Spring rolls have to be one of my favorite things to make and eat.
Note: Looking for Crispy Crispy Fried Rolls (aka Imperials)? If so, check out this post!If you're looking for fresh Vietnamese spring rolls, also known as summer rolls, salad rolls, Vietnamese rice paper rolls, rice paper rolls, cold rolls or gỏi cuốn, read on!
What are spring rolls?
Super healthy and easy to make, Vietnamese spring rolls, or gỏi cuốn, are a traditional dish that often features pork, shrimp, vegetables and noodles wrapped in a rice paper roll. There are literally thousands of variations and they are fully customizable and customizable. They are served fresh with a sauce, either a mixed fish sauce or peanut sauce. You can eat them for lunch, dinner, snacks or as an appetizer.
Spring rolls have many names: gỏi cuốn (meaning salad rolls) and nem cuốn (meaning meat rolls), rice paper rolls, summer rolls, Vietnamese rolls, crystal rolls, soft rolls, cold rolls and fresh rolls.
Why make spring rolls at home?
There are many reasons why you should make spring rolls at home rather than ordering them from restaurants, and the best one is their freshness! Honestly, nothing beats a freshly made spring roll. Trust me when I say there is a world of difference in the taste of a freshly rolled spring roll. The rice paper is soft and chewy, the meat is hot and the veggies are crunchy.
Plus, when making spring rolls at home, you can customize them exactly the way you want them with your favorite fillings and sauces. Restaurant spring rolls tend to be a generic recipe to please everyone, but making them at home means your roll is ideal for you and you alone. The ratio of veggies and protein your roll is filled with is up to you. Even the size/thickness of the roll is up to you. And there's something good about a long, slow, communal DIY meal. Bring people closer.
How to make a spring roll party
If you've never made them before, it might seem intimidating, but making spring rolls is one of the easiest and healthiest meals you can make at home. Here's how to do it:
Step 1: Gather the ingredients
You will need: rice paper, vegetables, protein (optional) and ingredients for the sauce. The best thing you can do is make a list, go shopping if necessary, and have everything ready. Here's a sample shopping list of what you'll need to make chicken spring rolls:
1 pound of chicken, 1 nut of ginger, 1 stalk of lemongrass, fish sauce, oyster sauce, rice paper, lettuce, cucumber, cilantro, mint, Thai basil or basil, rice vermicelli noodles and lemon.
For pantry ingredients, make sure you have: sugar, garlic, and oil.
Step 2: Make the sauce
Start by making a simple fish sauce vinaigrette for dipping. Chop 1 clove of garlic and lightly crush it with 1-2 tablespoons of sugar. Add 1 cup of water, 1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice and 2 tablespoons of fish sauce. Mix until the sugar dissolves and set aside.
Step 3: Prepare the vegetables and pasta
Wash and dry the lettuce, cilantro, mint and basil. Slice or julienne the cucumber. Bring a pan of water to a boil and cook the pasta according to the package, then drain, rinse and drain well.
Step 4: Prepare the protein
Cut the chicken (or any protein of your choice, you can combine it with pork shoulder, loin, shrimp or tofu) into strips. Add chicken to a bowl with sugar, ginger, garlic, lemongrass, fish sauce, oyster sauce and oil. Let marinate for at least 15 minutes. If you're good at planning ahead, marinating overnight is tastier and a lot less work. Once the meat is marinated, fry it until lightly browned over medium high heat. Remove the cooked meat from the pan. (In our family we take it raw to the table and fryminuteson an electric griddle or butane grill).
Step 5: Lay the table
If you want, place a heat source in the middle of the table to cook the meats, otherwise, pre-cook them before setting the table so they are as hot as possible. Place your meat, veggies and rice paper on common plates like the picture below. Fill one or two wide bowls with warm water to soak the rice paper. Find enough bowls for everyone to have their own sauce. Grab a plate for each person, a few drinks and enjoy the night.
Step 5: Wrap
Dip a piece of rice paper in a bowl of warm water and spread it out on a large cutting board. Add one or two lettuce leaves, then add 1-2 strips of grilled chicken, 1 tablespoon of pasta, 3-6 strips of cucumber, 1 sprig of cilantro, 1-2 mint leaves, and 1-2 basil leaves. Fold the bottom of the rice paper up and over the filling and secure. Fold both sides of the rice paper towards the center, covering the filling, then roll up. That's it, roll it up, dip it in the sauce, eat it and repeat.
