Mac & Cheese Spring Rolls / Spicy Banana Ketchup

Just hearing the name of this dish excites your senses and rmeinds you of comfort food from your early childhood days, but now we take those feelings and amp it up by makig spring rolls with mac and cheese with chunks of beef and bacon and ofcourse a delicious spicy banana ketchup dipping sauce. 

Chef Jason.

Click Here to Watch Tutorial Video

Mac & Cheese Spring Rolls with Spicy Banana Ketchup

Yield: Dozen Spring Rolls

Ingredients Needed

  • ·         1 Cup of Elbow Pasta ( Boiled )
  • ·         6 Rations of Bacon ( Small Dice )
  • ·         1 Tsp of Minced Garlic
  • ·         1 Tsp of Minced Onions
  • ·         5 Oz of Minced Beef
  • ·         2 Tbsp of Chilli Infused Coconut Oil
  • ·         2 Tbsp of Flour
  • ·         2  Cups of Milk
  • ·         ½ Tsp Salt
  • ·         ½ Tsp Black Pepper
  • ·         ½ Tsp of Smoked Paprika
  • ·         1 Tsp of Turmeric Powder
  • ·         ¾ Cup of Shredded Cheddar Cheese
  • ·         1 Tbsp of Minced Pimento Pepper
  • ·         4 Tbsp of Minced Parsley
  • ·         Black Pepper and Salt to taste.
  • ·         1 Pack of Spring Roll Skins
  • ·         3 Cups of Vegetable Oil for Frying

Spicy Banana Ketchup

  • ·         2 Tbsp of Chilli Infused Coconut Oil
  • ·         1 Tsp Minced Onion
  • ·         1 Tsp Minced Garlic
  • ·         ½ Tsp Minced Fresh Ginger
  • ·         ½  Tsp of Minced Hot Pepper
  • ·         1 Tbsp of Minced Chadon Beni or Cilantro
  • ·         3 Large Bananas ( 1 ½ Cups ) Diced
  • ·         ½  Tsp of Nutmeg Powder
  • ·         ¼ Tsp Cinnamon Powder
  • ·         1 ¼  Cups of Water
  • ·         ¼ Cup White Vinegar
  • ·         ¼ Cup Brown Sugar
  • ·         2 ½ Tbsps of Tomato Paste
  • ·         Salt and Black Pepper to Taste

Methods

Mac and Cheese Spring Rolls

 Place medium skillet over high heat and add the diced bacon and cook until crispy.

Remove bacon pieces, set aside and using the residual fat from the bacon add the minced garlic, onions and sauté for 30 seconds then adding in the minced beef.

Reduce heat to medium and cook the minced beef until fully cooked, still trying to maintain slight little clusters of mince.  Remove beef and set aside in small bowl and return the same pot to medium heat.

  • Add the chilli infused coconut oil to the pot and gently sprinkle in the flour also.
  • Using a whisk, incorporate the flour and oil together to form to paste and cook by stirring constantly for 15 seconds. When paste is slightly turning brown and sticking to pot, add the milk and continue whisking to evenly disperse and dissolve the flour paste into the milk Immediately add the salt, black pepper, paprika and turmeric powder and continue whisking on medium heat until mixture starts to slowly thicken (around 3 to 4 minutes)
  • Once sauce is starting to feel slightly thick, whisk in the cheese for 30 seconds and remove from heat immediately.
  •  Ensure the cheese is melted into the hot milk mixture and add the minced pimento pepper and parsley. Add the boiled elbow pasta at this point to the cheese sauce as well as the crispy bacon and minced beef.
  • Using a spatula, fold all the ingredients in properly until incorporated. Add Salt and Black Pepper if needed.
  •  Empty Mac and cheese into a shallow dish and place in chiller for 1 hour to cool down.
  • ·Preheat your oil to 325 degrees Fahrenheit in a shallow medium pot.
  • ·On a clean cutting board, place one of your spring rolls skin on and add two tbsp of the now chilled Mac and cheese filling onto the first third of the skin facing you. Using your hands, roll the skin encapsulating the filling tightly and securing the edges into a neat rolled package and applying little water to the edges of the skins to help adhere the roll.
  •  Continue making your rolls and then place in the hot oil. Using a perforated spoon allow rolls to fry for a minimum of 2 minutes to ensure skins are crispy and the filling gets melted and warm on the insides.
  • Remove rolls using the spoon and place on a paper napkin to remove excess oil.
  • Arrange rolls on a platter and serve with spicy banana ketchup.

Spicy Banana Ketchup

Place a small sauce pot over medium heat, add the coconut oil and sauté together the onion, garlic, ginger, pepper and Chadon beni for 1 minute until fragrant.

Add the bananas, nutmeg and cinnamon powder and continue sautéing for an additional minute.

Then add the water, vinegar, sugar and tomato paste. Reduce heat low to medium, stir to combine, cover and let simmer for 15 - 20 minutes or until bananas have softened completely and half the liquid has reduced. 

Transfer mixture to a blender and process until smooth in consistency but slightly thick as that of ketchup ( blend with an additional ¼ cup water if needed ) 

Taste and season with salt and black pepper to your preference and pour into jar, cover and set aside.

Jason Peru