Shrimp roll

You know what’s better than having a warm bowl of soup. Having a warm bowl of soup (check out my recipe for Tom Yum soup) and munching on shrimp rolls that are crispy and delicate at the same time.

The outer layer of this popular Bengali restaurant dish is made with spring roll wrappers you get at your regular grocery store but the marinade requires a couple of specialty sauces, two to be exact. Thai sweet chili sauce and green chili sauce. The combination of these two sauces imparts a mildly sweet yet spicy flavor that makes these rolls very different from your regular spring rolls. Both sauces  are available at Asian markets or Indian groceries and will be a great addition to your pantry as they are good for a couple of months and can be used in a myriad of different dishes.

Also did I mention....

these rolls are made with whole shrimp and nothing else and then deep fried.   Bake them for a healthier version but sometimes it just feels soo good to indulge.

Recipe

20 shrimps

10 sheets of spring roll wrapper

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1 teaspoon soy sauce

1/2 teaspoon sesame oil

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1 tablespoon sweet chili sauce

2 teaspoon green chili sauce

1 teaspoon corn starch

To seal the wrapper 

1 tablespoon water

1/4 cup water

Fresh shrimp from the farmers market. You can also buy tail on raw shrimp to make your life easier. I, for one, don't mind the extra work. I'd rather go the extra mile.

Clean and devein the shrimp and nick the inside a couple of times so that the shrimp don’t curl up. Here’s a little clip that demonstrates how to keep shrimp straight.

Get the marinade ready.

Marinate for 15 minutes. Doesn’t look very appetizing does it? Patience grasshopper. ;)

Soak up excess moisture with a paper towel. Cause we all know what happens if there’s water when you are deep frying. Don’t wory about the shrimp being bland as they’ve already taken in all the flavor.

Now comes the fun part. Wrapping up the shrimp. First gather the wrappers together. Cut them diagonally

 Make sure to keep them covered under a wet kitchen towel. Otherwise they'll dry up and will be harder to roll.

Take one of the triangles and place a scored shrimp on it like so

Fold one corner over tightly covering the shrimp. Make sure it's a tight wrap.

Roll it once and then fold the top over.

Keep folding till you get near to the other corner and brush some cornstarch-water mixture on the edge and seal it good

Keep repeating till all the shrimps gone

Deep fry the pieces in oil that's about 350 degrees F. When the rolls are added the oil should bubble vigorously. Enjoy with sweet chili sauce.

Tom yum soup done differently

Each country has its own version of popular cuisine, modified to suit the taste of her people. Us Bengalis, we have our own style of Thai food that native Thais would never recognize. There’s this thick soup we used to get at restaurants in Bangladesh which, in all honesty could never be called by its authentic name of “tom yum goong” meaning thai soup with prawns.

We Bengali’s take everything a little too far. Our spicy dishes are a bit spicier, and sweet dishes are a tad sweeter than the food you would get anywhere else in the world. This soup is spicier than an original tom yum but if you ask me just as flavorful, if not more . :D

So if you are not afraid of a little heat try making this Bengali tom yum.

Recipe:

6 cups water
6 teaspoons chicken bouillon powder

3 tablespoons tomato ketchup

1-3 tablespoons Sriracha chili sauce

4 stalks of lemon grass

¼ cup of chicken sliced thinly

¼ cup of medium shrimp (peeled, deveined)

3 Egg yolks

3 tablespoons corn flour

½ cup canned mushroom

1teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon sugar

3 tablespoons Vinegar

First peel off the first few outer layers from the lemon grass stalks and chop it into medium sized pieces. At this point feel free to smash the pieces with the back of your knife. This helps release the essential oils that flavor our food. These stalks although not eaten, impart a light lemony scent to the soup. 

Then separate the eggs and add a tablespoon of corn starch for each yolk. Make sure you save the whites for another dish.

And start mixing it up.

It’ll look crumbly in the beginning but have faith.

It’ll come together nicely into a thick paste.

Now, boil some water making sure it comes to a rolling boil.

And add all the chicken boullion powder. After a minute or two of boiling, add in lemon grass and the thin slices of chicken.

Now here comes the tricky part. If you add the yolk corn flour mixture directly into the hot broth you might end up with scrambled eggs as opposed to a thick creamy soup. Which I guess wouldn't taste bad, but we don’t want that for this recipe.

Take a ladel/ spoonful of the hot liquid and slowly pour it onto the egg paste and stir vigorously. 

Add another ladelful and stir again.

Pour the warm egg mixture into the broth mixture. Give it a quick stir and you'll get a smooth creamy consistency.

Add in the shrimp, ketchup, chili sauce, vinegar, sugar and salt and your soup will get a pretty orange hue. Make sure not to cook the soup for too long otherwise the shrimp will turn rubbery.

Sprinkle generous amounts of chopped cilantro and you have Bengali-Thai soup. Enjoy!! :)