Crackly Fried Spring Rolls with Lettuce, Herbs and Nước Chấm

Read through the recipe and gather the equipment. Use the ingredient lines to prepare and measure everything. The filling holds raw pork, raw shrimp and raw egg, so keep it cold, do not taste it raw, and wash your hands and tools after handling it. Everything is measured and the rolling station is ready.

If using the pickle, stir 1/2 cup distilled white vinegar, 1/2 cup hot tap water and 2 tbsp sugar in a small bowl until the sugar dissolves. Add 4 oz daikon and 4 oz carrot and let them stand until they bend without snapping and taste sweet-sour, about 30 minutes. Drain them before serving and refrigerate any left over.

Soak 2 oz dry bean-thread vermicelli and 1/2 oz dried wood ear mushrooms in separate bowls of warm water until the noodles are soft and pliable and the mushrooms are fully soft, about 30 minutes. Drain them well, snip the noodles into short lengths with the scissors, and trim any hard knobs from the mushrooms and chop them finely.

Mix the noodles, the mushrooms, 2 whole large eggs, the onion, 8 oz raw shrimp, 1 lb lean ground pork, 2 tbsp vegetable oil, the carrot, 1/2 tsp black pepper, 2 tbsp fish sauce and 3 cloves garlic in the large bowl until the filling is evenly mixed and slightly sticky.

Dip one wrapper in the warm water just until it softens and lay it on the damp towel. Spoon a rounded tablespoon or two of filling near the bottom edge, fold in the sides and roll it up tightly. Set it seam side down on the tray and roll every wrapper the same way. Cover the tray and refrigerate the rolls until the wrappers dry slightly and hold their shape, about 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the nước chấm: stir 1/2 cup warm water and 3 tbsp granulated sugar in a small bowl until the sugar dissolves, then stir in 3 tbsp fish sauce, 3 tbsp fresh lime juice, 2 cloves garlic and 1 tbsp fresh red chile. The sugar has dissolved and the garlic and chile float.

Taste the nước chấm. Aim for sweet, sour, salty and hot all at once, bright enough to cut through a fried roll. If it tastes flat, add fish sauce to taste, a little at a time. The sauce tastes bright and balanced.

Heat 4 cups vegetable oil in the 4-quart heavy saucepan over medium-high heat until a frying thermometer reads 375°F (190°C). The oil comes no more than halfway up the pan.

Fry two or three rolls at a time over medium-high heat, turning them, until they are blistered, deep golden and crackly, about 3 to 5 minutes. Check the center of one roll from each batch with an instant-read thermometer: the filling reads 160°F (71°C). Lift them onto the paper towels, let the oil come back to 375°F (190°C), and fry every roll the same way.

Set out 2 whole heads of butter lettuce, 1 cup fresh mint, 1 cup cilantro and 1 cup Thai basil, with the drained pickle, if using, and the nước chấm. Wrap each hot roll in a lettuce leaf with herbs and dunk it in the sauce. Serve the rolls hot to make 20 servings. Let the frying oil cool completely in the pan before you discard it. Refrigerate leftovers within two hours and reheat them in the oven until the center reaches 165°F (74°C). The rolls are crisp and ready to serve.