Saturday, September 26, 2015

Deconstructed Spring Roll Salad

I'm a big fan of the fresh spring rolls that you can get at Thai and Vietnamese restaurants. They aren't as hard to make as they look (though mine are not the works of art that the professionals make). I had some left over spring roll ingredients recently and decided to turn them into a salad to pack in my lunch.  I could hardly wait to dig into it!  
Deconstructed Spring Roll Salad 

1/3 package of bean thread noodles (I used Dynasty, comes in a 5.29 oz package), soaked in boiling water for 20 minutes, drained and chopped.
1 whole carrot, grated
1/2 cup cucumber, chopped
1/8 cup chopped basil
1/8 cup chopped cilantro
1 cup baby spinach (or flat leaf torn in bite-size pieces)
1/8 cup chopped peanuts
Dressing:
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil

1 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon soy sauce

Toss the soaked and chopped bean threads with the grated carrot, cucumber, basil, cilantro and spinach.  Pour the dressing over the salad and toss.  Taste and correct seasoning.  It may need a bit more soy sauce, a drizzle of honey, some more vinegar.  Sprinkle with chopped peanuts. If you make in the morning by lunch time, the spinach will wilt a bit.  Makes one very generous serving.

You can play around with the ingredients--add some avocado, bean sprouts or chopped zucchini would be nice; lettuce could replace the spinach; sunflower seeds instead of peanuts; tofu or other protein would also be great!

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