unconstructed Vietnamese prawn rolls

When we were at the Soup Dragon on Pub Street in Siem Reap, we ordered beef in betel leaves (for the uninitiated, think dolmades, filled with minced beef and char-grilled) and it came with the usual accoutrements of herbage and greenery, but this time there was also a stack of rice wrappers, a bowl of water and some vermicelli noodles. Make your own rolls. What a genius idea. Who can be bothered faffing about making them up for guests who will never appreciate the stress you endured in their creation, when you could just get them to make them themselves?

"The sum total of all human misery that is Pak-n-Save", as an acquaintance so aptly put it, has a fish counter in Gisborne that keeps drawing me back. And their latest offering, $13.99-a-kilo raw prawns, presented the perfect opportunity to reach into the dark recesses of my pantry and liberate the jar of Hoisin, the bundle of vermicelli and the packet of rice wrappers that had been lurking there since I sent Matt forth to one of Auckland's wonderful Asian supermarkets all those months ago.

$6 of prawns, some noodles and some herbage later - along with some dipping sauce - and Matt was shaking his head as his caveman brain attempted to comprehend that he was actually full, and sated, by a meal so lacking in MEAT.

~unconstructed Vietnamese rolls~
stack of rice wrappers
bowl of water
platter of freshly washed, crunchy romaine (or whatever) lettuce, basil leaves, mint leaves, coriander, julienned cucumber
bowl of Hoisin
bowl of prawns, cooked whole in a big pot of salted boiling water - they'll take just a few minutes and will considerately float to the surface to let you know they're done - then rinsed in cold water, beheaded and peeled
bowl of vermicelli noodles (put in bowl and cover with boiling water for 3-5 minutes, drain and rinse in cold water)
bowl of dipping sauce (mix 2T palm sugar (or regular old sugar), 3T fish sauce, 4T lime juice, 1 clove crushed garlic, 1 finely chopped Thai chilli)

Assemble @ table @ leisure.

charred squid tacos

A fish trader friend of mine tells me that 80% of the squid eaten in Spain comes from New Zealand. Meanwhile, what are we eating in New Zealand? Not squid. I have been lamenting this fact for two years, and today @ the most depressing supermarket in the universe, I spied some and it was fresh, and it was local, and it was only $8.99 a kilo. Bargain. Beats my other recent find of Indian prawns for $13.99 a kilo which are by far the tastiest I've had since being home. That price beats mince and chicken and even blade steak.

I got a couple of medium-sized specimens for the grand total of $3, brought them home, cleaned them up, tossed them in some Maldon (I will pay $10 a box for this salt that makes all other salt ashamed of itself), black pepper and olive oil, and charred them in a glowing grill pan.

I'd ferreted away some masa harina (corn flour) so was also able to make some proper tortillas with the cast-iron press my lovely brother and sister-in-law brought me on their travels in Mexico. So good. Add limes and avos from the Farmers' Market, coriander from my garden, and I had all the guacamole and lime-drenched onion I needed. Mucho delisioso! (Yup, all I got was blank looks when I pulled that one out after every meal in Mexico.)

~tortillas~
150g masa harina
warm water to form a soft pliable dough

Combine in a bowl and leave for a few minutes. Knead into a soft dough, then break off small balls and press with a lined (2 sheets of plastic) tortilla press. Cook in a hot pan.

~guacamole~
2 avos
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 red chilli, finely chopped
1 tomato, chopped
1/2 small red onion, finely chopped
handful coriander, chopped
juice of 2 limes

Mix in a bowl with a fork or spoon, breaking up the avo as you go.

~lime & coriander salsa~

Finely slice a red or white onion, squeeze over a lime and scatter with chopped coriander.

~squid~
300g squid, cleaned and scored, tentacles removed
olive oil
Maldon
freshly ground black pepper
lime
chopped coriander

Toss the squid in oil, salt and pepper, then place in a searingly hot pan. Cook for a couple of minutes on one side, then turn and cook for another minute or so. Leave tentacles in pan until crispy. Remove squid from pan and dress with olive oil and lime juice, Maldon and pepper. Slice into bite-size chunks and scatter with the coriander.

Serve with the warm tortillas, guacamole, lime & coriander salsa and lime halves.