No-Wrap Summer Bento from Bento Lunchbox (VG)
“Who else loves Vietnamese rice paper rolls? They‘re my favourite, but a little too time-consuming for an everyday dish. With this bento, I get all their flavours in, without any of the wrapping! This works well as a big party salad too. The must-have ingredients are mint, cucumber, fresh chilli and peanuts – and if you haven‘t already tried adding watermelon to savoury salads this is the time. Pure summer magic!” Sara Kiyo Popowa, author of Bento Lunchbox
Makes 1
½ nest (50–75g/1¾–2½oz) dried rice vermicelli
2cm (¾in) thin slice of watermelon, peeled and cut into bite-sized chunks
50g (1¾oz) firm smoked tofu, cut into thin strips (Viana ‘Real Smoked Tofu‘ is ideal)
3 tablespoons raw peanuts, dry-toasted, and chopped or crushed (see Tip)
1 spring onion, finely chopped
Fresh bird‘s eye chilli, sliced, to taste a handful of salad greens, like rocket, watercress or baby spinach
¼ cucumber, peeled
1 small carrot
A small handful of fresh mint, torn
1 tablespoon tamari
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
Break a whole, dried noodle nest in half (over your sink or a big bowl, as pieces will fly everywhere!), then place one half in a large, heatproof bowl and pour boiling water over to submerge. Weigh the noodles down with a lid or plate, if possible. Leave for 5 minutes, then drain in a strainer and cool completely under a cold running tap. Either let the noodles drip-dry in the strainer for 5 minutes or instantly spin them dry in a sturdy salad spinner. Depending on appetite you may want to rehydrate a little more vermicelli, up to 1 nest per bento, and add a little more seasoning/dressing to the recipe.
While you wait for the noodles to rehydrate, cut your watermelon and tofu, toast the peanuts and chop the spring onion and chilli. You‘ll need a big bento box for this bento. Layer the noodles and greens in your box. Use a potato peeler to peel long strands of cucumber, then carrot, straight into the box (peeling firmly, away from your body, and rotating the vegetable after each peel may be the easiest). You will end up with a thin core of cucumber and carrot, cut these into rounds (check one o‘clock in the image) and add them to the box too. Add the watermelon and tofu, then finish with the peanuts, spring onion, chilli and mint. Add the fish sauce, oil and more chilli to a small leak-proof pot with a lid, to take with you as a dressing and pour over before eating.
