Smoked Salmon & Avocado Fresh Spring Rolls with Soy Dipping Sauce

While my wishing for the snow to stop seems to have worked because we haven't had snow the last few days, now we are getting rain - A LOT of rain! - much of Southern Ontario has been issued a special rain warning with flood watches for the week.  I guess the old saying "be careful what you wish for" has some truth to it - so now I'm wishing that the phrase "April showers bring May flowers" is also true, and that the May flowers part includes May veggies!  And to help wish Spring along, I made spring rolls - clever right?  :)

When it comes to spring rolls, I actually much prefer fresh rolls made with rice paper than the more common deep fried version, because the focus is on the fresh ingredients inside the roll, whose flavour isn't masked by a thick fried wrapper.  Plus fresh rolls are super easy to make - just lay some ingredients you like on a circle of rice paper and roll it up!  Rice paper wrappers get pretty sticky when they're wet so they'll stay together well as long as you wrap them up tightly.  The only down side is they have to be eaten pretty soon after making them so they don't harden, but with these smoked salmon and avocado rolls, you won't have any problem eating them all up right away!

Here are the ingredients I put in my fresh rolls: smoked salmon, avocado, carrots, cucumber, basil, lettuce, and a sprinkle of sesame seeds.

Just soak your rice paper wrapper, lay it on a clean surface (I used a damp paper towel), place your ingredients in the bottom half, then roll it up!  Easy peasy!

I loved how the creamy avocado and smoked salmon paired with the crunchy veggies in these fresh rolls, but the best part was the soy dipping sauce that infused the whole thing with even more flavour - it's an absolute must!

If smoked salmon isn't your thing, I also love these sweet & spicy kiwi mango fresh rolls with lime dipping sauce.  And if you have other fresh rolls flavour combos that you love, let me know - I have a ton of rice paper wrappers to use up now!

Smoked Salmon & Avocado Fresh Spring Rolls with Soy Dipping Sauce

Adapted from Eating Well

Makes 6 fresh rolls

Ingredients:

For the Fresh Rolls:

6 (9-inch) rice paper wrappers

6 pieces of lettuce

1 (100g or 3-4oz) package smoked salmon, in 6 slices

1 large carrot, peeled and julienned (you might not use the whole carrot)

Half a cucumber, julienned

1 ripe avocado, sliced (you might not use the whole avocado – I only used about half of one but that was being stingy)

1/4 cup sliced basil

1 tablespoon sesame seeds

For the Dipping Sauce:

2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons rice vinegar

1 teaspoon sesame oil

1 teaspoon minced ginger

1 teaspoon sweet thai chili sauce

2 teaspoons sugar

1 green onion, chopped

Directions:

Have all of your components for the spring rolls prepared before you start rolling them (i.e. slice your carrot, cucumber, avocado, basil, and salmon, and have the lettuce and sesame seeds ready to go).  

Soak one rice paper wrapper at a time in a shallow dish of hot water for about 10 seconds until it is soft and bendable.  Remove, let excess water drip off, and lay on a damp paper towel (the original recipe suggests a cutting board, which would work too, but I liked to keep the wrapper damp).  Lay lettuce on bottom third of wrapper, top with a piece of salmon, a few pieces of carrot, a couple pieces of cucumber, a slice or two of avocado, a bit of basil, and a sprinkle (about 1/2 teaspoon) of sesame seeds.  Fold the wrapper up over the filling and roll into a tight cylinder, folding in the sides as you go.  Remember that the wrapper will stick to itself, so make your folds where you want them, as it can be hard to undo!  Repeat with remaining wrappers and filling.  Cut each finished roll in half.

*Note: I also tried rolling one with the ingredients placed in the center before rolling and found that it worked that way too, but I preferred starting to roll from the bottom.

To prepare dipping sauce, whisk all ingredients together in a small bowl.  Serve rolls immediately with the dipping sauce, or refrigerate for up to 4 hours covered with a damp paper towel so they don’t harden (the original recipe suggests individually wrapping them in parchment or wax paper).

Kiwi Mango Fresh Rolls with Lime Dipping Sauce

Starting this blog has encouraged me to try new things in the kitchen that I may never have challenged myself to do otherwise, like making a savoury crepe dish and shaped yeast bread, and using familiar ingredients in new ways, like asparagus ribbons and frozen banana ice cream. The best part about trying new things is that I realize how easy recipes that have always intimidated me actually are.

These fresh rolls are a perfect example of something I’ve always wanted to make but have been too scared to actually try. The idea of trying to make the filling myself and then somehow wrap it up in rice paper seemed like something only professionals could do, but it turns out they’re not only easy to make, but fun too! You just have to make sure you don’t put too much filling in a roll, then roll it up tightly around the filling. And be careful with the wrappers because they get quite sticky, so if you accidentally fold it in a way you don’t like, it might be hard to undo!

The hardest part about them was actually finding the rice paper rolls in the grocery store (I ended up finding them in the international aisle) so if you’re unsure what to look for, here’s a picture of what I used to give you an idea:

For my first fresh roll attempt I chose a recipe for kiwi summer rolls from Eating Well, but decided to throw some mango in there too, since it complements the other flavours in the roll really well. These didn’t take very long to make and turned out so pretty! They were also really tasty and so different from anything I’d usually eat. All the flavours – lime, honey, mango, kiwi, mint, and a hint of chili pepper - worked well together, creating the perfect combination of sweet and spicy. The rolls really absorb the lime dipping sauce which I loved, so I definitely wouldn’t recommend leaving the sauce out!

These would be a great appetizer to bring to a party if you want to impress your friends! You can customize the recipe below to your tastes (I should note that if you don’t like spicy food you might want to omit the red pepper flakes in both the rolls and the sauce) or create your own flavour combination – have fun!

Kiwi Mango Fresh Rolls with Lime Dipping Sauce

Adapted from Eating Well

Makes 8 rolls

Ingredients:

1 1/2 ounces thin rice noodles (vermicelli)

1/4 cup fresh mint leaves, chopped
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes, divided

1/4 cup honey, divided
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

8 round rice-paper wrappers (8-inch)

4 kiwifruit peeled, sliced in half lengthwise, then thinly sliced crosswise

1 mango, julienned

1/3 cup peanuts, coarsely chopped

Directions:

Cook the rice noodles according to package directions (mine only required boiling them for 1 minute). Drain and rinse under cool water, and pat dry with paper towels. Transfer to a medium bowl and toss with the chopped mint, 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes, and 1 tablespoon of honey.

To make the dipping sauce, whisk together the remaining 3 tablespoons honey, lime juice, 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes, and 1 tablespoon water in a small bowl.

For each roll, soak a rice paper wrapper in a bowl of warm water until softened, according to package directions (10-30 seconds). Transfer to a work surface or clean tea towel. In the centre of the right half of a wrapper, lay 1/8 of the noodle mixture, 1/8 of the kiwi, 1/8 of the mango, and 1/8 of the peanuts. Fold the top and bottom of wrapper over filling. Wrap the right end of the wrapper tightly over filling, then roll tightly toward the left to enclose filling. Cover with a damp tea towel until ready to serve. Repeat with remaining wrappers.

Cut each roll in half on the diagonal (if desired) and serve with dipping sauce.