Vegetable spring rolls
If you are not serving the rolls straight away, place them on a plate, cover them with a clean, damp cloth and store them in the fridge This will prevent them from drying out. Vary the vegetables you use, you could even include fruit (such as mango, green apple or avocado) and prawns (shrimp), duck breast or smoked salmon. The choice is yours.
1 large chicken breastsalt and pepper2 tablespoons vegetable oil1 cucumber1 raw Chioggia beetroot (beet) or red beetroot10 small round rice paper sheets1 lettuce heart, leaves separated1 bunch of mint, leaves picked hoisin sauce1 bird’s eye chilli (optional), deseeded and finely chopped1 tablespoon chopped peanuts (optional)
Season the chicken breast with salt and pepper and fry in the oil until golden. Leave to cool, then cut into 5 mm- (1⁄4 in-) thick slices.
Shred the cucumber and beetroot using a julienne peeler fitted with a fine julienne blade. Alternatively, you can use a spiralizer for the cucumber. Set aside.
Soak the rice paper sheets in cold water, then lay them on a board and fill them. With each sheet, start with a lettuce leaf, then add two or three mint leaves, some cucumber, some beetroot and two slices of chicken. Allow the filling to poke out of one side of the sheet. Roll up the sheets tightly, cutting o any excess rice paper at the bottom of the roll.
Pour some hoisin sauce into a small bowl and stir in the chilli and peanuts. Serve the spring rolls with the hoisin sauce.
Vietnamese sandwiches
Serves 3
2 large chicken legs (thighs and drumsticks), boneless if possible200g daikon (10 cm/4 in in length)200g carrots½ cucumber1 baguette a few sprigs of coriander (cilantro)3 tablespoons mayonnaise strong liquid seasoning pinch of chopped chilli, to taste pepper
Chicken marinade
20g lemongrass, finely chopped thumb-sized piece fresh ginger, finely chopped3 garlic cloves, finely chopped 1 tablespoon fish sauce1 teaspoon caster (super fine) sugar½ teaspoon salt½ teaspoon pepper
Vegetable marinade
50g caster (super ne) sugar3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar1 teaspoon salt1 small chilli, finely chopped
Prepare the chicken by boning it if necessary. Mix all the chicken marinade ingredients together. Put the chicken in a dish, pour over the marinade and turn to coat well. Leave to marinate overnight if possible.
The next day, preheat the grill. Peel the daikon and carrots, then shred using a julienne peeler fitted with a fine julienne blade. Mix together the vegetable marinade ingredients, pour over the shredded daikon and carrot and leave to marinate for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, grill the chicken until golden. Leave to cool, then cut into pieces.
Shred the cucumber using a julienne peeler. Cut the baguette into three equal lengths, then cut lengthways into halves. Spread the mayonnaise over one half of each sandwich, arrange some pieces of chicken on top, then add a generous helping of marinated vegetables and some strips of cucumber. Add some coriander leaves, a little liquid seasoning, some pepper and a pinch of chopped chilli to taste. Serve immediately.
Vegetable rostis
Serves 4
600g potatoes, peeled250g butternut squash (pumpkin), peeled and deseeded2 onions, finely chopped½ bunch of flat-leaf parsley, roughly choppedsalt and peppervegetable oil
Shred the potatoes and butternut squash using a julienne peeler. Put in a bowl and add the chopped onion and half the chopped parsley. Season with salt and pepper and mix to combine.
Heat some oil in a frying pan. Take a handful of the julienne mixture and press it together in your hands to form a fairly thick patty. Repeat until you have used up all the mixture
Gently lower the patties, a few at a time, into the hot oil. Carefully turn them over when the edges begin to turn golden. Add more oil to the pan for subsequent batches if necessary. Drain the röstis on kitchen paper, then serve hot, sprinkled with the remaining chopped parsley.
You can replace the butternut squash with sweet potato or parsnip if you wish, but you will need to keep the potato as the starch it contains serves to bind the ingredients together.
– Super Spiralized by Orathay Souksisavanh & Vania Nikolcic