Chā Giô Houston - Crispy Rice Paper Vietnamese Spring Rolls

 I've set out, for my next project, to explore Houston in search of the perfect chā giô. A lot of places have moved over to offering these with the lumpia/spring roll type wrapper that is wheat based. But I am looking for a traditional one with a clear rice paper wrapper. 

Making these perfectly requires skill and finesse, as frying rice paper can result in a burned and/or greasy result. The rice paper is dry and is reconstituted with a water and sugar bath. The sugar helps with the browning and helps create a bubbly surface texture. Chewiness and crunchiness. 

This version of spring rolls made by wrapping filling in clear rice paper wrappers (bánh tráng) and then frying them. The filling usually consists of ground pork, vegetables, wood ear mushrooms, and glass noodles. They’re often served with lettuce and herbs, for wrapping, and, with nuoc cham as a dipping sauce.

I went to the Facebook group, Chowdown in Chinatown - Houston, for recommendations. I'll be publishing that list at a future date. 

At the same time, my friend Michael Shum messaged me "I know a place". And honestly, his recommendation for Phat Ky, well, I can probably stop my search now. But I won't.

On my own, I've visited Thien An and Kim Son, both in the downtown area. Both were good...perfectly acceptable. 

But. 

I'm looking for "spectacular".

Next day saw me at Phat Ky with Michael and friends. We enjoyed an excellent catfish clay pot, mango and shrimp salad, and the chā giô. Enough to order a second serving. Just great. Here are some pictures.

Cha Gio - Crispy Rice Paper Version at Cuu Long Quan

 Tucked into a little non descript and slightly decrepit strip center on Broadway near I-45 South, is Cuu Long Quan. I discovered this place when I sent a query for a specific Vietnamese appetizer, cha gio. You see, as time has passed, more Vietnamese places are moving away from the traditional, crispy, fried, rice paper wrapper and substituting a spring roll/lumpia wheat based wrapper. Because doing the rice paper right is a challenge. You need to rehydrate the dried wrapper in a water and sugar solution, deep fry it watching closely so that it doesn't burn or get too greasy. It is a real skill. And someone on the Chowdown in Chinatown - Houston (Facebook group) recommended this place.

Well, the cha gio was terrific. As was a flat noodle (lots of wok hai) with chicken and vegetables dish. I am already looking forward to coming back here for cha gio.

One caveat emptor though. As of May 2022, the interior smelled really bad, as if they needed to go in and do some maintenance on their plumbing piping. I hope that someone reading this, who speaks Vietnamese, will talk to them, as this could really be hurting their business. And they probably aren't aware of the issue since they are there every day.

But the cha gio. Man, was it ever excellent.