How to Make Fresh Spring Rolls – Authentic is as Authentic Does

Based on the YouTube comments appearing under the newly posted spring rolls video, lots of people missed the part about this not trying to be a specific recipe, but simply a demo featuring the magic that is damp, rice paper wrappers.

Don’t get me wrong; I love the “authentic” spring rolls I so often order at my friendly, neighborhood Vietnamese restaurant. Loaded with sweet shrimp, and bursting with vermicelli noodles, they are among the most delicious things ever invented.

However, I do reserve the right to soak rice paper wrappers in water, and… (I hope you’re sitting down for this) ...not make those! What you see here is just what I had on hand that day, and the next time I do a batch of these, who the heck knows what they’ll encase. If I have a point, that’s it.

Speaking of soaking in water, many commenters suggested that I dunk these in warm water for just a few seconds to hydrate, instead of the longer dip in cold water. I’ve tried both methods, and had more issues with the warmer/faster approach. They seemed to get too rubbery, too fast, which I found made the rolling harder.

Anyway, to each his own, and that goes for water temperature, filling ingredients, and dipping sauce. By the way, there are no ingredient amounts below, since that’s up to you entirely. You should be able to get “rice paper wrappers” at any large grocery store with an Asian food section, but if not, they’re easily found online. I hope you give these, or something similar, a try soon. Enjoy!

Click here to see our peanut sauce recipe video!

Grilled Beef Flank Steak “Pastrami” – Backyard Deli

I’ll do a proper pastrami one of these days. Maybe right after I get a smoker. But in the meantime, this pastrami-spiced beef flank steak should do nicely. As with all "cheater" recipes, managing your expectations is key.

You can’t get the texture and color of a real “pastrami” without the curing step, where the meat is soaked in a brine, before being spiced/smoked, but you can get pretty close to the flavor, using the spice rub seen herein.

We’ve used a similar technique to turn plain corned beef into “pastrami,” as well as create a duck Reuben; one of my favorite videos of all time. By the way, the ingredient amounts below have been adjusted slightly, as my spice rub was a tad bit overpowering.

I’ve backed down the black pepper and mustard, but as with all spice amounts, that’s really up to you. If you simply put salt and pepper on a flank steak, and grill it properly, you’ll have something delicious to eat, so keep that in mind as you rub your meat. 

I ate mine fresh, but if you let it cool, slice it thin, and warm it up in a pan with a little splash of water, and a tiny pinch of sugar, you’ll have something even more pastrami-like. I really hope you give this a try soon. Enjoy!

SPECIAL NOTE: I let my meat warm to room temp before grilling, so the inside reaches my desired temp a little quicker, and before the outside spice rub gets too black. Conversely, when grilling a steak, and there's nothing to burn on the surface, I generally like the meat cold, so the outside has plenty of time to sear, before the meat inside is done. 

Ingredients for 4 large portions:

1 trimmed beef flank steak (usually 1.5 to 1.75 pounds)

2 tsp vegetable oil

1 tbsp freshly ground black pepper

1 tbsp ground coriander

1 tbsp kosher salt

2 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp dry mustard
- For best results, cook to a medium. I pulled at about 135 F. internal temp, which will rise to about 140 F. as it rests.

-Serve with slightly sweetened mustard and rye bread

Sweet Potato Buns – Great for Burgers, and Learning How to Bake Without Fear

Not only does adding sweet potatoes to a burger bun make it more nutritious, delicious, and significantly more beautiful, but it also presents the perfect opportunity to get pass your flour amount phobia, and finally be able to make dough by feel.

Every once in a while, I’ll get an email from someone whose dough was way too wet, or dry, and I always think the same thing; why would you stop? Some actually tell me they had to throw out the whole batch, which is insane. Your dough’s too wet? Add some flour. Too dry? Add some water.

No matter how exact a recipe is written, you simply can’t go by measurements, volume or weight, and expect perfection. There are too many variables that effect how much flour is needed – like a cup of mashed sweet potatoes, for example.

The best strategy is to not add all the flour at once, and only add enough to achieve the soft, slightly tacky dough seen herein. One of the great advantages of video is being able to see what the dough should look and feel like.

Once you get comfortable with not worrying about exact amounts, but rather exact results, the world of bread opens up to you and your new-found powers. Now, you just need to practice, so with that in mind, I really hope you give these amazing sweet potato buns a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 8 large, 16 medium, or 32 slider-sized rolls:

For sponge:

1 package (2 1/2 tsp) dry active yeast (I used Fleischmann's “RapidRise” Yeast)

1/2 cup warm water

1/2 cup AP flour

Then add:

1 cup mashed orange sweet potato (also sold as yams)

2 tsp honey

1 1/4 teaspoons fine salt

1 large egg

3 tablespoons melted butter

3 to 3 1/2 cups flour AP flour, as needed to form the right texture dough (see blog post)

- Bake at 400 F. for 15 minutes, or until browned. Large buns may take an extra few minutes, and the sliders-sized may take a minute or two less.

