Vegan Vietnamese Spring Rolls with Peanut Sauce

I'm on a roll experimenting with foods that I previously only ordered in restaurants. It's been almost 6 months since I've eaten in a restaurant or ordered out, so I'm now attempting to make my own restaurant favorites.

Last week I made these awesome vegan Vietnamese spring rolls with a delicious peanut sauce. They were actually fun to make using the thin little spring roll wrappers that they sell in all the supermarkets in the Asian section.

First, I made an assembly line of ingredients (each in their own bowl):
pan-fried tofu, shredded cabbage and carrots, sliced black olives, fresh basil leaves, fresh mint leaves, and red pepper strips and roasted red pepper strips.

It took me a few times to get the hang of stuffing, rolling, and sealing these little bundles, but I caught on quickly. 

I served them to my kids and grandkids when they came for our weekly Friday night dinner on the deck. As they say, " the proof is in the pudding."

They were a big hit! Everyone loved them. I served them with 2 sauces for dipping:  Vegan and gluten free Hoisin sauce( that I bought in a jar) and homemade peanut sauce (recipe below)

They were fun to make and fun to eat!

The wrappers need to be dipped individually and quickly in a plate of water to make them more pliable. Then they can be filled, rolled, and sealed.

Not my food- Picture from a restaurant

In the Vietnamese restaurants, where I usually order these spring rolls, they cut them in half on an angle and they are easy to eat. In all honesty, I couldn't cut mine in half for fear all my stuffing would fall out. So we just picked them up and took bites. It tasted great regardless. 

You could vary the stuffing by adding (or omitting) with your choice of vegetables, rice noodles or a different protein. 

Ingredients: 

Spring roll wrappers

2 cups of shredded white or red cabbage 

2 cups of shredded carrots

1 red pepper cut into thin strips 

1 cup of roasted red peeper strips 

2 cups of sliced black olives,  

10 slices of pan fried tofu
Optional: slices of avocado, sesame seeds, 

Directions: 
Use a rimmed plate and add 1 cup of water.  

How to fill it
1. Wet the wrapper according to instructions and lay it on a plate. In the very center lay a strip of pan fried tofu, a strip of roasted red pepper, a strip of red pepper, a small amount of shredded cabbage and carrots, and a few sliced black olives. Roll according to directions on package. 

Place each spring roll that you make on a plate in a circular arrangement to keep the rolls from touching each other or they will stick together. Be careful not to tear the wrapper or overstuff it . 

They are ready as soon as you roll them. Serve with dipping sauces.

My Homemade Peanut Sauce (recipe link)