Vietnamese Shrimp Spring Rolls

With the warm weather right around the corner, our bodies are ready to feel the sun upon our faces again.  The flowers blossoming, gardens blooming, the time is right for light, fresh and healthy food.  What better way to welcome Spring than with this wonderful Vietnamese Shrimp Spring Roll recipe?

Made from rice paper and rice noodles, this recipe is gluten-free and serves as a perfect appetizer or snack for any occasion.  Pair it with a spicy peanut sauce and it will be guaranteed a hot item with any crowd.  Save yourself the work and ask guests to roll their own, the best part is that any mistakes can be quickly eaten.

Feel free to substitute the shrimp for bbq chicken, avocado, jicama – let your imagination create new and exciting flavor combinations.  These spring rolls are best eaten the day they are made but can also be covered with saran wrap and eaten the next day.

Recipe for Vietnamese Shrimp Spring Rolls

  • 2 ounces rice vermicelli (60 mL)
  • 8 rice wrappers (8.5 inch diameter)
  • 8 large cooked shrimp – peeled, deveined and cut in half
  • 1 1/3 tablespoons chopped fresh Thai basil (20 mL)
  • 3 tablespoons chopped fresh mint leaves (45 mL)
  • 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro (45 mL)
  • 2 leaves lettuce, chopped

Soak vermicelli in cold water until soft.  Bring a medium pot of water to a boil and cook vermicelli for 2-3 minutes, or until al dente.  Drain and rinse with cold water.

Fill a large bowl with warm water.  Dip one wrapper into the hot water for a second and lay the wrapper on a flat surface.  In a raw across the center, place 3 shrimp halves down and top with vermicelli, basil, mint, cilantro and lettuce – leaving about 2 inches on each side.  Fold the uncovered sides inward and roll the wrapper tightly.  Serve with Spicy Peanut Sauce.

Spicy Peanut Sauce

  • ½ cup peanut butter (120 mL)
  • 2 tablespoons water (30 mL)
  • 1 tablespoon hoisin (15 mL)
  • 1 teaspoon Sriracha (5 mL)
  • Handful of peanuts, crushed

Mix peanut butter and water together until thoroughly mixed.  Add more water (1 teaspoon at a time) if the consistency is too thick.  Stir in hoisin and Sriracha and top with crushed peanuts. Serve with spring rolls.

Exciting news — I am now a contributor at Honest Cooking which is a new international online culinary magazine with the ambition to truly change the face of online food media.  They feature over 50 of the world’s most interesting food and beverage writers, bloggers, photographers and Chefs and I was fortunate enough to be selected as one of them!  Honest cooking aims to become the leading and most inspiring place for serious culinary debate, salivating recipes, interesting food news and international food-fun. You can also check out my recipe for these Spring Rolls over at Honest Cooking!

14 Comments

  1. Posted 21 Mar ’11 at 4:55 pm | Permalink

    Had these last night at Asian Mint on Forest. Dang good – I’m sure yours are better!

  2. Posted 21 Mar ’11 at 5:36 pm | Permalink

    Congrats on being an Honest Cooking contributor, yay!

    I’m ready for Spring, like everyone else, I’m sure. These spring rolls would be a delicious way to welcome its arrival. Love how pretty the wrappers are. Your photos are always stunning. :-)

  3. Posted 21 Mar ’11 at 6:10 pm | Permalink

    congraz, joy!

  4. Posted 22 Mar ’11 at 12:11 am | Permalink

    Vietnamese spring rolls are one of favorites yet I never make myself. Dealing with the delicate wrappers seems pretty intimidating. Yours are so lovely!! Beautiful presentations as usual! :)

  5. Posted 22 Mar ’11 at 11:46 pm | Permalink

    Congrats and good luck on being a contributer to Honest Cooking! Your going to be great!

  6. Posted 23 Mar ’11 at 11:39 am | Permalink

    I’m a huge fan of spring rolls… and when the weather is warmer, I can see myself making these, consumed on a beautiful summer day outside with a big sake cocktail.

  7. Posted 24 Mar ’11 at 5:28 am | Permalink

    I love spring rolls and these look amazing. I didn’t realize that rice paper was so photographic. Beautiful photos as always.

  8. Posted 24 Mar ’11 at 6:19 am | Permalink

    I LOVE spring rolls! My best friend is in town visiting and she was the one who first taught me how to make them almost 10 years ago now. So much time has passed but I still love them. :) I am going to show her your post, it will bring back memories!

  9. RavieNomNoms
    Posted 24 Mar ’11 at 6:04 pm | Permalink

    Those look so light and refreshing…gorgeous colors going on and gorgeous pictures too!

  10. Posted 25 Mar ’11 at 3:36 am | Permalink

    That is awesome news! Congras. :)

  11. Posted 26 Mar ’11 at 9:37 pm | Permalink

    These spring rolls sound delicious and the photos are beautiful.

  12. Posted 30 Mar ’11 at 8:07 pm | Permalink

    Those look wonderful. I love love spring rolls.

  13. Posted 31 Mar ’11 at 3:20 pm | Permalink

    I get these at like every Vietnamese or Thai restaurant I ever go to! Thanks for inspiring me to make them at home (it’s not even hard heh). Yours look great and so fresh!

  14. Posted 3 Apr ’11 at 6:28 am | Permalink

    Joy, only you can make spring rolls looks so beautiful. I’ve never eaten spring rolls with vermicelli in them but love spring rolls in general so will have to give these a go. Thanks fo another fabulous recipe.

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