One time when I was selecting my jicama in an Asian supermarket, a lady came up to me and was curious to know the name of the vegetable, and how I cook it. I realized something I take for granted may not be obvious to another culture. I grew up in Singapore and eating popiah (non-fried spring-roll with lots of ingredients) filled with "mang-guang" (jicama in our chinese dialect) was a very common thing.
Jicama is a root vegetable with a crispy juicy bite and natural sweetness, which makes it a popular filling for certain dimsum and Asia salads. See picture below for how it looks, very plain and simple, not something that will naturally attract your attention. But please give it a second look next time you see it, buy one and try cooking it. It has such nice natural flavors and texture that simple stir-fry will bring out its best. You can also eat it raw as part of a salad. (Another popular food in Singapore where jicama is eaten is "Rojak" - a fruit and vegetable salad mixed with shrimp paste. Shrimp paste?...yes shrimp paste! And it is absolutely delicious,....well ok perhaps an acquired taste.)
Today I made fried vegetable spring-rolls with jicama, carrots, garlic and dried shrimps. Dried shrimps acts more like a flavoring ingredient here. If you don't have it or do not like the taste you can omit it. The fresh, simple but delicious ingredients go well with light crispy spring-roll skin......one of those appetizers which once we start eating, it's hard to stop. I console myself that at least I am eating my vegetables.
Spring-rolls are like pizza, you can pick any toppings/fillings you like. Feel free to add other ingredients like mushrooms, cabbage, bean-curd, chicken, pork, shrimps, etc. Whatever makes you happy....(Tip: crunchy vegetables work better.)
Note: I used to be unable to find jicama in my local US supermarket but they (Wegmans) started carrying it. If you cannot find it, you may have to buy it from an Asian supermarket.
VEGETABLE SPRING ROLLS RECIPE
Makes 10-12 small spring rolls
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Ingredients:
Spring-roll shells (I used frozen ones "wei-chuan" brand from Asia supermarket)
2 tsp cooking oil + enough oil for deep-frying
1 small jicama approx 1.5 lbs (shredded)
1 medium carrot (shredded)
1 clove garlic (minced)
1 tbsp dried shrimps (finely minced)
1 tsp light soy sauce
1/2 tsp dark sweet soy sauce (optional)
salt to taste
pepper - a dash
1/2 tsp sesame oil
Heat up 2 tsp cooking oil in a pan or wok in medium heat. Light-brown minced garlic and minced dried shrimps. Then add jicama and carrot.
Season with light soy sauce, dark sweet soy sauce (optional), salt, pepper and sesame oil.
Mix well and allow to cook for 10 minutes. When it is almost done, turn up heat to high so any liquid will be absorbed. If the filling is too wet, the spring-roll shell may break apart during wrapping.
(Tip: at this point, the cooked vegetables can also be served as a side dish with rice.)
Transfer cooked vegetables to a large plate or tray and allow to cool.
Wrap-up the spring-rolls per pictorial instructions below. Make sure the filling is tucked-in tight or you will get a "loose" roll. You can use some cornstarch water to seal the roll if needed.
Heat up oil for deep-frying over medium heat (not high heat as spring-roll shells brown easily). Once oil is hot, carefully place the spring rolls in pan. Do not over-crowd the pan. Remove rolls from pan once golden-brown, drain on paper towels, and serve hot, or with chilli sauce.
Here is how we roll-up the spring rolls:
