Chicken and Thai Pesto Rolls. Stunning.

This is a fab and healthy way of using up leftover chicken: a delicious canapé recipe or packed lunch that can be prepared hours in advance.  And wonderfully they look so professional but only need the patience and dexterity of a 3 year old.

I am a recent convert to making dim sum and as a result have a stash of rice paper and peanut oil, pretty wonderful ingredients that we hunted out at the only Chinese supermarket in Kwazulu Natal.  With respect to Thai herbs in the recipe, we are the proud owners of a Thai basil plant which the husband won at the local garden centre raffle.  It is an incredible herb, more robust in flavour than the sweet basil I’m used to and is correspondingly more robust in its growth, with a woody stem being more bush like.  Back in the UK I never saw such a plant and so feel free to use sweet basil in its place, I’m sure it won’t make too much difference.  

Ingredients (makes 8 canapes, double up as you need to)

4 circles of rice paper

a few thin slices of leftover chicken

1 baby courgette

½ a carrot

2 spring onions

a handful of either (or a mix of) mint, coriander and basil

For the Asian Pesto

a large handful of Thai or sweet basil

a large handful of coriander leaves and stalks

1 garlic clove

a small handful of cashews

100 ml or so of peanut oil

juice of half a lime

salt and pepper

Method

1. Put all the ingredients for the pesto, bar the oil, in a blender and pulse until coarsely chopped.  Slowly add enough oil until you get a thick pesto consistency, like a runny paste.  Taste and add more lime, oil or herbs as you fancy.  The aim is a very herby, slightly nutty, paste.

2. Slice the courgette and spring onion into fine matchsticks and use a peeler to peel the carrot into fine slices.

3. Soak the rice paper for a minute or so in warm water until soft then place on a board and cut in half.

4. Dollop some pesto on the middle of each half moon of rice paper and top with a few slices of carrot (cut to size), the courgette and spring onion, then finish with a few thin slice of chicken and three herb leaves (either a mix of mint, coriander and basil or just one type).

5. Roll up the wraps and using a sharp knife trim the ends and serve, perhaps with a small bowl of soy or dipping sauce.  

How beautiful and easy is that?