Tips, tricks and FAQs
What is rice paper?
Rice paper, known as bánh tráng in Vietnamese, is an edible wrapper made from rice flour (and sometimes tapioca). They are sold dried and you rehydrate them at home with water before using them. They are used in spring rolls, imperial rolls, in salads and grilled as rice crackers. They come in all different sizes, and in addition to the regular round ones, they also sell squares, triangles, and semicircles. We like to keep them in their packaging and only take out a few at a time, as they curl up when exposed to air.
Our favorite rice paper brands are:three ladies, Rose Brand and May.
How to prepare rice paper
The best way to prepare rice paper is to have a large, shallow bowl filled with hot tap water. Take a sheet of rice paper and dip it in water so that it is completely submerged, then remove it immediately. Place it on a plate or cutting board and let it sit for 5 to 10 seconds, where it will rehydrate and become supple and soft.
Tips for soaking rice paper
- Do not exaggerate.You don't want to soak the rice paper or it will get soggy and fall apart or become too brittle making it extremely difficult to roll.
- Seasoning.All you have to do is take the sheet of rice paper, dip it in, making sure the rice paper is submerged, and then pull it out and lay it flat. The water that sticks to the rice paper will completely rehydrate it. Don't listen to blog posts that tell you to let the rice paper soak for 10-15 seconds - you'll end up with a soggy mess!
- You don't need boiling water.Use hot tap water or even lukewarm water. If the water is too hot, the rice paper will be too soft.
- Look at the ingredients.If you're having trouble wrapping your spring rolls, look at the ingredients on the rice paper package. Tapioca rice paper has more elasticity and chewiness (like boba!), making it easier to wrap. Rice paper made from 100% rice is a little more difficult for beginners to work with.
- Use a large, shallow bowl or baking dish.It's easier to slide the rice paper into a shallow bowl of water than a regular bowl, so hold the rice paper and twist it to submerge it in the water.Alternatively, you can get one of these Rice Paper Holders/Water Soaking Bowls. They are upright so all you do is dip the rice paper and spin it in the water.
How to roll spring rolls
Rolling a spring roll is a lot like rolling a burrito, so if you've done it before, it'll look great. The tighter the roll (without tearing the paper), the better!
- Seasoning.Take your sheet of rice paper and soak it in water, remove it immediately and place it on a flat surface, be it a plate or cutting board. The rice paper still won't be completely flat, but it will rehydrate as you arrange the ingredients.
- Arrangement.Place the fillings on the bottom third of the rice paper. Pro tip: whatever you put in first will be visible on the outside of the roller.
- To bend.Fold the bottom up and over the filling, keeping it pressed in, then fold the sides in toward the center, covering the filling.
- Rollo.Roll from bottom to top, roll and roll, dive in and have fun!
Fun Fact! Did you know that the way you roll your salad rolls says something about your personality? According to Mike's parents, if you roll the buns towards you, it means you are more selfish and if you roll them to the side, you are more generous.
spring roll ingredients
Protein
The best thing to do with protein is to marinate and fry it. Many spring roll recipes are just cooked or fried proteins, but the way to layer the flavors is to marinate the protein before cooking.Our favorite is a classic sweet and spicy marinade.Works great with all proteins and tastes absolutely amazing! Make the marinade, add your protein (seafood, chicken, pork, beef, tofu), marinate for 1 hour minimum, then simply fry or grill.
Legumes
Think leafy greens like green lettuce, red lettuce, butter lettuce, iceberg lettuce, cabbage, spinach, etc. Crispy/firm veggies work too, just make sure you cut them into sticks: cucumber, carrot, bell pepper, radish, daikon.
Fruit
Things like mango, peach, or avocado slices can add a slight sweetness to your rolls. Crunchy fruits like apples, pears or julienned pears are also good.
herbs
Herbs are absolutely essential. At a minimum, you need coriander and basil, preferably Thai basil. We also like mint and shiso. Chives are also good. There are also a lot of Vietnamese herbs you can get - if you have a Vietnamese grocery store in your town they should have a great selection.
videos
When we make salad rolls at home, we rarely use noodles, we prefer to stuff our rolls with vegetables, but if you're going to use noodles, you want thin rice noodles. Just cook according to package directions, drain and rinse well.
