This is the best meal I have ever not cooked.
I’m sounding a bit like Dr. Seuss. Let me rephrase. This meal requires NO ACTUAL COOKING besides boiling some water! I’m serious, folks. This makes it an ideal meal for hot summer days since it’s nice and cool to eat, and doesn’t heat up your kitchen.
Vietnamese Shrimp Spring Rolls are extremely healthy, crisp, and refreshing. They taste fresh and bright from an awesome combination of fresh cilantro, mint, and basil, and the hoisin peanut sauce adds a salty, savory umami to the mix. They will satisfy you and leave you full (but won’t weigh you down) since they have protein (shrimp- for a vegan alternative, you can use tofu), vegetables (herbs, carrots, and cucumbers), AND whole grains (brown rice vermicelli noodles). I firmly believe that I could eat these every day and never get sick of them.
Now. While these are very fast and easy to make, they do require a few specific, unique ingredients. You will likely find all of these at Whole Foods, but they can also be found at Asian markets and often times just at your regular grocery store in the Asian foods section.
First, the sauce. THE SAUCE. It’s so good! All it consists of is a mix of Hoisin Sauce
, peanut butter (homemade or store-bought), and a bit of Sriracha
to spice things up (you can leave this out if spicy isn’t your thing). I found all of these ingredients at my regular grocery store- they are pretty common.
Second, the vermicelli noodles. I found Instant Whole Grain Vermicelli at Whole Foods
, which require no boiling. All you have to do to soften them is pour hot water over them in a bowl and let them sit for a couple of minutes. They come in packs very similar to ramen noodles, and likely can be found in the Asian section of your grocery store. Or, on Amazon! (you can also use regular white rice vermicelli noodles, which can be found almost anywhere, or another variety of rice noodle).
Finally, the rice paper
. This is probably going to be the most challenging thing for you to find, but Whole Foods usually has it, Amazon definitely does, and many other grocery stores (especially Asian grocery stores) will have it as well. It’s usually very inexpensive.
Here’s how to use the rice paper and assemble your spring rolls.
You should first set up all your ingredients so you are ready to assemble everything at once. Slice some cucumber julienne, soften the instant noodles with hot water (I just boiled water in my teapot, then after they sat for a few minutes I drained them and ran cool water over them). Cut the carrots into thin strips with a vegetable peeler
, roughly chop your herbs (cilantro, mint, and basil), and cut the cooked shrimp into small, manageable pieces.
Then, you will need to soften the rice paper. Rice paper comes in large, circular sheets about the size of a tortilla. They are hard- kind of like big flat noodles- and are softened with warm water so they become malleable. Just fill a large container or skillet with some warm water, and dip the rice paper roll into it for about 5 seconds. If it’s not completely malleable after 5 seconds, don’t worry- the residual water will seep into it while you are assembling the rolls and make it easy to roll up.
Place the softened rice paper on a plate, and begin layering your ingredients on the bottom half of the paper. Then, fold the sides of the rice paper over the filling and roll up like a burrito. It’s so easy! Finish with the remaining pieces of rice paper and fillings, mix up your sauce, and you are ready to dip and eat :-)
These make an excellent meal for dinner or lunch. Make them ahead of time to take to school or work all week long, or make them mini (you can buy the rice paper in various sizes) as a fresh and healthy appetizer for a party. Experiment with the fillings- try pickling the carrots first (a la Momofuku) or substituting the shrimp with pork, chicken, edamame, tofu, or other protein. Have fun with it- you can’t go wrong!
Recipe below!
Vietnamese Shrimp Spring Rolls with Hoisin Peanut Sauce (Vegan-Friendly!)
Ingredients
For the Spring Rolls:
- 8 Large Rice Paper Sheets
- 4 oz. Instant Vermicelli Noodles
- 1 lb. cooked shrimp cut into small pieces (see notes)
- 1/2 cup fresh cilantro chopped
- 1/2 cup fresh mint chopped
- 1/2 cup fresh basil chopped
- 2 carrots sliced thinly with a vegetable peeler
- 1/2 cucumber cut julienne
For the sauce:
- 1/2 cup hoisin sauce
- 2 tablespoons peanut butter
- 1 tablespoon Sriracha hot sauce
Instructions
- Boil some water (I used my teapot) and pour over the noodles in a bowl. Allow them to sit for about 3 minutes (or until softened), then drain and run cool water over them.
- Arrange all of your ingredients so they are easily accessed.
- Fill a large container or skillet with some warm water, and dip one rice paper roll into it for about 5 seconds. If it's not completely malleable after 5 seconds, don't worry- the residual water will seep into it while you are assembling the rolls and make it easy to roll up.
- Place the softened rice paper on a plate, and begin layering your ingredients on the bottom half of the paper. Begin with the noodles, then add the carrots, cucumbers, herbs, and finally the shrimp. Then, fold the sides of the rice paper over the filling and roll up like a burrito.
- Repeat for the remaining rice paper rolls.
- Mix all sauce ingredients together in a small bowl.
- Serve rolls with the sauce for dipping.
Notes
- For a vegan/vegetarian version, substitute tofu or edamame for the shrimp.
- The provided nutrition information does not include any added sodium from seasoning to taste, any optional ingredients, and it does not take brands into account. Feel free to calculate it yourself using this calculator or by adding the recipe to Yummly.
Nutrition
Nutrition Information Disclaimer
The provided nutrition information is my best estimate and reflects one serving of the recipe (total servings indicated at top of recipe card). It does not include any added sodium from seasoning to taste, any optional ingredients, and it does not take brands into account. I use an automatic API to calculate this information. Feel free to calculate it yourself using one of these tools:
amber
Is the nutritional value/info for one roll?
Elizabeth Lindemann
Yes, it’s estimated per roll, including 1/8 of the sauce. Hope that helps!
Traci
Do you soak the rice paper all at once, or one sheet at a time?
Elizabeth
One sheet at a time. Otherwise you’ll end up with a blobby mess!
Kevyn
Is this something that can be made and then frozen to be eaten later? Seems like a great thing to make in bulk, then pull out some when you need them. Anyone ever try that?
Elizabeth
That’s a great idea, but I’ve never done it before! And my instincts are telling me that it wouldn’t work. Since nothing is cooked, it would be like freezing raw veggies- the texture would be off when it defrosted (usually when you freeze veggies, you blanch them first). I think fried egg rolls would work, and usually those are filled with cooked things. I have made these in bulk on the weekends and had them all week long for lunch, so they are great for a few days in the fridge at least! If you do give this a try, let me know how it works out for you!
Lisa
These were fantastic! We had them tonight and loved them. The dipping sauce was perfect! Thank you for the recipe!
Melissa @ Bits of Umami
I love me some fresh spring rolls. So fresh and so tasty. I can never get the peanut sauce right though! I’m gonna give your sauce a try :)
Justine
Ooh these look yummy!! I may have to make them very soon! Great photos!
Elizabeth
Thanks, Justine! :-)
Caroline @ Shrinking Single
I used to have these all the time for lunch when I lived in Laos. It was just amazing to watch them make these up – so quick and neat!
Elizabeth
I used to have them when I lived in New Orleans. Everyone always associates that city with Cajun food, but there is actually quite a bit of Vietnamese food as well! I always thought it was going to be too complicated to make on my own but that is certainly not the case- one of the easiest things I have ever made :-)