ottawa foodies

I used to get fresh shrimp spring rolls from the Vietnamese Kitchen - I absolutely loved them! However the restaurant is in the same building as the Tommy and Lefebvre store on Bank Street. They suffered smoke damage during the fire at T&L last year and as a result they closed. The T&L store has been rebuilt and they are back in business however on a recent trip down Bank Street the restaurant has a big "For Lease" sign in the window.

So now onto my question. Can anyone recommend somewhere in centretown/Chinatown that would sell fresh spring rolls like the ones illustrated on the left? Preferrably somewhere that does takeout...

Pretty much any Vietnamese restaurant that serves more than Pho will have them. BTW, the food entry is here: Gỏi Cuốn (Summer Roll)

Thanks Fresh Foodie! I clearly see I will have alot of taste-testing to do...-;)

I'm going to recommend Huong's Vietnamese Bistro. Their's were fresh and included the fresh herbs that some places leave out. They also serve them with a tasty peanut sauce.

I too used to get takeout from Viet Kitchen.

Huong's is next on my list, thanks Pan. But do they deliver and do they offer the fish dipping sauce (nuac mam)?

another option might be some of the Thai places in town. For example, if Preston isn't too far out of your range, Green Papaya lists them on their menu:

www.greenpapaya.ca

GP also have a Queen St. location ... maybe they offer the same?

Talay Thai, on Bank (not too far from where the Viet. Kitchen once stood), has a vegetarian Fresh Roll listed on their appetizers menu:

talaythai.ca/mba.gif

based on the number of seafood dishes they do, i'm guessing the might be willing to whip up a shrimp version of the same?

they are super easy to make too. i also prefer the fish sauce, which is also easy to make. it is a great meal to do on a hot summer night.

HFF... what is your recipe for fish sauce?

the one i use is in my recipe book at home - i'll try to post it tonight. if you google "nuoc cham" you will see that all recipes are very similar.

differences seem to be using unseasoned rice vinegar or white vinegar. fish sauce, garlic, lime, sugar, water, hot peppers. i don't add carrots, only because i don't have a mandoline to cut them small enough. it is super simple and keeps a long time in the fridge.

also, the sauce is great on vietnamese rice noodles with peanuts, herbs and fresh veggies.

Thanks! Nuoc Cham... I was trying to remember the name of it. I love it with fried spring rolls as well.

Thanks everyone for the suggestions!

itchy feet No Preston Street isn't too far away. I usually start my shopping trip at New 168 then make a side trip to Lucianos. Then continuing down Somerset until my shopping bags are full-;) I completely forgot about Green Papaya on Queen Street - they aren't too far from my office. I will also have to add Talay Thai to my wish list - I could always pop in on my way home from one of my shopping trips in the Glebe.

hipfunkyfun When you have a chance would you mind sharing your spring roll recipe? One day when I am feeling ambitious I might like to try making them myself...

i don't have a recipe for the summer rolls themselves. you don't need one! rice paper rolls are flat circles, you soak them in hot water for 5 minutes and then roll up whatever you like. traditional ones include adding cilantro and mint.

the rice paper wraps last forever in the cupboard. you could make a couple every night if you want, just use teh veggies in your fridge, plus any leftover meat or cooked shrimp (i just do veg ones). if you don't have sauce, use a store bought peanut sauce - just jazz it up with fresh chilis and garlic.

i sometimes add cooked rice noodles too, but not always. it just depends on whether or not i want my kitchen getting hot with cooking.

here are some links that show basic steps, plus ingredients.

shrimp version:
www.squidoo.com
www.quitecurious.com

vietnamese steak version:
dianasaurdishes.com

other ideas, is to add avocado to your summer rolls and dip them in carrot ginger dressing. i've been living on this dressing recipe for weeks. it is great. i don't add the shallot and i use canola oil. here is my version. i just pile it in food processor and whiz.

carrot ginger dressing
1 large carrot, peeled and roughly chopped
2 tablespoons roughly chopped fresh ginger
2 tablespoons sweet white miso
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
2 tablespoons toasted sesame seed oil
1/4 cup canola oil
2 tablespoons water

original:
smittenkitchen.com

ZenKitchen has salad rolls on their Tapas plates. Not really take-out, but there it is.
Five minute soak for rice paper is excessive. Twenty seconds in hot water should do the trick. I find them annoying to work with if they get too soft. They'll continue to soften up a bit even after you take them out so you can remove them when they've got a bit of stiffness left. You'll get a feel for it after a few dozen. If you have to store them for any length of time, sandwich them between layers of moist cloth and don't let them touch each other. Keep in the fridge, maybe 1 day, but they harden up pretty quickly and will stick together if they touch too much.
Vermicili noodles work well as a base; they're very quick to make and don't heat up the kitchen much. Other than that, go with what hip's saying. Anything goes. I usually do something like: 2 to 3 basil leaves, vermicili noodles, julienne or shredded carrot, julienne green onions (or wild leeks in April/ May), and finish it off with some mushrooms sauteed with some Worcestershire sauce. I have to make my own sauces due to intolerances to wheat and soy. I do a peanut sauce with peanut butter, Worcestershire sauce (replaces soy sauce), coconut cream, finely minced garlic and ginger, and chili sauce. I don't really measure things, mostly peanut butter, other ingredients to texture and taste. Water may be needed depending on how thick the peanut butter is.

