Smoked Tofu and Mango Summer/Salad Rolls

Courtesy of Spice Island Vegan http://spiceislandvegan.blogspot.com/

Serve 16

Summer/Salad Rolls Ingredients:

• 16 Vietnamese rice papers
• 2 large ripe mango, peeled and cut in 4" by 1/2" thick
• 1 medium head of green lettuce, shredded thinly
• 1 English cucumber, cut in 4" by 1/2 " thick
• 2 cups julienne cut peeled carrots marinated with:
• 2 Tbsp. vinegar, 1 tsp salt, and 1 tsp vegan sugar
• 1 lb baked-and-marinated tofu or smoked tofu, cut in 4" by 1/2" thick
• 1 cup basil leaves, separate leaves from stems

Note: I like to use the Thai Basil type but I have used the Italian Sweet Basil too. Whatever is available in your area will be fine.

Optional: 2-3 cups cooked rice vermicelli or thin soba noodles

Clockwise from upper left hand corner: ripe mango, cucumbers, basil leaves, julienned-and-marinated carrots, smoked-baked tofu, and shredded green lettuce.

Peanut Dipping Sauce Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup hot water
• 4 Tbsp creamy peanut butter
• 2 Tbsp soy sauce
• 2 Tbsp agave nectar
• 2 Tbsp vinegar or fresh lime juice
• 1 Tsp sesame oil
• 1 Tsp Chinese Chili Garlic Sauce or Sriracha
• 2 Tbsp chopped green onion

Preparation:

1. Marinade the julienne cut peeled carrots with the vinegar, sugar, and salt. Combine and set aside for 30 minutes to 1 hour. The carrots will be limp and seasoned or pickled. Then drain them thoroughly (you can do this 1 day ahead if you like).


2. To make the peanut dipping sauce, combine hot water and peanut butter until it is well mixed and the peanut butter is melted and thinner. Then, add the rest of the peanut dipping sauce ingredients, set aside (you can to this 1 day ahead if you like).


3. Prepare a large bowl of warm water (about 120F), a damp and clean kitchen towel(wet a clean kitchen towel and squeezed the water out), a large plate or cutting board. Set all the ingredients of the Summer/Salad rolls around you so that it is within reach. BTW, I learned this method at Bryanna's vegan cooking school in 2004.
   
   
   
   


4. Dip a rice paper in the bowl of warm water and circle it around to make sure it is all wet and covered with water.
   
   
   
   


5. Quickly put the rice paper on the damp kitchen towel. Let the water soaks through the paper. I usually count about 30 seconds before I put the ingredients on it and start rolling.
   
   
   
   


6. Pile the ingredients on the wet rice paper. At this time the paper will be limp and pliable but it should not tear. If you wait too long the rice paper will be too soft and easily torn. You'll have to work QUICKLY.
   
   
   
   


7. Start rolling like making burrito. I like to put the basil leave on the outside layer of the roll to make it prettier. I usually put the leave right side down. You can put 1 leave or 2 to 3 leaves in a row. You'll see the result later. It's nice!
   
   
   


8. Then, continue wrapping it like burrito. Again, work QUICKLY!
   
   
   
   


9. Roll and tada! Here is the final result and you'll see the leave behind the transparent rice paper. It's an art!
   
   
   


10. Repeat steps 4 to 9, 15 times. It looks hard but with practice it will become easier and easier each time. If the rice paper is torn or stuck together, you can throw it away and start all over again. It's cheap, you know. Believe me, I have done that and been there before but I am persistent and determined to tackle this skill. I had practiced many times and ate many smoked tofu and mango goi cuons which is not too bad of an experience. DH loves it too that I practiced a lot.


11. Then, you can eat the roll whole with the peanut dipping sauce or cut it in a diagonal like the picture below.
    
    
    
    

If you are allergic to peanut, I have a peanut-free dipping sauce for it. Check out the salad dressing in my blog titled Vietnamese Green Mango Salad. This dressing is great for a dipping sauce for this salad roll.

Regarding the smoked-baked-marinated tofu, you may want to check on Bryanna's blog regarding A Nifty Gadget for Pressing Tofu. This kind of tofu is great for this recipe. I don't have this nifty gadget myself but I usually buy an extra firm tofu. Bryanna suggesteds 2 parts soy sauce, 1 part maple syrup, and a little sesame oil for the marinade. I added 1 part of water, 1 tsp liquid smoke, 1 tsp garlic powder, and 1 tsp onion powder for the smoked tofu marinade sauce. Make sure that all the tofu slices are covered in the marinade sauce and let them submerged in the marinade for at least 4 hours. Then, you can bake them in a 400F oven for 15-20 minutes or pan fry them in a skillet. Basically, you can create your own version of the marinade sauce.

These rolls are to be eaten within a day (we have no problems with that). They are not good to be refrigerated and eaten the next day (have done that, too).