What to dip your salad rolls in
Sauce is considered the most important part of spring rolls.
fish sauce vinaigrette
This is our favorite sauce: sweet, sour, salty and full of flavor.
In a bowl or glass measuring cup, crush 1 garlic clove, 1 Thai chili pepper (optional) and 1-2 tablespoons of sugar. Add 1 cup of water, the juice of 1/2 a lemon and 2 tablespoons of fish sauce. Mix until the sugar dissolves.More about nuoc mam here.
peanut sauce
Creamy and nutty, you can make it with peanut butter or like we do: almond butter.
In a small bowl, combine 2 tablespoons hoisin sauce, 1 tablespoon plain peanut butter (or other peanut butter), 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 clove minced garlic, and 1-2 tablespoons of water soup. If you want it spicy, add sambal oelak to taste.
I would make salsa
Keep it simple and serve it with some hoisin with lemon, garlic and a little sugar.
In a small bowl, combine 1/4 cup hoisin sauce, 1 tablespoon sugar, the juice of 1/2 lemon, 1 minced garlic clove, and 1-2 tablespoons water.
Can you make spring rolls ahead of time?
You can, but rice paper doesn't stay as fresh and tends to get a little firm. If you want to prepare them in advance, wrap each roll individually in plastic wrap, otherwise they will dry out. If you try to leave them together they will stick together and break, so wrapping them individually is the only way to go. Keep in the fridge, individually wrapped and placed in a covered container for up to 3 days.
That's all, I hope you have a wonderful, healthy and delicious spring roll party!
spring rolls
Super healthy and easy to make Vietnamese spring rolls.
serve12 rolls
5of3wishes
Setup time30 minutes
Time to cook15 minutes
Total time45 minutes
Ingredients
Protein
- 1 pounds pollo thinly sliced, or another protein of choice, such as sirloin, pork shoulder, whole shrimp, or firm tofu
- 1 soup spoon sugar
- 1 soup spoon redhead chopped
- 2 clove SHE crushed
- 1 to attend lemon grass chopped
- 1 Thai bird's eye chili sliced, optional
- 1 soup spoon fish sauce
- 1 soup spoon oyster sauce
- 1 soup spoon oil
rolls
- 12 rice paper preferred round
- 12-24 linen lettuce Red or green leaf is preferred.
- 1/2 english cucumber juliana
- 12 twigs coriander
- 24 linen demand
- 24 linen thai basil optional
- 2 packages roasted vermicelli optional
Instructions
At least 1 hour beforehand (overnight is best), marinate the protein: Crush 1 tablespoon each of the sugar, ginger, garlic, lemongrass, and Thai pepper (if using) in a mortar and pestle. Combine with the protein of your choice with the fish sauce, oyster sauce and olive oil. Mix well, cover and store in the fridge.
Add a little oil to a skillet and fry the protein until golden brown on both sides, in batches depending on the size of the skillet. Remove from pan.
One at a time, dip the rice paper into a bowl of warm water. Place it on a flat surface.
In the bottom third of the round, add a lettuce leaf or two, then the protein, a small amount of pasta, vegetables and herbs.
Fold the bottom of the rice paper wrapper up and over the filling.
See AlsoEasy Fresh Vietnamese Spring Rolls (with video)Vietnamese Spring Rolls: Ingredients, Recipe & Dipping Sauce [2023]Crispy Rice Paper Spring Rolls for Air Fryer (Vegan, Vegetarian) I easyflavorfulCan the spring roll wrappers be replaced with egg roll wrappers? – Aberdeen Street SocialFold both sides over the filling.
Roll up, bottom to top, folding and rolling. Repeat as needed and enjoy dipped in the sauce of your choice.
grades
Nutritional estimates assume chicken breast as protein.
Estimated Nutrition
Nutritional information
spring rolls
Amount per serving (1 roll)
calories123fat calories 9
% Daily Value*
gordo1g2%
Saturated Fat 0.01g0%
Cholesterol24 mg8%
Sodium250 mg11%
Potassium183mg5%
carbohydrates19,4 g6%
Fibra 0,2g1%
Sugar 2.3g3%
Protein8,5 g17%
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.