during the week nights and order take-out on the weekends. That way I have something to look forward to when I finish the workday and take the single step from computer to kitchen, and we get to support our neighborhood restaurants on a regular basis. I shop on Saturday mornings and meal plan on Sunday evenings based on what I’ve managed to find, what ingredients or magazine articles inspired me, and what evening social events are on the docket, just kidding, that last one is a joke…there are no social obligations to navigate (whimpering laugh).
Given that instead of meal planning, I spent this Sunday night drinking wine and pampering myself with drug store brand luxuries during a much needed “Spa Night” with my husband, I started this work week a little bit behind the 8-ball in the kitchen department. It certainly didn’t help anything that I also ended up sitting around most of Monday evening stressing about work and watching Dead to Me until nearly 8pm, giving nary a thought to dinner that night or any other for that matter. Faced with this reality and the clock creeping toward 8:15, I naturally, asked my husband what he wanted for dinner, with the foolish hope that he’d suggest take-out and absolve me of any work. No such luck, I received the “uhh whatever you like” which translates to “I have no opinion and just figured you would handle any and all things related to food, I don’t understand why we are still engaging on this topic” and so I was once again, and not surprisingly, back at square 1.
This is all to explain that this recipe is born out of a need to get dinner ready in less than 45 minutes, and the need for it to be light given the fact we would be eating at 9pm (we are only aspirationally that European folks!). I decided to make use of some spring roll wrappers and mung bean strands from the way back of the pantry, aging lemon grass, the last of some shrimp and green curry pastes from the fridge, and recently acquired ground pork and vegetables from the farmers market - just hoping it would all come together in the form of spring rolls. I figured I would look to my favorite Laotian dishes like larb and Vietnamese restaurant dining experiences as inspiration for the flavor profiles, and I think it was a success. This recipe is intended to be a rough guide, more of a “this is how I did it” rather than a prescriptive instructional in this case. Skip the shrimp or green curry paste, pump-up the heat with Thai chiles, or sub in some tangy pickled veggies, you really can’t go wrong. To be clear, this is by no means an authentic recipe, nor is that my intention, but rather this is an example of how I turned a time crunch, my love and reverence for the flavors south east asian cuisine, and a half-stocked pantry, into a delicious dinner neatly fit into a rice wrapper. Hopefully this recipe inspires you to get creative!
INGREDIENTS
1 ¼ lbs ground pork
1 tsp shrimp paste
1 tsp green curry paste
1 lemon grass stalk, smashed and minced
1 Tbsp garlic, minced
1 small shallot, minced
1 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp fish sauce
1 Tbsp rice wine
2 oz mung bean noodles (re-hydrated and chilled)
¾ cup shredded raw carrot
1 ½ cups shredded lettuce
Spring roll rice wrappers
RECIPE PREPARATION
Place pork in a large saute pan over medium heat. You can use some oil, but I prefer not to since the pork has a decent fat content. Cook, breaking up into small pieces for about 8 minutes or until browned on most sides and starting to get crisp. Push pork to the sides of the pan to make space in the middle.
A decent amount of fat should make its way into the middle, if there is not a perceptible layer of oil then hit the pan with a little evoo or canola. Place shallots, garlic, and lemon grass in the middle and cook for about 2 minutes or until fragrant. Incorporate with the pork, then push the mixture out to the sides, creating a space once again.
Drop the shrimp and green curry pastes into the center of the pan, and hit it with the rice wine, soy sauce, and fish sauce which will help the pastes dissolve. Incorporate quickly, cooking for about 2 minutes then remove from heat.
Fill a large mixing bowl about half-way with luke warm water. Submerge your rice wrappers for 10-15 seconds. I used two at a time since the brand I used was very thin, some might be fine solo or require more or less time. As soon as the edge get soft, take wrapper out of water and place on a clean plate.
Place a small amount (⅓ cup-ish) of the pork about 1 inch from one side of the wrapper, keeping it centered, and making an oblong shape. Place carrots, lettuce, mung bean strands and any ther flavor toppings on top or just to the inside of the meat. Turn the ends of the wrapper over the short ends of the oblong shape, pressing with your fingers so they stick. Roll from the long side, burrito-style, until fully wrapped. Not super tight, but just so it won’t fall apart. Repeat until meat or wrappers run out.
Serve with a sweet or spicy dipping sauce