Sweet and Spicy Spring Rolls
Recipe byTo make these sweet and spicy spring rolls, stir fried ground pork, swamp spinach, chilies and pineapple seasoned with Vietnamese mixed fish sauce are wrapped in rice paper. A delightful snack to enjoy!P. S. If swamp spinach is inaccessible, regular spinach may be substituted with equally good result.
Ingredients
Modified Vietnamese mixed fish sauce
- 1 ½ tablespoons fish sauce
- 2 tablespoons calamansi juice or lime or lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon white sugar
- 1 big pinch chopped garlic
- 1 bird's eye chili (optional in this case; you'll see why later)
Filling
- 1 tablespoon cooking oil
- 200 grams ground pork
- 1 teaspoon finely minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon finely chopped ginger
- 2 finger chilies (mildly hot chilies work best), thinly sliced
- 2 to 3 slices fresh pineapple cut into half-inch cubes to measure one cup
- 1 bunch kangkong (swamp / water spinach) cut into half-inch pieces, thick stalks and leaves separated
To make the spring rolls
- 8 to 10 sheets rice paper
- 1 small handful cilantro
Instructions
- Stir together all the ingredients for the sauce until the sugar is fully dissolved.
- Heat the cooking oil in a wok or frying pan.
- Over high heat, add the pork, garlic and ginger. Cook, stirring, until the pork is no longer pink.
- Add the chilies and cook, stirring, for a minute.
- Pour in the Vietnamese mixed fish sauce. Stir. Allow to cook with occasional stirring until almost dry.
- Add the pineapple cubes. Stir.
- Add the thick stalks of the kangkong. Stir. Cook for a minute.
- Add the thinner stalks and leaves of the kangkong. Stir. Cook for another minute. Taste. Adjust the seasonings, if needed.
- Transfer to a shallow bowl and cool completely (see notes after the recipe).
- Moisten a sheet of rice paper in a shallow bowl of water until softened then lay flat on your work surface.
- Place a heaping tablespoonful or two (depending on the size of your rice paper) at the middle, top with some torn cilantro and wrap.
- Repeat until all the rice paper had been filled, or until you run of out filling, whichever happens first.
Notes
The stir fried pork, swamp spinach and pineapple is already a fully cooked dish. You can serve it with rice and it’s very, very good.
But I wanted spring rolls. So, I waited a little bit until the mixture has cooled so as not to create steam inside the rice paper which would make it soggy.
After the mixture has cooled to room temperature, you can use it as a spring roll filling, as I did.
These spring rolls are already perfectly seasoned and they don’t require a dipping sauce.
Updated from a recipe originally published in February 17, 2012
Updated from a recipe originally published in February 17, 2012