MMM the carrot ginger dressing sounds good - I'll have to try it.

For Nuoc Cham - I've found having a mortar and pestle very handy for this - as you really want to grind up the garlic (2 - 3 cloves) and mush it will some birds eye peppers. Add this to 1/3 fish sauce, 1/3 lime juice, 1/3 water, and 1/4 sugar (cups) and you are good to go. Adjust lime/fish/sugar to your preference.

I think adding the carrots are a NA addition or strictly Vietnamese. I never saw it in Thailand - but I don't think Spring rolls are as popular there as in Vietnam/Laos.

hatman, i agree with the shorter soaking now that i think about it. soak time will depend on the brand of rice paper wraps and how hot your water is. i have used really hot tap water and that takes longer than slightly cooled boiling water.

HFF - here's a technique trick for you if you really want carrot or daikon in your nuoc cham, take a veggie peeler and peel off long thin strips of the carrot or daikon, lay them out and julienne them on a bias. Voila!

thanks for the great tip chimichimi!

Pasta L -- 168 on Wellington? Phnom-Penh, a couple blocks down the opposite direction (west), also has fresh rolls (and some tasty entrees): www.phnompenhnoodlehouse.com/

HFF's recipe seals the deal for this evening. Yum!

there is a new restaurant near where vietnamese kitchen was. it is called rice wrap and sounds like they will have what you are looking for. there was a review in xpress today.

www.ottawaxpress.ca

itchy feet mmmmm! Thanks for the tip on Phnom Penh. If the meals taste as good as they look this may very well be my new go-to place.

hipfunkyfun Yes there is indeed a rice wrap on Bank (formerly home of Don Alfonso). I have been avoiding this intersection lately because of the construction but I do hope to try them out at some point. BTW thanks for sharing your spring roll recipe I will definitely have to give it a try.

Phnom Penh is as good as it looks. I'd recommend their Pad Thai, their spring rolls (ask for their home made plum sauce) and their fresh fried noodles.

I'm a big fan of Phnom Penh's lemongrass pork on spicy salad. I fully admit to craving (and filling the craving!) the salad on its own throughout my pregnancy. Super yummy food and good prices. The staff are really friendly as well. :)

Let's clarify that we're talking about the Phnom Penh Noodle House (not Phnom Penh )... or at least I think we are. :P

She is talking about the one in Hintonburg

I sometimes sit and make two large ziplock containers of these rolls - I can eat them anytime. I can eat them several times a week.

As for the water temperature, I start out with hot/warm water from the tap, but even if it gets cold I'm still rolling! I don't dip it for 5 minutes either, I simply dip it in and ensure it is wet through and then place on the table and begin placing items. Then I'm ready to roll.

I will often order the "roll your own" option. Since I have wraps at home, I'm always guaranteed more rolls!

My only problem is that I need the mint in the rolls and oft times the mint goes bad before I have a chance to make the rolls.

This is the recipe I have for Nuoc Mam Cham:
1/4 cup water or fresh coconut juice (i've never used coconut juice yet).
1 tsp rice vinegar
1 tsp sugar
2 cloves garlic, crushed (I find my press does the job just fine)
1 tbs lime juice
2 tbs fish sauce
1 red chili, seeded and finely chopped.

Boil water/coconut juice with vinegar and sugar. Allow to cool. Add garlic, lime juice, fish sauce and chili to the mixture.

Thanks for that recipe and the xpress article hip!

Fresh Foodie yes there are two similarly named restaurants. itchy feet kindly pointed me to the menu at the Hintonburg restaurant (evidently one of his favourites) and presumably to avoid confusion. I hope to tie in a visit next weekend. I will be volunteering at a bike tour that weekend which involves waking up at the ungodly hour of 4:00 am on Saturday morning. I will probably be too tired to cook that evening so dinner will have to come to me.

Bumping this up because it looks like this is the weekend I will make nuoc cham.

sourdough This weekend I will be making a stirfry recipe that calls for nuoc cham. I would like to follow the recipe you provided however there will probably be leftovers. I am hoping to store it in the fridge in a tightly sealed jar. Do you know how long it will keep in the fridge? I will probably use the leftover nuoc cham with some fresh spring rolls following the tips that hipfunkyfun provided.

It keeps a very long time - the heat and the garlic soften over time - otherwise I can't ever remember throwing a jar out. The salt and acidity keep the rest garlic in check (I'm pretty sure the only thing that could go rancid is the garlic). Hopefully I'm not posting too late, since its Monday afternoon :) BTW how did it turn out?

Thanks sourdough and no you are not too late with this. I made the nuoc cham over the weekend to go in a stirfry and it tasted great. Now that I know how to make it (and how easy it is!) I will be making it alot more often. I haven't made the spring rolls yet but I am hoping to try my hand at them over the weekend. I placed the leftover sauce in a jar in the coldest part of the fridge so I'm sure it will be fine until then.