“Gỏi ‘Sotang’ Cuốn”  (Vietnamese & Filipino Salad Roll)

goi sotang

“Gỏi ‘Sotang’ Cuốn”
(Vietnamese & Filipino Salad Roll)
(Vietnamese’ Gỏi Cuốn Infused with Filipino Ingredients)
This is “fun recipe”.
Engage your kids in doing this. They will love the bonding. Trending chomps, be it real “health buff commitment” or  “heard over there so will do same-same”, nothing beats veggies, seafood, fruits and their mix into a single formula.
Had the chance to taste this vibrantly growing Vietnamese up-class chain’s preps. Oh well, thank you spouses Jason & Abie Mendoza for footing the bill. Pricey. Plain tasting. But appeal to “discoverers” is fantastic.
End judgment…”one of those “I was there market-single visit” syndromes after which kilometres of write-ups via Facebook, Twitter or Instagram cap his/her experience…but never to be a repeater.
As usual my penchant for improvement(s) surfaced anew. Had to innovate. Got to introduce “Filipinism” into the blends. Ingredients are shortlisted to those only ones needed to give the taste you desire.
Flavour-packed, nutritious but down right economic.
Instead of rice noodles (“bihon”), I utilised “sotanghon” (glass or cellophane noodles) Be in awe as taste of your salad or summer roll is different, while the “crunchy-peanuty” sauce renders palate roundedness.

 

“Gỏi ‘Sotang' Cuốn” (Vietnamese & Filipino Salad Roll)
 
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 3-4 pieces rice rolls. Readily available in your favourite supermarket, they come in neatly packed dry rolls of 10’s or 12’s
  • ¼ kilo fresh shrimps-tails and heads cut-de-shelled and de-veined
  • 250 grams deboned chicken breast
  • a handful of “sotanghon” (glass noodles, cellophane noodles)-cut to 4-5 inches length
  • 8 slices of de-seeded cucumber (I prefer to include the rind for color render)
  • 8 slices of carrots
  • 8 pieces young corn cut in half
  • 4 iceberg lettuce leaves cut in half
  • 15 grams salt

  • FOR PEANUT SAUCE:
  • 100 grams “crunchy peanut butter” (the creamy one that has peanut bits on it. I used the USA brand)
  • 30 grams Hoisin sauce (I used Lee Kum Kee)
  • 50 ml. pineapple juice
  • 15 ml. soy sauce (any)
  • 15 grams brown sugar
Instructions
  1. See procedures below.
Notes
DISCLAIMER: Above are test kitchen and household-produced dishes. All ingredients utilized are of food grade quality passing international and domestic sanitary standards. While we find the results highly acceptable, no guarantee nor explicit assurance is hereby issued when recipe is performed by readers. For one, although of similar breed, spices, herbs and other ingredients vary from country to country/region to region that possibility of affecting end taste, aroma & bite-feel is great. Further thereto, mentioned sensory evaluation (aroma, taste, mouth-feel) is subjective.
PROCEDURES:
1. In boiling pan/steamer, pour enough water to cover chicken breast.
2. Add in salt and boil for 20 minutes.
3. When water starts boiling, in 1 strainer, blanch young corn for 3 minutes.
Remove, run tap water to stop further cooking. Set aside.

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4. Still in the same boiling pan with breast underneath, in a steamer, put shrimps on top.
Steam for 2 minutes. Scoop out. Slice as in pic.

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5. Next steam ”sotanghon” for 1 minute, tossing and tumbling consistently. Remove and run tap water. Set aside.
6. While waiting for chicken breast to be fully cooked, mix in a small stainless bowl all your “peanut sauce” ingredients
and heat a bit until all are fully dissolved. Set aside.

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7. By a few minutes more, chicken will be done. Scoop out, Slice into cubes. Set aside. Now, your ingredients are ready.

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8. Set your soaking bowl. Fill with lukewarm water. One at a time, dip rice paper sliding to sides-rotating.
Wet paper just enough that it’s pliable and a bit soft. Soaking longer might make paper sticky and ultra soft rendering it difficult to handle. When done lay unto cloth…let’s start stuffing.
9. Put in middle 4 shrimps sliced sides up. Cover with 2 halves of lettuce.

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10. Follow with a slice each of carrot, cucumber and corn on lower side of lettuce. Repeat with the upper side.
Add in 6-8 cubes of chicken.

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11. Pour on top enough “sotanghon”.

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Time to rock and roll…
12. Holding whole filling ingredients firmly, get bottom of rice paper and fold over towards middle. Continue on following
below folding sequence:
13. DONE.

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Wide acceptance of delectable “masterfully concocted” food is NOT plain “Bara Bara” invention.

  SUMPTUOUS FOOD IS NOT PLAIN INVENTION.
(Click here or above title to proceed to my Few Things About Recipes, Ingredients & Procedures page)
It is the “accurate & proper harmony of ingredients and flavors used in precise technological production sequence
to come up with desired taste-not of the maker but that of the patrons”.
In short, you, your loved ones and friends are not your “clients”.
Fact of life is: they will not come to your restaurant, café, bar, joint etc. always.
Most of the time, they are not the paying clients.
You will find real and comebacking customers if your concoctions are enjoyably approved by them.
Test your recipes with people you don’t know.
Collate their comments sent through “anonymous emails” (and you know the reason why…)
If your batting average is high, chances are, your masterpiece will make it.
The BEST I’ve tasted in Ho Chi Mihn, Vietnam.
Mega tender beef strips, veggies galore, boiled in coconut husk & in its own juice.