Teriyaki Burgers and a Sweet Potato Bun Tease

Your classic teriyaki burger is usually nothing more than a plain patty, which has been glazed in teriyaki sauce; and by “teriyaki sauce,” I mean a thick, one-dimensional syrup made from sugar, soy, and MSG. If you’re enjoying your third pint at a sports bar, these work out just fine, but good luck adapting them for your next cookout.

Here we’re using a different, drier approach, and adding the key teriyaki flavorings to the ground meat. This gives us a burger or slider with the taste of teriyaki, without having to deal with a sauce. This recipe should work no matter the cooking method, although a medium-hot charcoal grill would be my preference, weather permitting.

No matter how you grill these, I highly recommend they end up on a homemade sweet potato slider bun. Besides another way to tweak the humble hamburger, this clip was intended to be a sneak preview for some rather amazing buns. We’ll post that sometime Monday, just in case you want to add it to your 4th of July menu. So stay tuned, and as always, enjoy!

Ingredients for four (4-oz) burgers:

1 pound ground beef (85/15 lean to fat ratio)

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon sake

1 tablespoon mirin

1 tsp sriracha, or other hot sauce to taste

2 tsp brown sugar

Memorial Day Grilling Special: Hot Dog Sausage aka “Hot Dogage”

The idea of making actual hot dogs doesn’t really interest me that much. Like French fries, and sushi, I believe hot dogs are best enjoyed out­; preferably at a baseball game, with a cold beer. However, I didn’t say anything about hotdog-inspired sausage hybrids.

This meaty mash-up came about thanks to some lamb kebab experiments. The meat mixture is prepared in a similar fashion, and while the seasonings are totally different, the firm texture of the kebab reminded me of a hot dog’s “snap.”

I wondered what would happen if I did a skewer-less kebab using the same ingredients that would typically go into a hotdog. What happened was better than I could've expected. I ended up with a fresh, mostly beef sausage, that tasted pretty much exactly like a hot dog.

Technically, this ended up being a lot closer to a bratwurst, but I’m pretty sure hot dogs are a more popular search, so that’s what I went with. As always, be sure to season these “to taste.” Just like when making meatballs, you can cook a small piece of the mixture, and adjust from there.

Like I said in the video, if you’re looking for something a little different for your Memorial Day cookout, I hope you give these hot dog sausages a try. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 4 Giants Hot Dog Sausages:

1 1/4 pounds lean ground beef (10 to 15% fat is fine)

1/4 pound ground pork

4 tsp kosher salt (1/2 ounce by weight)

2 tsp black pepper

1 tbsp paprika

1/2 tsp smoked paprika

1 tsp granulated garlic

1 tsp granulated onion powder

1/3 cup ice water

Mini Philly Cheesesteaks – Winning the Super Bowl Snack Table

Miniaturized sandwiches don’t usually float my boat, or submarine, as they’re almost always not as good as the full-sized versions, but these mini Philly cheesesteaks really captured everything I love about the classic.

Thinly sliced rib eye is traditionally used, and it’s fried and chopped on the grill, before meeting cheese and bread. Since we’re going to “grill” these in the oven, we’ll use a nice, juicy skirt steak instead, which has a big beefy flavor, and great marbling.

It will brown up around the edges, yet stay moist and tender because of the fat and connective tissue. I also really enjoyed the double shot of the sliced provolone and provolone “cheez whiz,” which provided a great creamy, richness. The peppers and onions brought everything together, and long story short, I ate the whole tray.

This was great hot, warm, and cold, and that alone makes it a perfect choice for your Super Bowl snack spread. Also, stay tuned for the quick and easy pickled pepper and onion relish recipe I mentioned in the clip. I hope you give these mini Philly cheesesteaks a try soon. Enjoy!

Enough for about 48 mini Philly cheesesteaks:

12 ounce skirt steak, or flap meat, or rib eye, or NY Strip

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1/2 cup of pickled pepper and onion relish (stay tuned for video), OR 1/2 cup of sautéed onions and sweet peppers

*once mixed, be sure to taste and salt the final diced steak mixture!

For the “cheez whiz” sauce:

2 generous tablespoons flour

2 generous tablespoons butter

1 cup cold milk

pinch of nutmeg

pinch of cayenne

salt to taste

2 thick slices provolone cheese (about 2 to 3 ounces), torn up

48 slices of baguette

sliced or grated provolone to top the cheesesteaks

Once assembled, bake at 400 for 12 to 15 minutes, or until cheese is browned