Summer sends my cooking firmly towards Asia. Heady, bright, cleansing flavours such as ginger, lemongrass and lime leaves punctuate my cooking, cutting though heavy, humid days.
These Vietnamese summer rolls and fresh coconut rice noodle salad have both become outdoor-eating regulars. Rice, whether as grains, noodles or rice paper, seems to have a brilliant way of absorbing just enough dressing, making sure that nothing is lacklustre by the time you unpack your blanket and pour the first glass of rosé.
Rainbow summer rolls with brown sugar tofu and almond miso dip
These summer rolls are just about the freshest, prettiest thing I can imagine: a vibrant jumble of raw vegetables, aromatic herbs and perfectly charred tofu, packed into a portable, edible wrapper. They are brilliant for kids, too, if you hold back on the chilli.
At a glance, this recipe looks time-consuming, but they actually come together pretty quickly, and the good news is you can prep the ginger paste and tofu a day or two ahead of time.
Makes 12
For the ginger paste
2 spring onions, finely sliced
3 banana shallots, finely sliced
1 thumb of ginger, peeled, grated
2 tbsp coconut oil
For the tofu
340g extra-firm tofu
3 garlic cloves
4 tsp brown sugar
A pinch of salt
2 tbsp sunflower oil (more if needed)
For the dip
2 tbsp almond butter
2 tsp white miso paste
Juice of 2 limes
½ tsp sesame oil
1 small thumb of ginger, peeled, grated
A pinch of salt
For the rolls
12 rice paper wrappers
1 avocado, sliced into thin batons
1 red pepper, sliced into thin batons
1 cucumber, sliced into thin batons
1 carrot, sliced into thin batons
1 head of crisp, crunchy lettuce, (baby gem or romaine)
A handful of red amaranth
Black sesame seeds
A small bunch of coriander and mint
1 To make the paste, put the onions, shallots, and ginger in a mortar or food processor and season with some sea salt. Pound with the pestle or blitz until quite bruised, but not smooth. Heat the coconut oil in a small saucepan until hot, add the ginger mixture to the oil, remove from the heat, and transfer to a jar to cool.
2 Pat the tofu dry and cut into 6 equal slabs before arranging in a single layer in a shallow bowl. Put the garlic in a mortar and pestle or food processor, then sprinkle with the sugar and salt, and pound or blitz into a paste. Add the oil, a bit at a time. Scrape the paste on to the tofu and gently spread it out with your hands; be quite thorough.
3 Put the tofu in a single layer in a large nonstick pan over medium-high heat. Cook for around 5 minutes on each side, or until golden. It’s unlikely you’ll need any additional oil here; if you do, add just a small splash at a time. Set aside the tofu until cool enough to handle, then slice into pencil-thick pieces. Salt, to taste.
4 To make the dip, add the almond butter, miso paste, lime juice, sesame oil and ginger to a small bowl, stir and season to taste. Set aside.
5 To assemble, dip a rice paper wrapper into a bowl of warm water for just 3 seconds. Resist oversoaking — even if the paper is a bit stiff, it will continue to absorb water as you assemble the wrap. Put on a flat work surface and fold in half. Crowd all your ingredients into a third of the available surface of the wrapper at this point. First, put down a generous smear of ginger-onion paste. Add a lettuce leaf or two, a little tofu, a little of each of the veg, some herbs, and a sprinkle of amaranth and sesame seeds. Tuck the wrapper over the filling and roll it up. I like open-sided rolls, but you can certainly make enclosed rolls by leaving the wrapper round, and folding in the edges mid-wrap.
Toasted cashew and coconut greens noodle salad
Serves 4
200g rice noodles (I use brown rice)
A few large handfuls mixed greens (Swiss chard, kale, spinach)
150g sugar snaps
For the dressing
2 tbsp tamari or soy
2 tbsp sesame oil
2 tbsp honey
1 tbsp brown rice vinegar
Zest and juice of 1 lime
1 garlic clove, peeled and grated
1 thumb of ginger, peeled, grated
For the topping
100g cashews
4 tbsp sesame seeds
4 tbsp unsweetened desiccated coconut
A small bunch of coriander
A small bunch of mint
2 spring onions, very finely sliced
½ red chilli, finely sliced
1 Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/gas mark 6. Put the noodles in a large heatproof mixing bowl and cover with boiling water. Soak according to packet instructions, then drain and rinse with cold water.
2 Put the cashews on a baking tray in the oven for 4 minutes, then, once they have toasted for 4 minutes, add the sesame seeds and the coconut. Cook for another 4-5 minutes, or until golden. Meanwhile, whisk the dressing ingredients together and set aside.
3 Transfer the noodles to a large bowl, pour half of the dressing over and toss well to coat.
4 Finely chop the coriander stalks and stir through the noodles. Finely chop the rest of the herbs and put into a little portable container for later.
5 Wash the greens, then spin them dry. Remove any tough stalks, stack the leaves, roll up and slice into thin ribbons, then add to the noodles with the spring onions and the chilli.
6 Once the nuts, seeds and coconut are golden, allow them to cool and put them into a little container, too.
7 Once at your picnic and ready to eat, toss the herbs and the coconut mixture through your noodles and serve.
- Anna Jones is a chef, writer and author of A Modern Way to Eat and A Modern Way to Cook (Fourth Estate); annajones.co.uk; @we_are_food
