maria munroe

Since moving to Portland, I've been on the hunt for the perfect summer roll. Lucky for me, the food culture here provides quite a few options for anyone looking for a summer roll fix. I've been trying them from every food cart and restaurant I can find that makes them (Poompui and Baan Thai both make good ones, and they're both less than two blocks away from my apartment!), and though I've found some good ones, none have really satisfied me quite like making my own.
Pro tip, if you've been to Chipotle, that tuck and roll they do with burritos works just as well here. 


I have to thank Claire Marshall of heyclaire on YouTube for posting her summer roll video (click here to check it out), so I could literally see just how customizable and easy to make they are. I love summer rolls that are heavy on the cilantro, Thai basil and mint, so that's how I made them. I won't go too in depth with instructions, because I think Claire did a fine job in that department. I'll include the recipe I used for my peanut sauce though!

I followed Claire's advice and wet down my work surface before rolling. I also used a ceramic cutting board which I think helped quite a bit with the issue of sticking. I made a few rolls with raw tofu that I simply sprinkled with sesame oil and those were just as good as the fried tofu rolls in my opinion. But again, I was just in it for the herbs anyway. 


Second pro tip, to store your summer rolls over night, drape two to three very damp paper towels over them, and then cover the plate in saran wrap, being sure to not leave any holes for the air to get in. 

For the peanut sauce, I mixed together 1/4 cup of peanut butter, a tablespoon of hoisin sauce, two teaspoons of soy sauce, and a teaspoon of minced garlic until combined into a smooth paste, then slowly added warm water to the mixture until it was as thin as I like it. Easy peasy, and definitely something I can eyeball next time. 


If I could change anything, I'd swap out the rice noodles (I used more of a pho noodle) for something thinner, and I'd definitely add some spice to the peanut sauce.


Overall, I am a happy camper. I hope you try these out. They seem so much more difficult to make than they actually are. I've learned that the best way to get the perfect summer roll for my herb loving taste is to just make them myself, and guuurrrrrrrrl, I'm planning on making them myself forever now. You should too!

Seeya soonish!

Maria