The Local Dish: Spring Rolls in Fall

Fresh spring rolls at Montira’s Thai Cuisine - carrots, rice noodles, lettuce, Thai basil. And bliss.

By Charles Childs/CCCNews Foodie

Fresh Spring rolls

What can be better than a fresh spring roll? It is the perfect appetizer as it lights and gently fades the waves of hunger that intensify each minute while you wait for the rest of your food. These rolls are fresh, filled with carrots, rice noodles, lettuce, fragrant Thai basil, all tucked into a rice paper roll. 

I dipped my rolls into creamy peanut sauce with a bit of the provided chili oil on top for some heat. This makes for the most wonderful bite. The peanut butter provides fat to the dish that compliments the vegetables in the roll. The Thai basil has the most wonderful aromatic smell. It makes you wonder where Montira’s garden is located in the restaurant.

I have ordered fresh rolls many times as a healthy lunch or snack, but they are sure great for an appetizer too. 

When you open your takeout box the smell of acidic umami sauce floats into your nostrils to draw you in. This salad features pops of color with green papaya shreds, chunks of hearty tomatoes, crunchy peanuts, green beans all on a bed of lettuce. Like seriously, green papaya salad, I thought you were a side dish, not a main course. 

Another great thing about this salad is that it saves well in the fridge for a late-night snack or a next-day lunch.

Some may think that green papaya would be sweet rather than savory. The shredded papaya was delightfully crunchy and a great vehicle for the umami fish sauce that was sweet, savory, and salty. The peanuts provided a needed source of fat that rounded out this dish. Crunchy tomatoes and green beans were lovely as well. Honestly, I usually ignore a bed of lettuce and accept it as decoration on the plate and nothing else. However, when you take the lettuce in your hand and use it to grab the papaya salad it gives a good bite of salad with even more crunch. The lettuce tasted fresh and worked well with the dish. I love lettuce that serves a purpose.

Drunken Noodles - give ‘em a ride home

When you open this takeout box of drunken noodles it feels like Christmas because you are getting a perfect gift made just for you. This is one of my favorite dishes at Montira’s. Every time I look at their menu, I think that I will branch out and order the Pumpkin Curry, but then I go back to the irresistible drunken noodles.

This isn’t because it is safe or ordinary, or it needs a ride home. It’s because this dish features wide rice noodles that give the most delightful stretch and squish. I would give it 10/10 good mouth feels. Between the long, squishy noodles, there were thin strips of chicken, egg, crunchy sautéed bell peppers, and onion all enveloped in a garlicky umami sauce that was both sweet and salty.

This dish would make great leftovers. Notice my use of the word would. 

The bell peppers give a perfect pop because they are quickly sautéed for a light sear that leaves them crunchy and brings flavor to the dish.

I would suggest that anyone try Montira’s Thai in The Dalles. All the dishes on the menu looked fantastic, and I would love to try more. They are open for take-out only from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. 

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CCCNews Foodie Columnist Charles Childs is out and about monthly looking for great menu items around The Dalles. Their Column, The Local Dish, reviews plates too good to miss.

This story sponsored by:

Pioneer Electric

Leta and Tim Barclift are owners and operators of Pioneer Electric, 423 E. Second St., The Dalles. They are here to serve you in all your refrigeration, stove and appliance needs. They can also help with parts. And don’t forget to pet Bandit while you’re there.