Southeast Asian–Style Spring Rolls

Name: Southeast Asian–Style Spring Rolls
Yield: Makes 8 Spring Rolls
Cuisine: Asia, Asian
Ingredients: 1 teaspoon, granulated sugar; 1 1/2 tablespoons, fermented fish sauce such as nuoc mam; 2 1/2 tablespoons, lime juice; 1 teaspoon, table salt; 3 ounces, rice vermicelli; 1 , large carrot, peeled and grated on large holes of box grater (about 1/2 cup); 1/3 cup, chopped unsalted roasted peanuts; 1 , medium jalapeño chile or 2 Thai chiles, stemmed, seeded, and minced, or 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes; 1 , large cucumber (about 12 ounces), peeled and cut per illustration below; 4 leaves, red leaf lettuce or Boston lettuce, halved lengthwise; 8 , round rice paper wrappers (8 inches in diameter); 1/2 cup, loosely packed fresh Thai basil leaves or mint leaves, small leaves left whole, medium and large leaves torn int 1/2-inch pieces; 1/2 cup, fresh cilantro leaves, loosely packed

Appetizers
Asia
Asian
Fruits & Vegetables
Vegetables

Appears in Cook's Illustrated January/February 2002

We set out to produce light, fresh, and easy-to-make spring rolls. These feature a sweet peanut sauce, springy noodles, and perfectly hydrated rice paper.

SERVES Makes 8 Spring Rolls

TIME 1 hour

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