Last year I went to Boston with my mum for Christmas, and for our holiday dinner we picked the vegan restaurant MyThai. The lemongrass vermicelli were the first thing I noticed on the menu and it kept it’s promise! Fragrant lemongrass and Thai-basil, spicy BBQ soy beef and crispy mini spring rolls!
I’ll leave out the tapioca bubble tea I had with it that made me giggle for the next four hours. Maybe next time …
Back home I got some lemongrass and a Thai basil plant so I could play around in the kitchen with my new favourite herbs and build my own version of the lemongrass vermicelli.
Lemongrass is not always available everywhere, that’s why I always buy a little more when I’m in an Asian grocery store. I cut it and crush it with my lime press as I show in the video, then I freeze big pieces. So I always have some for my Spicy Peanut Sauce, some tea or these lemongrass vermicelli. Lemongrass is easy to chop in the frozen state with a sharp knife.
A lot of Asian groceries stores also sell mini spring rolls in the freezer section which are often vegan. That’s a good solution if you don’t have a lot of time or if you have to feed a lot of people. But I like to make everything from scratch, and with a little practise it’s fun and doesn’t take long to make you own spring rolls.
Would you like to watch the video first?
Recipe for the lemongrass vermicelli with BBQ soy beef and mini spring rolls
Serves 2, ca. 50 minutes
Ingredients for the spring rolls
10-15 small sheets of spring roll pastry
1 cup cabbage
1 carrot
piece of ginger, peeled
1/2 onion, peeled and minced
1 tablespoon soy sauce
some Thai Basil
for the “beef”
1 cup soy protein flakes (40 g)
1/4 cup BBQ-sauce (60 ml)
1 tablespoon steak seasoning
for the vermicelli
7 oz rice-vermicelli (200 g)
plant oil
1 organic lime
1 teaspoon maple sirup
1/4 cup of soy sauce
two stalks lemongrass
piece of ginger, peeled
1/2 onion, peeled and minced,
1 garlic glove
carrot
thai basil
for garnishing
some Thai-Basil
fried shallots
sweet chili sauce
How to make the lemongrass vermicelli
Thaw spring roll pastries according to instructions, put on a plate and cover with a damp tea towel.
Mix some of the Thai-basil, 1/2 onion, 1 piece of ginger, 1 carrot and the cabbage in a food processor* and season with one tablespoon soy sauce. Put one tablespoon of the mixture on a spring roll pastry, roll, fold side ends in. Apply a little water on one end to seal. Should make 10 spring rolls.
Put soy protein in boiling water and simmer for 10 minutes.
Prepare vermicelli according to instructions. Take a big pot with lots of water and stir often to get rid of the sticky starch. You don’t want to overcook them, that would make them fragile in the skillet later. Rinse them well when cooked, to remove the starch. Add a little oil and stir well to keep them from sticking.
Preheat oven to 350°F.
For the sauce combine 1/4 cup soy sauce with some water, 1 teaspoon maple sirup, the squeezed lime and lime zest in a bowl, then add the vermicelli and stir well.
Drain soy protein and rinse cold, squeeze, and mix with 1/4 cup BBQ sauce and 1 EL steak seasoning.
Apply oil to spring rolls and bake them for 15 minutes.
Cut carrot to cherry blossoms if desired.
Remove ends and hard outer leaves from the lemongrass and break the stalks to release the aroma, then chop up.
Heat a little oil in a pan and bake the soy protein until crispy.
Heat oil in a second pan or wok, sauté onions, garlic, ginger, lemongrass and carrots.
Flip soy protein in first pan.
Pour vermicelli in second pan and add most of the Thai-basil, chopped, keeping some of it for garnishing.
Arrange Lemongrass Vermicelli with soy beef and spring rolls on a plate and serve with fried shallots, Thai-basil and sweet chili sauce.
When I went to Boston again, of course I had to go and have Lemongrass Vermicelli:
Ingredients
- for the spring rolls
- 10-15 small sheets of spring roll pastry
- 1 cup cabbage
- 1 carrot
- piece of ginger, peeled
- 1/2 onion, peeled and minced
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- some Thai Basil
- *
- for the "beef"
- 1 cup soy protein flakes (40 g)
- 1/4 cup BBQ-sauce (60 ml)
- 1 tablespoon steak seasoning
- *
- for the vermicelli
- 7 oz rice-vermicelli (200 g)
- plant oil
- 1 organic lime
- 1 teaspoon maple sirup
- 1/4 cup of soy sauce
- two stalks lemongrass
- piece of ginger, peeled
- 1/2 onion, peeled and minced,
- 1 garlic glove
- carrot
- thai basil
- *
- for garnishing
- some Thai-Basil
- fried shallots
- sweet chili sauce
Instructions
- Thaw spring roll pastries according to instructions, put on a plate and cover with a damp tea towel.
- Mix some of the Thai-basil, 1/2 onion, 1 piece of ginger, 1 carrot and the cabbage in a food processor and season with one tablespoon soy sauce.
- Put one tablespoon of the mixture on a spring roll pastry, roll, fold side ends in. Apply a little water on one end to seal. Should make 10-15 spring rolls.
- Put soy protein in boiling water and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Prepare vermicelli according to instructions, rinse in cold water and mix with a little plant oil.
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- For the sauce combine 1/4 cup soy sauce with some water, 1 teaspoon maple sirup, the squeezed lime and lime zest in a bowl, then add the vermicelli.
- Drain soy protein and rinse cold, squeeze, and mix with 1/4 cup BBQ sauce and 1 EL steak seasoning.
- Apply oil to spring rolls and bake them for 15 minutes.
- Cut carrot to cherry blossoms if desired.
- Remove ends and hard outer leaves from the lemongrass and break the stalks to release the aroma, then chop up.
- Heat a little oil in a pan and bake the soy protein until crispy.
- Heat oil in a second pan or wok, sauté onions, garlic, ginger, lemongrass and carrots.
- Flip soy protein in first pan.
- Pour vermicelli in second pan and add most of the Thai-basil, chopped, keeping some of it for garnishing.
- Arrange Vermicelli with soy beef and spring rolls on a plate and serve with fried shallots, Thai-basil and sweet chili sauce.
Have you made this recipe? I would love to see your picture on Instagram @flymetotheveganbuffet or #flymetotheveganbuffet.
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