Homemade Sweet and Spicy Chile Sauce and Shrimp Spring “Unrolls”

Sweet and Spicy Chile Sauce with Shrimp Spring Unrolls

I tried. I really really tried. I wanted to make shrimp spring rolls to go with this amazing chile sauce I came up with, but spring rolls were not to be. During the fourth attempt at rolling the same rice paper, it fought back and exploded in the middle, dumping the contents onto the plate below. I threw my hands in the air, added more lettuce to the mix, and used the dipping sauce as a salad dressing. Take that spring unroll!

It was quite delicious, if I don’t say so myself! I wish I made more of the chile sauce, as it really does make an amazing salad dressing and of course would go great with spring or egg rolls too. I let hubby roll his own, and he didn’t have much success either. I think we both tried to put too much in each one. But we both ended up with a lovely meal, mess and all.

Rather than bore you with all the details of what went in my “salad,” I basically used the same recipe that I used another time a made spring rolls, but used medium whole shrimp instead of diced deli shrimp and switched up a few of the veggies/herbs. Recipe here —> Shrimp and Vegetable Spring Rolls with a Spicy Peanut Sauce. OK let’s get to the chile sauce (and double this up if you want more to grace your fridge for future use):

Homemade Sweet and Spicy Chile Sauce
Adapted from picturetherecipe.com

4 tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1/8 cup water
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon Sambal Oelek
1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch mixed with same amount of water
3/4 teaspoon fish sauce

Add the sugar to a small sauce pan, then whisk in the rice vinegar and water. Turn heat to medium high and bring to a boil, whisking until sugar is dissolved.

Whisking the Chile Sauce

Add the minced garlic, crushed red pepper flakes, and Sambal Oelek. (You can substitute Sriracha if you don’t have any.)

Adding the Sambal Oelek ~ Shhh! It’s the secret ingredient!

Turn heat down and let simmer for several minutes until it slightly thickens.

Whisk in the cornstarch slurry, then simmer at a high bubble until the sauce clears and thickens. Turn off heat, stir in the fish sauce, then set aside to cool down.

Cooling the Chile Sauce

Once cool, store in airtight bottle in the refrigerator until ready to use. Serve as a dipping sauce with spring rolls, or as a sweet/spicy dressing to any salad.

Sweet and Spicy Chile Sauce with Shrimp Spring Unrolls

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Shrimp and Vegetable Spring Rolls with a Spicy Peanut Sauce

Shrimp and Vegetable Spring Rolls with Spicy Peanut Sauce

While the rest of the country is freezing and snowed in, the balmy days here in the Pacific Northwest gave me a hankering for some light and savory spring rolls. We’ve been bordering on 60 degrees all week and I’ve been wondering where winter went this year?  I’m typically making soups and stews during January,  not fresh and crunchy spring rolls!

I set up a “build-your-own-spring-roll” station on the kitchen counter, showed the family how to soak their rice wrapper, choose their filling, and how to roll it up. I got a little over-zealous with my spring roll filling as it was bursting at the seams! My husband made three of them, and his were neat and tidy packages like you see at the restaurants, but he ate his before I could photograph them. And me? Well I’m not exactly a perfectionist. Do as I say, not as I do, right? Besides, you do want to eat these right away or the rice wrapper becomes a bit gummy over time.

Julienned Vegetables

Don’t let the long list of ingredients intimidate you. I julienned all the vegetables earlier in the day, cooked the noodles, then stored them in the refrigerator until we were ready to get rolling. About 15 minutes before dinner, I made the spicy peanut sauce, laid out all the fixin’s, and the dinner bell rang! Everyone agreed these were a surprising tasty meal on a not-so-cold mid-winter’s night.

You can substitute and/or omit any of the vegetables for ones of your liking. On a whim, I bought a jicama to add to the mix, which added a slightly sweet crunch to the roll. Same with the herbs, you may use any or none of them, or even sub in parsley. Although I do think each one adds its own depth of flavor in the end.

Spring Roll Filling

Shrimp and Vegetable Spring Rolls with a Spicy Peanut Sauce

For the spring rolls:
1 carrot, peeled and julienned
1/2 red bell pepper, julienned
4-inch chunk of cucumber, julienned
1/2 jicama root, julienned
3 green onions, green part cut into 4-inch pieces
Romaine lettuce leaves
2 ounces dried rice noodles
Salad shrimp
Round rice wrappers
Fresh cilantro, mint, and Thai basil

For the spicy peanut sauce:
4-inch piece of lemongrass root
3/4 cup water
1/4 teaspoon finely minced ginger
1/2 cup Hoisin sauce
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons Sambal Oelek (Thai chili paste)

Shrimp and Vegetable Spring Roll

Wash and prep all your vegetables, cook the rice noodles according to directions, and store in containers in the refrigerator until ready to make your rolls.

About 15 minutes before serving, make the peanut sauce. Boil the lemongrass in the water in a small saucepan for 5 minutes. Remove the lemongrass then add the rest of the ingredients and whisk until smooth. Turn down heat and simmer until thick and creamy. Remove from heat and set aside.

Lay out a wet dish towel on the counter, and set up a line of all your vegetables, herbs, and shrimp. Put one rice wrapper in a shallow pan and cover with water, and swirl it around until it becomes soft and pliable. Working quickly, lay the wrapper on the wet dish towel, top with a lettuce leaf, some rice noodles and fillings/herbs of choice. Fold the bottom of the rice wrapper up over the filling, tuck in both sides, then roll up the rest of the way. Serve with the warm spicy peanut sauce.

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