Vietnamese salad rolls are one of our favorite dinners. They’re fresh, flavorful and different from the usual dinner routine we find ourselves in. We don’t have them as often as we would like, because they take SO long to make. After tons of prep work, it takes forever to roll everything up. And then you eat them so fast. The work to enjoyment ratio is way off. Enter Salad Roll Bowls. You get all of the goodness of the salad roll but eliminate the step of rolling everything together.

These bowls are so flavorful, crisp, and colorful- perfect for spring and summer. I’m really excited to make these this summer when I can used my own herbs. Fingers crossed its a better summer for Basil!  Maybe I’ll even attempt to grow my own carrots (my first attempt at growing vegetables last year was a pretty epic fail).

The nice thing about this recipe is that the only precise part of it is the Garlic Lime Sauce. Everything else is more of a suggestion, and you can adjust amounts as you would like to suit your taste. The other thing is that there is always enough left over for lunch! BONUS!

Ingredients:

Serves four

For Sweet Garlic Lime Sauce

• 3 cloves Garlic
• 2 Tablespoons of rice vinegar
• 1/4 cup brown sugar or agave
• 1/4 cup fish sauce*  (Don’t be scared. It’s NOT fishy. Just salty, flavorful goodness)
• 1/3 cup lime juice
• 1/3 cup vegetable or olive oil

For the Bowls

• One 225g or 7 oz package of Flat rice noodles  (like those found in Pad Thai)
• Basil, Mint, and Cilantro (I highly suggest using all three)
• 1 Serrano or Jalapeno pepper
• peanuts to garnish
• 1/2 avocado
• 2-3 green onions
• 2 medium/large Carrots
• 1/2 one large red bell peppers
•  1/3 Cucumber
• Protein of choice (We chose ground pork and seasoned it with ginger, garlic, sesame oil, soy sauce and green onions to taste like a won ton or dumpling. Other suggestions include, shrimp, chicken, or tofu. I also think these would taste great sans protein!)

Method

1. Combine sauce ingredients in food processor or blender.
2. Prep veggies by mincing your herbs, chopping green onions, and slicing cucumbers and jalapeno/serrano very thin (I use my mandolin). Julienne carrots, bell peppers and avocado.
3. Prepare protein to your liking
4. Lastly, because you don’t want them getting sticky, prepare noodles according to package instructions. Rinse under cold water once cooked to further prevent sticking. For warm bowls, return noodles to pot or use right away. For cold noodles, place in bowl and into the fridge for a few minutes.
5. If you want your salad bowls warm, combine ingredients right away. Start by placing vegetables at the bottom of the bowl and placing warm noodles and protein on top. Spoon a few tablespoons of sauce on top. Allow to sit a few minutes to warm the vegetables (don’t worry, they’ll stay nice and crisp still!), and then mix to combine.
6. If you’d rather enjoy your bowl cold, remove noodles from fridge once they’ve reached your desired level of coolness, combine veggies, noodles, and sauce. Stir to combine!

Enjoy!!

If you make this recipe, we’d love to know your thoughts!! Tag us on Instagram @rivercitysisters, or shoot us an e-mail at rivercitysisters@gmail.com.

*Vegan and Vegetarian friends! A vegan version of this sauce can be found here: http://www.thekitchn.com/recipe-vegan-fish-sauce-130535

Recipe Source:

http://pinchofyum.com/spring-roll-bowls