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Crispy Rice Paper Cups with Chickpea Salad aka "Chuna"

These rice paper cups are literally an explosion of flavor and texture. The popped rice paper is insanely crispy, crunchy, and melts in your mouth, which is then followed by the creamy, savory, refreshing chickpea salad "chuna" mash. It's almost a raw, no-cook meal - with the only exception being the rice paper and it's perfect quick lunch, snack, or party appetizer.


Have you ever had some of those prawn crackers usually served at a Thai restaurant before your meal arrives? Well these rice paper cups are really similar to that! I don't know the science behind this process but it is truly some kind of food magic, the very second rice paper hits hot oil, it starts to curl, pop, and crisp up! The frying process is done within 3 seconds, literally, it shouldn't take longer than that.


And this chickpea salad mash is my absolute go-to whenever I need a quick but still nourishing meal. It is reminiscent of a canned tuna salad that we all know too well but so much better ofc. You can use whatever veggies you like or have on hand and I added carrots, celery, apples, and onions here. Some other fantastic add-ons are pickles, capers, grapes, pecans, the possibility is endless.


One thing worth noting is that these crispy rice paper chips or cups do get soggy and will melt when they get wet or exposed to moisture for too long. So you definitely don't wanna be drizzling any liquid sauce or lime onto them like you might do with lettuce cups. And since there's natural moisture in the chickpea salad as well, I highly recommend preparing the salad mash and rice paper cups separately, and only filling the chickpea mash into the cups right before you serve.


Enjoy the satisfying sizzling and crunch in the video below! And if you try this recipe please tag me on Instagram and Tiktok I'd really love to see it!


INGREDIENTS:

2 rice paper, makes 8 cups
1 can chickpea, drained and rinsed
1/2 small red onion
1 carrot
3-4 celery stalks
1/2 red apple
2 tablespoon homemade vegan mayo or your choice of storebought
1 tablespoon dijon mustard
A squeeze of lemon
Salt and pepper to taste
Optional toppings -
1 Avocado, cubed
Pickled onions

TO MAKE:

- Finely chop the onion, carrot, celery, and apple;
- Rinse and drain the chickpeas, transfer to a large bowl, and mash with a potao masher or a fork, leave some texture don't get it completely mushy;
- Add all the chopped veggies;
- Add all the rest of the seasonings, stir to combine well;
- Cut the rice paper into four equal pieces;
- In a pan, heat some high smoke point oil, it doens't need to be too deep, about 1/2 inch;
- A good way to test whether the oil is heated enough is to use a small piece of spare rice paper, dip it in there, if it immediately starts to sizzle and curl then the oil is ready, if not, keep heating;
- When oil is hot enough, fry the rice paper for about 2 - 3 seconds, they will instantly pop, curl, and crips up, transfer onto a plate lined with paper towl to absorb any excess oil;
- Right before you wanna serve the food, fill each rice paper cup with the chickpea salad mash, top with avocado and pickled onions, enjoy!

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