Vegetable Summer Rolls with Chile-Lime Dipping Sauce

At first glance these eye-catching chile peppers look like red jalapeno. However, they have a different flavor and are less meaty than Jalapeno. Red Fresnos are great roasted and added to salsas. Try grilling them alongside your steaks or in kabobs.

When roasting these they should char, blister, and become soft. Try substituting these in your favorite chile recipes.

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Ingredients:

2 tablespoons Asian fish sauce
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons water
1 small red chile, minced
4 ounces rice vermicelli
Twelve 5-inch round rice paper wrappers, plus extra in case of breakage
1/2 red bell pepper, cut into 24 strips
1/2 yellow bell pepper, cut into 24 strips
1/2 Hass avocado, cut into 12 strips
Half of a 4-inch length of seedless cucumber, peeled and cut into 12 strips
2 cups alfalfa sprouts (1 ounce)
6 large basil leaves, thinly sliced

Instructions:

In a small bowl, combine the fish sauce with the lime juice, sugar, water and chile, stirring to dissolve the sugar.

Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil. Stir in the vermicelli and cook until al dente, about 1 minute. Drain and transfer to a bowl and let cool, tossing occasionally.

Fill a shallow bowl with water. Working with 2 rice papers at a time, dip the papers in the water, shake off any excess, transfer to a work surface and let stand until softened, 30 seconds. Place a small handful of the vermicelli on the lower third of each rice paper. Top with two strips each of the red and yellow bell peppers, one strip each of avocado and cucumber and a big pinch of alfalfa sprouts. Garnish with a few strips of basil. Press to flatten the ingredients, then roll them up in the rice papers, folding in the sides as you go. Press to seal. Repeat with the remaining rice papers and fillings. When all the rolls are made, cut them in half on the diagonal and serve with the dipping sauce.

Make Ahead The sauce and rolls can be refrigerated, covered, for up to 4 hours.

Serves 6.

Recipe by Wendy Leon via foodandwine.com