Summer Fruit Spring Roll
By Konno Momoe
Spring rolls, also known as Nama Harumaki in Japan, are a fairly new dish but have quickly become a popular appetizer in Japan. This dish will be the main menu item of a fantastic weekend at a restaurant. This "Summer Fruit Spring Roll" recipe is made from rice paper, with a fruit salad filling, mixed in with ginger syrup. The unusual combination of tropical fruits such as peaches, plums, peas, plum, mint and ginger in a neat little package is sure to delight everyone.
Note: What starts out as a simple fruit salad in this recipe, can expanded into something more complex with the addition of wild fruits and spices, sake added to the ginger syrup, coconut dipping sauce and lemongrass tea. After careful consideration of what fruit combination you would like to use, you may consider serving it wit a glass of sweet citrus juice for example.
By adding wild fruits and spices, what starts in this recipe as a simple fruit salad can evolve into something more complex, such as adding sake to ginger syrup, making a coconut dipping sauce, and accompanying it with lemongrass tea. You might consider serving it with a glass of sweet citrus juice or making your own combination of fruits.
A mixture of vanilla and tropical fruit is also a fantastic idea, which ends up giving the spring roll a warm and fresh finish.
Summer Fruit Spring Roll Recipe
Ingredients
1 Pack Rice Paper
1 Cup Peach
1 Cup Strawberry
1 Cup Blueberry
1 Cup Sweet Plum
1 Cup Grapes
1/4 Mint Leaf
1/2 Water
1 Tablespoon Fresh Ginger
3/4 Sugar
Directions
Ginger Syrup
Place the sugar and water in a saucepan over medium heat, stir gently. When the sugar has been dissolved, remove from heat and add the ginger to the syrup, giving a slight touch of ginger flavour.
Enable to cool for a few minutes before serving in a jar and refrigerate.
Rice Paper
Prepare the rice paper as indicated in the packet, usually you only need to soak it in hot water until it is soft and translucent. Beware of not soaking them too much, or they're going to break apart.
Fruit Salad Filling
Wash the fruit and mint leaves and set aside, dice the fruit in small cubes or thin slices. Combine all the fruit and add a small amount of cooled syrup at a time, until it is sweetened to your taste, set aside some of the fruit for decoration.
Making the rolls
Place the filling in the center of the rice paper and tuck a little on the left and right sides, fold the bottom of the rice paper over the filling and roll it over, press a little to seal the edges.
Cut the rolls in half and place them in a serving dish with the cut side to expose the fruit. Place some of the fruit around, along with the mint leaves, add a little cool syrup to finish the dish.
Tips
You should use the filling of tarts and cakes or use it as an ice cream topper.
Replace the ginger with some other flavoring you would think would complement the fruit, such as mint or your favorite tea.
