Pad Thai Summer Rolls

 Summer rolls take me back to college. One of our default after church lunches was at Clay Pot, by the time we moved DH had been going there for something like 8 years. Part of the lunch special was starting with goi cuon ga with a peanut dipping sauce. I usually followed it with a chicken clay pot (I'm not a huge pho fan) but DH would get the lemongrass chicken, extra spicy.

These rolls are pretty much a full meal, maybe could fit in more vegetables but otherwise, fairly balanced. If you want to include the spread in the rolls or not is up to you, we found it less messy but we ate them right away. If you plan on waiting a little while you might want to thin it out and use it as a dipping sauce so it doesn't overly soften the wrappers.


Adapted from Our For Forks Pad Thai Wraps

Pad Thai Roasted Tofu:
14 oz extra firm tofu (one block)
1 t fresh ginger, grated or minced
1 T toasted sesame oil
1 t rice wine vinegar
1 t apple cider vinegar
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 T pad thai sauce (we used Thai Kitchen)
1 T peanut butter

1. Slice tofu block in half then into 1/2" slices
2. Press tofu between paper towels or in a tofu press. We pressed it for 12 hours or so, so start it before leaving for work.
3. In a bowl, mix together remaining ingredients then add tofu and gently toss. Let marinate at least an hour, turning every so often.
4. In 400 F oven, roast the tofu on a greased casserole or pan for 30-40 mn until golden brown and no longer saucy. Rotate once or twice.

Pad Thai Sauce:
1/4 C natural peanut butter
1 T low sodium tamari
1/2 t toasted sesame oil
2 T Pad Thai Sauce

Mix ingredients together and set aside

Summer Rolls:
Rice pancakes/wrappers
1 recipe Pad Thai Roasted Tofu
Basil Leaves (we used tubed since the only fresh basil at the store was very sad and brown)
Neutral cooking oil
2 large red bell pepper, sliced into 1/4" strips
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 T low sodium tamari
1 T pad thai sauce
1 lime
8 oz mung bean sprouts
3 oz rice thread noodles
3 birds eye chilis, crushed
1/2 cup salted peanuts
3-4 scallions, greens cut into 2" pieces
pickled radish and carrots (opt. I tried a new pickling recipe)


1. Heat oil in a skillet and add the garlic and bell pepper. Saute until tender-crisp.
2. Prepare noodles according to package
2. Add bean sprouts, tamari, pad thai sauce, lime, and birds eye chilies and saute for several minutes
3. Construct the rolls in the following way:

• dip wrapper in warm water for no more than 5 seconds, gently shake off excess water
• spread basil or place a basil leaf in the top 1/3 of the roll
• place some of the peanut spread  by the basil leaf, 1 tablespoon or less, according to your taste
• place some of the mung bean and pepper mixture on top
• place two or so pieces of tofu on the mixture
• garnish with peanuts, pickled vegetables, one or two pieces of scallion, and a small pile of noodles
• roll by barely covering the pile of fillings with wrapper then fold in the sides and continue to roll until secure