Wow, another week just flew by at the blink of an eye! We are Drool, a community of home chefs who cook, create and connect. A quick recap, this space features weekly recipes that are tea-inspired, each by a different Drool chef/baker. The fourth droolicious submission this week is Lapsang Souchong Mini Vegetarian Spring Rolls with a Smokey Dipping Sauce by Drool homechef, Qimin Lee.
Mini springs rolls are a ubiquitous feature of any gathering mostly because of its addictiveness and ease of consumption. Being usually deep fried in oil, it is definitely not for the health-conscious individual. Lucky for our waistlines, the spring rolls in this recipe are baked, not fried and include wholesome vegetarian ingredients like tofu, spinach and mushrooms. The Lapsang Souchong tea leaves lend a complimentary smoky flavour to the mushrooms, and they all come nicely together when dipped in the accompanying sauce.
Prep time: 20 mins
Cook Time: 30mins
Servings: 60 mini spring-rolls
Ingredients
* Spring Rolls
* 2 tables spoons Lapsang Souchong tea leaves, ground to fine powder
* 1 tablespoon sesame oil
* 1 medium onion, chopped
* 3 cloves of garlic, minced
* 6 dried shitake mushrooms, rehydrated and chopped
* 1 block extra-firm tofu, diced finely
* 2 handfuls Chinese spinach leaves, stemmed and chopped
* 2 tablespoons light soy sauce, or more to taste
* White pepper to taste
* 1 packet wonton wrappers
* 2 tablespoons melted unsalted butter
Instructions
1. Heat the sesame oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat, add the onions, garlic, and mushrooms, and sauté for 5 or 6 minutes, until the onions take on a translucent appearance.
2. Add the tofu, spinach, white pepper and soy sauce and stir well. Add more soy sauce and white pepper as needed.
3. Season with the ground tea.
4. To assemble the spring rolls, place a wrapper in front of you so it looks like a diamond. Put a teaspoon of filling near the bottom of the “diamond”.
5. Take that corner and fold it over the filling, then roll it once away from you. Fold in the left and right corners, then continue rolling away from you. Dab a bit of water on the inside of the loose corner to seal.
6. Arrange the spring rolls seam down on a baking sheet, brush with the melted butter, and bake for 10 minutes, turning each roll halfway through to get both sides brown and crispy.
Smokey Dipping Sauce Recipe
3 table spoons of tahini paste
1 table spoon of Lapsang Souchong tea leaves, ground into powder
1 teaspoon soy sauce
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
1 heaped tablespoon dry mustard powder
Water as needed
Instructions
Mix all the dipping sauce ingredients in a small bowl, varying the amount of water until the desired consistency is reached. It should be thick but still runny. Serve alongside the spring rolls
Homechef Qimin Lee has come a long way from recreating dishes on the cheap so as to survive her student days in Melbourne then, to the confident self-made chef she is today who can cook most cuisines as long as given a good recipe. A fulltime podiatrist, Qimin devotes her weekends to cooking for friends. Access her profile at droolsg.com.
