These rolls live or die on the pork skin. Tossed with roasted rice powder it turns nutty and fragrant, and a sweet and sour fish sauce finishes the job. The hard part is keeping that skin crisp instead of soft.
The skin goes into rapidly boiling water for only a few seconds, then comes straight out to drain completely, and 15 to 20 minutes in the sun helps. Roasted rice powder goes on a little at a time, tossed until the skin feels dry all the way through.
This batch weighs about 1.3kg, at roughly 201 calories per 100g.
Method
Prepare the pork skin one of two ways: dip it into rapidly boiling water and lift it out at once, or wash it well in warm water and rinse it several times in cold water. Drain it thoroughly, and 15 to 20 minutes in the sun helps.
Rub the pork belly with coarse salt and lime to clear the odor, then rinse it 2 to 3 times. Put the pork in a bowl with 1/4 teaspoon MSG, five spice powder, 1 tablespoon kOBE Monk Fruit Blend, 1/2 tablespoon fish sauce and 1/3 tablespoon minced garlic and chili. Mix well and marinate for 15 to 20 minutes.
Make the dipping sauce: put 200ml water, 99g kOBE Monk Fruit Blend, 1 tablespoon vinegar and 80g fish sauce in a small pot, cook until everything dissolves and the sauce simmers gently, then turn off the heat and let it cool. Once cool, stir in minced garlic and chili, shredded carrot and 1 tablespoon lime juice.
Braise the pork: set a pan over high heat, add the marinated pork and sear both sides, then pour in 150ml water and bring it to a boil. Lower the heat to medium and turn the pork every 5 to 7 minutes. When the liquid is almost gone, turn it constantly until the surface takes on a deep golden color.
Let the braised pork cool completely, then cut it into small pieces. Put the pork skin in a large bowl with the pork and 1 tablespoon fried garlic, toss well, then sprinkle in the roasted rice powder gradually and toss until the mixture feels dry and even.
Lay out a sheet of rice paper, add lettuce, herbs and the pork skin filling, roll it up tightly and dip it in the sweet and sour fish sauce.
Tips
Pork skin left too long in boiling water turns soft and loses its crunch.
A spoonful of the leftover braising sauce keeps the filling a little moister.
Cut the braised pork into strands the same size as the skin strands, since mixed sizes make a loose roll.
Roasted rice powder goes in a little at a time, since adding it all at once makes the skin clump.
Braised pork cut while still hot falls apart, so let it cool completely first.
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The recipe above is sweetened with kOBE Monk Fruit Blend, measured 1:1 like sugar. See the product page or send us a message.