Pink ricepaper rolls with tamarind dip and cashew furikake. A long title and a long post but don’t be discouraged! Rice rolls are one of the easiest things to make.

They can really be a savior when the fridge has too many leftovers. You simply fill the rice papers with what you have. If you happen to be a bit smart, you might be lucky enough to have just that crispy tofu ready…. Or the wonderful cashew furikake, that also works perfect as a snack to join the sunday drink by the way…

Nigella seeds

The Nigella seeds that I used for the furikake are funny seeds resembling to black sesame seeds to its appearance. In addition to nigella, the seeds can are also be called black-caraway, black-cumin, fennel-flower, nutmeg-flower and Roman-coriander.
Whatever you do, don’t let the seeds slip out of its package! You will be spending the coming years, yes I said years, cleaning as they have a tendency of getting in every wings and twists in the house…

The small black seeds have a very special flavor and smell that is both intense spicy and a slightly peppery. Once you’ve learned to recognize the taste, you will often encounter the typical flavor in Indian naanbread, different kinds of chutney and in curry blends.
Nigellia seeds are also great to flavor “plain” bread with, roasted (sweet) vegetables such as carrots and parsnips, homemade cashew cheese or in a tomato salad.
Roast them and just give them a try.  You will have a great adventure in the kitchen to come!

But now we are going to make ricepaper rolls!

Suggestion for filling to the rolls
Finely shredded, crispy salad like Romaine lettuce or maybe some pointed cabbage?
Fresh cilantro (or leafy parsley if you do not like cilantro!)
Sliced mushrooms or whole enoki that I had
Sliced ​​avocado
Sliced ​​peach (or nectarine or mango)
Crispy fried tofu (see recipe below)

Tamarind dip

Ingredients
3 tablespoons of Tamari (or gluten free soya)
2 teaspoons of tamarind (read more about tamarind in this post)
1/2 teaspoon of sambal olek (or more depending how spicy you prefer it)
2 teaspoon of agave
1-2 cm ​​red chili pepper (or more addicted how spicy you prefer it)

How do I do it?
1. Wash the red chili and discard the seeds if you prefer it less hot. Slice it in thin slices.
2. Mix all of the ingredients in a small bowl and add the sliced ​​chili pepper. Clear!
The dip can be prepared in advance and kept in the fridge for a couple of days.

Crispy tofu with a bite

Ingredients
200 grams of solid, neutral tofu (Do you want to learn more about tofu? Check out this post!)
1 teaspoon of whole black pepper
1 teaspoon of whole coriander seeds
1 teaspoon of sichuan pepper
——————–
About 2 tablespoons maizena
A pinch of salt
Neutral oil to fry in

How do I do it?
1. Place the tofu in a press between a kitchen towel or kitchen paper with a weight on top. A plate  in between and some of my cookbooks usually fix it in my house… Allow it to rest for 30 minutes to get as much water out as possible.
2. Add the spices to a dry frying pan and bake it on low heat for about five minutes. Stir regulary.
Pour the roasted spices into a mortar or an electric coffee grinder and grind until you have a fine powder.
3. Cut the tofu in fine, small dices and place it on a dry plate. Add about 1 teaspoon of your grounded spice mixture to the tofu and see that all tofu is covered with the mix.
Add the maizena to the tofu and again see that all tofu is covered with it on al sides.
4. Heat a frying pan and add oil to it. You need about 1/2 cm. Add the tofu and fry it on medium heat until al the pieces has a crunchy outer cover all around.
5. Pour the crunchy tofu on a plate covered with double-folded kitchen paper and allow the excess oil to drain. The tofu can be enjoyed by both hot or cold.

Cashew furikake

Ingredients
100 grams of raw cashew nuts
1 tablespoon of coconut oil
2 teaspoons of nigella seeds
4 teaspoons of coconut sugar
2-3 teaspoons of tamari (or soya)
1 pinch of salt
1 pinch of cayenne pepper
——————-
About 1 tablespoon of finely cut strips of the seaweed Nori

How do I do it?
1. Roast the cashew nuts into a dry frying pan until they smells nutty and start to get some color. Pour them in a bowl and allow to cool.
2. Cut small, fine strips of the seaweed Nori and put it in a bowl.
3. Pour some coconut oil into a frying pan and add the nigella seeds. Roast the seeds for about five minutes on low heat. Stir regularly so that it won’t get burned.
4. Add the coconut sugar, tamari, salt and cayenne pepper to the pan and stir.
5. Add the roasted cashew nuts and the finely cut Nori and stir again.
6. Pour the blend on a baking sheet and allow to cool. Be careful to not tasting it before it has cooled down. Melted sugar can give real blisters on both fingers and in the mouth!

The furikake can be prepared in advance and kept in a airtight container in room temperature for a few days. The nuts can become slightly softer though.

Pink ricepaper rolls

2-3 rice papers per person (if possible, take the bigger size, they are easier to handle and fold)
If you want to make them beautiful pink, you need some warm, leftover boiled water from cooke beetroots. (If you do not have that but still want to color your rice paper, you could also mix warm water with a some red food color …).

1. Prepare all toppings and have a big cutting board ready to work on.
2. Pour warm, possibly colored water if preferred in a wide deep bowl. Take one rice paper at a time and put it into the water. Allow it to rest there for a minute to be completely soaked and soft.
3. Grab the rice paper and place it on the cutting board. Add fillings you like and have available (see ideas above) including some furikake.
Distribute the filling evenly as a long string on the middle of the rice paper. Keep in mind that you want some of all tastes in every bite! Keep your edges free from filling, otherwise it will be difficult to make a steady roll.
4. Fold in the sides over the filling first. Roll up the entire roll and if needed moisten the final edge of the rice paper to make it really stick.
Place the roll on a plate and continue with the remaining rolls until you used all your toppings.
5. Avoid placing the rice rolls too tight up on each other as they may become slightly sticky due to the starch in the rice. They could then break more easily.

Enjoy your rice paper rolls with the dip sauce and maybe some extra furikake. Some black sesame seeds on top are decorative but not really a must.

These recipes are free from gluten and lactose.