Thai Spring Rolls

I love Thai food. Can't explain why, but whenever possible, I'll eat Thai. <3 p="">
My first taste of Thai food was in 1990 in the Flavors and Spices restaurant in Alabang Town Center. We had Chicken in Pandan Leaves, Seafood with Hot Basil, Tom Yum Goong and Thai Spring Rolls.

Since then, I've tried replicating what I ate in our kitchen.  Since basil and the ingredients of Tom Yum weren't readily available back then, my first replication success was with Thai Spring Rolls.

PS:  I think, now that I have eaten Vietnamese Spring Rolls, that the two are very similar, if not one and the same. :)

THAI SPRING ROLLS

What's In It?

100 g sotanghon (vermicelli) noodles
20 g taingang daga (woodear) mushrooms, soaked in warm water until soft

100 g togue (mung bean sprouts), washed and drained
1 small carrot, peeled and julienned
100 g ground pork
3 cloves garlic, mashed
1 small onion, peeled and sliced
2 T oil for sauteing
2 t brown sugar
2 t fish sauce
pinch of ground black pepper

20-30 lumpia (spring roll) wrappers
cornstarch slurry
2 c oil for deep frying

Kitchen Conjugations:

Soaked sotanghon in water for 15-20 minutes or until they become soft. Drain water and cut sotanghon into 4-inch lengths.  Set aside.

Over medium heat, saute onions and garlic in oil. Add in pork and stir fry for 2 minutes or until pork loses its pinkish tint.  Add in sotanghon, taingang daga, carrots and togue.  Stir fry for one minute. Season with brown sugar, fish sauce and ground black pepper.  Remove from fire.

To the ingredients, add in the sotanghon.  Stir.  Check and adjust seasonings if necessary.

Now, assemble the spring rolls.

1. Put a tablespoon of the filling at the center but about three inches from one of the edges of the wrapper.  Spread the filling out to form a small log.

2. Fold the edge nearest to the filling over it, ensuring there is no gap between the filling and the fold.
Then fold over the right and the left edges over the filling, again keeping the roll tight..

3. Roll the folded edge towards the other end of the wrapper, making a cylinder, stopping about two inches from the other edge. 

4. Brush the space/gap with a little cornstarch slurry to moisten it then continue to roll the cylinder over it to close the roll.

5. Do this for the rest of the filling and wrappers.

Time to fry!

Heat the cooking oil in a wok or deep fryer. Fry the rolls in batches of 5-6 to ensure they are fully submerged. Cook until they are golden brown. Remove from the pan and stand rolls over a cooling rack or colander to drain oil.

Serve immediately with sweet chili sauce as dip.