Salads

• Soak the rice sticks in hot water until they are soft and transparent. This is sufficient to cook thin noodles, while broader noodles may need to be boiled briefly and cooled immediately in cold water. They are then ready to be tossed with fresh salad and cooked vegetables enhanced by aromatic herbs such as Thai basil, coriander and mint. Popular dressings contain garlic, chili, fish sauce and roasted peanuts. As an alternative, deep-fry the dry rice vermicelli until puffed up and crunchy and use as a garnish for Chinese-style salads.

Soups

• Soups enhanced with rice sticks become hearty meals enjoyed all around Southeast Asia. Spicy and sour Penang laksa soup with tamarind and fish, hot Singapore coconut curry laksa soup, and refreshing Vietnamese pho meat and herb broth all contain rice noodles. Rice sticks of various thicknesses can be used in soups, but thin noodles have the advantage of being easily cooked directly in the broth, which allows you to forgo prior soaking. They can also be cooked, cooled and placed at the bottom of soup bowls before pouring in the hot soup.

Spring Rolls

• Thin rice sticks can be used in the making of fresh spring rolls. They provide bulk and a neutral taste to support the other ingredients, which are rolled into rice paper sheets soaked in hot water to make them pliable. Use cooked and cooled rice sticks along with shredded salad, fresh herbs and shrimps to make Vietnamese summer rolls, or sauté the rice sticks together with the other fillings, such as julienned vegetables and pork or chicken, before rolling the mixture into spring rolls.

Stir-Fries

• Rice sticks are at their most versatile stir-fried in a wok with pretty much anything that happens to be available in your fridge. Pad Thai is an Asian backpacker’s favorite consisting of rice noodles stir-fried with eggs, vegetables and shrimp or meat -- or with tofu for a vegetarian alternative. Malaysian char kway teow may contain prawns or pork flavored with soy sauce, while Chinese fried rice noodles with duck are seasoned with hoisin sauce. For a quick side dish, simply toss your rice sticks with seasonings and fragrant sesame oil.