Oven baked Spring Rolls.

Spring rolls used to polarise opinion in my household. Personally, I adored them (and still do) as did one of my children. My other half and my other child on the other hand, would wear a "oh no, not that again", expression whenever I suggested them for lunch or dinner. Reasons? They didn't like the deep frying and they thought the flavour too bland.

So, with the family split down the middle, I put my mind to creating a spring roll that we could all enjoy. What did I do? First, I decided that rather than trying to shallow or dry fry, I would use my oven to create an oven baked spring roll. After several near misses, I think I got the time and the temperature for oven baking just right along with the amount of oil brushed on the spring roll wrappers. That solved the aversion to deep frying. As for the flavour, I introduced a little more seasoning, some Shaoxing wine for sweetness and some shiitake mushrooms and oyster sauce to add a little umami as well.

And the result? Well, my ever sceptical other half was wowed. Wowed to the point where even he suggests that we eat these nowadays. which I take as a sure sign of success! Like any spring roll, the oven baked variety is best eaten straight from the oven. If you like your hot flavours, you could drizzle over a little sri racha sauce. Otherwise, the flavours in these spring rolls are strong enough to enjoy without any additional flavouring. I think you'll find the oven baked method does take the crispness to another level and, of course, oven baking is better health-wise than deep frying.

Making these little darlings is really quite straight forward as you will see below. The recipe uses bean thread vermicelli and pre-made spring roll wrappers - you can buy both in most Asian stores and on line. As bean thread vermicelli noodles tend to be quite long, I use a pair of scissors to cut them up a few times to shorten the noodles so they are easier to wrap when you come to that stage.

My other tips are:

: you'll probably be using frozen spring roll wrappers, so remember to thaw them ahead of when you'll need them and,

: the wrappers tend to dry out and become brittle quite quickly, so only take out one at a time and cover the others with a damp cloth and,

: use a plain flour paste to seal each wrapper. Some recipes just use water but I find the flour paste not only seals the wrapper better but also helps to make the wrapper crispy in the oven.

So, if you fancy creating a really crispy spring roll recipe that's full of flavour, you need look no further! Check out the Youtube tutorial by clicking Oven baked Spring Rolls or by scrolling to the bottom of the page. The written recipe is just below.

Happy baking! Kurumi XXXX.

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ingredients;

(makes 10 spring rolls, enough for 2 servings)

10 spring roll sheets (215mm / 8.5 in square)

30g / 1oz bean thread vermicelli

1/2 large onion

2 shiitake mushrooms, (you can use fresh or dry)

60g / 2oz carrot

5mm / 1/4 in slice of ginger

60g / 2oz tinned bamboo shoot, (rinsed)

1 tsp potato flour

1 tbsp water

1/2 tbsp vegetable oil

150g / 6 oz minced pork

some salt & black pepper

1.5 tbsp soy sauce

1/2 tbsp Chinese shaoxing wine

1/2 tbsp oyster sauce

1/2 tbsp sugar

1 tbsp plain flour

1.5 tbsp water

1 baking tray / cooking foil

vegetable oil

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how to:

bring a small pan of water to the boil. put the bean thread vermicelli into the pan and then turn off the heat. leave to soften for 3 - 4 minutes. when the time is up, drain the noodles using a sieve. using a pair of scissors, cut the noodles 4 or 5 times - this will makes it easier to make your spring rolls later

thinly slice the onion and the shiitake mushrooms

peel the carrot and slice it diagonally, then cut into thin matchsticks

peel, slice and mince the ginger

cut the bamboo shoots into matchsticks

combine 1 tsp of cornflour and 1 tbsp of water and mix well, then set aside

heat 1/2 tbsp of vegetable oil in a hot pan. add the minced pork and fry for 2 - 3 minutes

next, add the vegetables. sprinkle generously with salt and black pepper. stir fry for 1-2 minutes

turn the heat off and add the soy sauce, Chinese shaoxing wine, oyster sauce and sugar to the frying pan. turn on the heat again and stir fry for a further 1 - 2 minutes

add the cooked vermicelli and mix everything together well

now, add your thickener (the potato flour and water mixture). add to the pan and stir fry for 30 seconds while mixing

now the filling is ready, put it into a bowl to cool before you mke your spring rolls

meanwhile, prepare a little "glue" by mixing 1 tbsp of plain flour and 1.5 tbsp of water together

once the filling is cooled, you are ready to start wrapping

place 1 spring roll sheet on a large plate or chopping board with the corners at north/south/east/west

place 1 - 1.5 tbsp of the filling on the wrapper near the bottom corner

roll the bottom corner of the wrapper over the filling and roll the wrapper toward the centre. fold over the right and left corners, then roll the wrapper a little more until you have a shape that looks like an envelope. brush the last corner of the wrapper with the plain flour "glue" before completing the roll

repeat to create 10 spring rolls

heat your oven to 200 C / 400 F

cover and oil the baking tray with a sheet of cooking foil. arrange the spring rolls on the tray, then brush each one with a little oil.  turn the spring rolls over and oil once more

bake the spring rolls for 20 mins or until lightly browned

serve straight away with a dipping sauce of your choice

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