Fresh Spring Rolls with Steak and Shiitake Mushrooms

Fresh spring rolls are one of my favorite meals to make. They are great for any season, and with a few staple ingredients, you can pretty much throw whatever you have left in the refrigerator into them. 

You will need a few special ingredients in order to make the spring rolls: spring roll wrappers, bean thread noodles, pickled sushi ginger and sweet chili sauce can all be found in the Asian section of your local mega-grocery. I like to wrap the ginger up in the spring rolls for extra flavor, but feel free to skip this if you aren't a fan of the flavor.

Making spring rolls successfully is all about the prep work, once everything is set up, the assembly will go smoothly.

•  Soak 1/2 package of bean thread noodles in hot water until soft, drain, and cut up with scissors. Set aside.
• Find a large, flat container for soaking the spring roll wrappers. Fill with hot water. When ready to assemble, soak the wrappers and make the spring rolls one at a time.
•  Slice veggies into matchstick pieces, I like to use a carrot, 1/2 bell pepper, green onions, and 1/2 avocado
• Slice 1/2 cucumber into thin rounds
• Slice shiitake mushrooms, used sautéed or raw (I prefer sautéed)
• Slice leftover steak into 1/4" thick slices
• Trim stems off 1/2 bunch of cilantro

1. Soak one wrapper until soft

2. Lay cucumber slices across middle of wrapper near one end

3. Arrange a small amount of noodles, veggies, meat and cilantro over cucumbers. Add pickled ginger if desired.

4. Begin rolling wrapper, folding in ends as you continue to roll.

5. Serve with sweet chili sauce.

Modifications:

Serve without meat, adding extra veggies (more of the same or increased variety). Make salad rolls by omitting noodles and using leaf lettuce instead. If you choose to make salad rolls, I suggest using a double layer of wrappers, and use extra care when wrapping to keep the spring rolls from splitting.