Gratifying and Well Worth the Effort
Crunchy Baked Spring Rolls
I know I know, lots of ingredients and so much prep, but I swear, these will be totally worth it in the end. Double or triple the recipe and Invite your friends to help slice and roll to make a party out of it. You can even just do all shrimp or all tofu or edit the variety of vegetables to remove a few steps. But be sure to whip up a batch of our luscious Peanut sauce from our recipe: Sesame Noodles with Coconut Tofu and a Rainbow of Vegetables. It is the perfect accompaniment and really completes the taste of the dish.
Ingredients
- 12 spring roll wrappers I used 1/2 a package of Dynasty Premium Quality Rice Paper
- 1 5.4 fluid ounce can coconut cream I used Native Forest Organic Coconut Cream
- 1 cup cooked black rice or you can substitute short grain white rice or jasmine rice
- 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
For the Vegetables, Herbs, Chilis, and Seaweed
- 1 large carrot
- 1 celery stalk
- 2 scallions
- 1 Persian cucumber
- 1/2 red bell pepper
- 1/2 yellow bell pepper
- 3/4 cup red cabbage sliced
- 1/4 cup cilantro chopped
- 1/4 cup Thai basil chopped
- 1 Fresno chili minced
- 1 Serrano pepper minced
- 12 seaweed snack sheets I used 12 Gimme Roasted Seaweed Snacks and cut them in 4 strips
For the Tofu and Shrimp Teriyaki Glaze
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 4 tablespoons soy sauce
- 4 tablespoons coconut aminos
- 1 teaspoon brown sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon ginger powder
For the Tofu, Shrimp and Everything Else
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 block organic firm or extra firm tofu
- 1/3 pound peeled and deveined 16/20 shrimp each cut into 4 chunks
- 1/2 teaspoon black or white sesame seeds
- crushed red pepper flakes to taste
- edible flowers if you have them I used some yellow and orange Marigolds
Instructions
Prep Everything First So You Can Set Up Your Rolling Station
- Place rice paper sheets on a large plate.
- Empty the can of coconut cream into a small bowl and whisk until smooth. Place a pastry brush next to it.
- Julienne the vegetables into 3 1/2 to 4 inch pieces, and separate into groups on a large plate.
- Put your cooked rice into a small bowl, and mix in the rice wine vinegar.
- Place the cilantro, Thai basil, Fresno and Serrano chilis, and seaweed sheet strips separated onto a plate.
Make the Tofu and Shrimp Teriyaki Glaze
- Combine all the ingredients for the glaze together in a small bowl.
Cook the Tofu and Shrimp
- Rinse the tofu, fold a clean dish towel around it, gently squeeze out some of the moisture being careful not to break it apart, and pat dry. On a cutting board, stand it up on its smaller end, and carefully slice it into 3 equal slabs. Pat the slabs dry again, and sprinkle with salt and pepper over the top.
- Heat two large frying pans over medium high heat. Add 2 tablespoons of the vegetable oil in one pan, and 1 tablespoon into the other. Start with frying the tofu in 2 tablespoons of oil, salt and pepper side down for 4 minutes without disturbing. Salt and pepper the side facing up. Carefully flip the tofu onto a slab next to it, then slide it gently back onto the pan. If you just flip it over on the hot oil, it's a burn hazard, trust me. Cook for another 4 minutes undisturbed. Remove the tofu onto a paper towel lined cutting board and pat dry.
- Place the shrimp into the other pan while waiting on the tofu, and shake a little salt and pepper over them. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes or until desired doneness, flipping around occasionally to cook all the surfaces. Remove from the pan, blot dry with paper towel, and place on a plate.
- Remove pans from the heat, cool them to the touch, and carefully wipe the hot oil out of each pan into a ramekin. Put the tofu and shrimp back into their respective pans, and heating each pan over medium heat, pour half the glaze over the tofu and half of what's left over the shrimp. You can use the remaining glaze if needed, or save it as a marinade for a piece of fish or chicken. Turn each piece of tofu and shrimp until it is fully coated. Remove the shrimp from the pan onto a plate, and set it aside. Remove the tofu to the cutting board and cut each slab widthwise into 8 equal strips. Place the strips alongside the shrimp on the plate, and add it to your rolling station after the rice.
- Have your sesame seeds and crushed red pepper flakes handy, and set your rinsed and dried flowers out if you are using them.
Now You're Ready to Roll!
- Preheat the oven to 425F on convect bake if you have it, or 450F regular bake.
- Cover a sheet pan with parchment paper.
- Place a rice paper sheet down on a cutting board in front of you, and brush coconut cream all over the surface of each side. About 1/3 of the way from the closest edge to you, start neatly stacking your ingredients horizontally and evenly from vegetables, to rice, your choice of tofu or shrimp, herbs, seaweed, and chilis on top of one another. When you have everything in stacked up, pull the closest edge to you over the top of your ingredients and then snugly fold in the side edges over the top, and continue to burrito roll it tightly moving forward and sealing the bundle with your fingers. Place the rolls sealed side down on top of the parchment as you go, and then bake them for about 15 to 20 minutes. I think 17 minutes was ideal in my oven, but start checking after 15. Note: Like pizza right out of the oven, I recommend they sit for 5 to 10 minutes after removing from the oven so the flavors meld and you won't burn your mouth on the first bite.
- Sprinkle with sesame seeds and crushed red pepper flakes, and serve with Peanut Sauce.
- You may have some extra vegetables, just put them in the fridge and use for your next salad or stirfry.
