Rice Paper Burger Rolls

This recipe started because I was wondering how to use up some leftover rice. I have no idea how it lead to this crispy, tasty, unique roll. 

I'm glad it lead here but I still don't know how it morphed from leftover rice. 

Anyhoo.... 

Rice paper is my new favorite ingredient to play with. I love "the usual" rice wraps such as these raw veggie ones:

But I really, really, REALLY love them baked until they are crispy. They are a great alternative to bread plus they are super fun. They take a little rehearsing as they are a bit sticky to work with. Practice makes perfect! 

You could deep fry them for even more tastiness but I was trying to take the healthier route by baking them. FYI - they are super-de-duper lovely baked. 

Rice Paper Burger Rolls

Ingredients

Burger Logs

1 lb extra lean ground beef

4 cloves garlic, minced

Filling

1 red pepper, sliced into thin strips

1/4 of a purple onion, sliced thin

1 cup brown rice, cooked 

8 rice paper wraps

2 - 3 Tbsp sesame seeds

Dipping Sauce

4 Tbsp soy sauce

4 Tbsp Thai sweet chili sauce

4 Tbsp rice vinegar

Garnish

green onions, finely chopped

Directions 

Preheat oven to 400. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper, set aside. 

Prepare burger logs - Mix together beef and garlic in a bowl until well combined. Form into 8 log shapes and place in a frying pan sprayed with cooking spray over medium high heat. 

Cook, turning to brown all sides, until meat is done. Let cool at least 15 minutes. 

Prepare wraps - soak a rice wrap in water as per package instructions. Lay on a work surface. Place 1/8th of the red pepper, onion, and rice in the center of the wrap.

Top with one of the cooked hamburger logs. I ended up cutting mine in half to lay flatter! 

Fold in sides of wrap to cover ends of the hamburger, then roll up rice wrap. Place on prepared cookie sheet. Repeat until all the hamburger logs are used up. You should have 8. Using a basting or pastry brush, brush the tops of each roll with a little water then sprinkle generously with sesame seeds. 

Note - Try not to fill them too full or they may split while cooking. 

Bake at 400 for 15 minutes. Gently flip the rolls over and bake at 400 for another 10 - 15 minutes. 

While the rolls are baking, prepare the sauce - in a small bowl, stir together the soy sauce, Thai sweet chili sauce, and rice vinegar. Serve with the Rice Paper Burger Rolls. 

Sprinkle with the green onions, if desired. 

Best served warm but they are pretty good just out of the fridge - they just lose some of the crunchiness. Great for lunch or as an appetizer. 

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