Chicken Spring Roll

Strong wind howling outside throughout the day since morning, so bad that couple of times I opened the door to check if anybody was knocking. The lawn in front of our apartment that even yesterday was blanketed in thick sheets of snow now is wiped clean by the wind. It seems heavy wind besides threatening to blow one away does the job of a sweeper at times. In the everlasting quietude of our neighborhood, the constant wailing of the breeze sometimes makes me jump out of my skin for the hissing and whooshing remind me of the sound played in horror movies in the background. A lonely damsel rambling about in a dense forest, lost or perhaps sleepwalking, the rustling of leaves and creaking of twigs or a branch of a tree intensifying the suspense when suddenly a disembodied spirit makes its presence known nearby, very very nearby, almost close to breathing upon her neck.....oooops...I can feel goosebumps surfacing on my skin.

 

 

I recall when I was barely a child, about 8-9 years old girl with pigtails; I visited my auntie's place in Agartala with family during summer vacation. There one night I watched the horror movie Evil Dead 1 and after that for nights after nights I used to feel scared of going anywhere alone even to the toilet. At night, squeezed in bed between my parents, I would hold my father tight with eyes shut and bury myself from head to toe under the blanket, inordinately sweating due to the damp humid summer temperature and counting 1 to 10 forward and backwards waiting for sleep to rest on my face. Horror movies used to intrigue me quite a bit during childhood days, the fad continuing even I went to the university but slowly with time I realized the futility of getting unnecessarily scared by watching a slew of horror flicks. I mean what's the point of watching a movie that frightens the wits out of you putting you on edge for several days after the nightfall ? Movies are meant for entertainment, right? No fun out of getting uncalled for fear at the cost of a price.

 

 

Back to the recipe, Chicken Spring Roll is one of the favourite snacks of mine I fascinatingly enjoy. I wanted to try it for a while and recently I bumped into a very interesting recipe of the same in a blog called Steamy Kitchen where the blog owner Jaden Hair very beautifully illustrated the recipe step by step. I was thoroughly impressed and I decided to try it. Although I added few spices of my own to jazz it up, but more or less I hewed to the recipe she followed.

 

 

Ingredients :( for 13 -14)                                                  Cooking time: 40-50 minutes ü  300 gm ground chicken ü  150 gm cabbage (finely julienned) ü  1 carrot (julienned) ü  4-5 cloves of garlic (chopped) ü  1 tsp grated ginger ü  Few stalks of green onions (finely chopped) ü  5-6 green chillies (finely chopped) ü  1 1/2 tbsp cornstarch ü  Black pepper, taste wise ü  1 tsp Chinese fives spices (optional) ü  1 tbsp oyster sauce ü  1 tbsp dark soya sauce ü  1 tsp rice vinegar ü  13-14 spring roll sheets, defrosted ü  White oil for cooking Method: 1) Mix chicken, cornstarch, black pepper, Chinese five spices, if using, dark soya sauce, salt and rice vinegar together. Mix well. 2) Heat oil in a skillet. Add ginger-garlic when oil turns hot and shallow fry till they turn a shade darker. Add carrot and cabbage. Shallow fry. 3) Add chicken, green chillies and green onions. Cook, stirring frequently, till chicken is tender. Add oyster sauce and salt. Mix in and cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally. 4) Cool down the chicken mixture to room temperature. 5) Place no more than 1 tbsp of filling at one corner of a spring roll sheet positioned like a diamond on a smooth surface. Roll tight folding the sides as you go on and secure the edges with the help of a pinch of water.       6) Deep fry till rolls turn golden in color. Serve hot.