Light and refreshing, these fresh rolls are bursting with flavor from fresh herbs, lime juice and fish sauce. Addictive and delicious.
Vietnamese food has always been one of my favorite cuisines and continues to rank in my top 3 to this day. Unlike much of the Americanized Chinese and Indian foods we see in restaurants, Vietnamese food is light, fresh and doesn’t leave you with an over-stuffed food hangover. (Ok, maybe I should eat less naan but I can’t help myself.)
What is the secret? Fresh herbs. Whether you order a vermicelli noodle bowl, a beef salad or these traditional fresh rolls, you will often find a variety of fresh herbs including mint, Thai basil, cilantro and more.
As a child, one of my favorite food memories is dining at Mr. Lee’s Vietnamese restaurant every Sunday and ordering the “make your own” fresh roll platter. It often came with charbroiled pork meatballs instead of shrimp and a giant platter of herbs, lettuces, cucumbers, carrots and more so that I could roll to my heart’s content.
Mr. Lee’s has been closed for over 10 years so I head to my own kitchen whenever I get a craving for these rolls. If you’ve never made them at home before, don’t be afraid to try! It is the perfect no-cook dinner for warm weather months and they can truly be filled with any meats or veggies you have on hand.
No fork required.
Fresh Rolls with Shrimp and Honey Lime Slaw
Ingredients
- 12 rice paper wrappers
- 12 in large cooked shrimp (sliced half horizontally)
- 2 oz vermicelli rice noodles (cooked and cooled)
- 1 ½ cups Apple Radish Slaw with Honey Lime Jalapeño Vinaigrette
- ½ cup cilantro sprigs
Dipping Sauce
- ¼ cup fish sauce
- ¼ cup water
- 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
- 1 juice of lime
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 clove garlic (grated)
- ½ tablespoon chili garlic paste
Instructions
- Boil 8 cups of water and keep warm.
- Whisk together dipping sauce in a small bowl and set aside.
- To prepare shrimp, remove tail and slice in half horizontally. (This allows you to fill the rolls with 2 pieces of shrimp without making the rolls too thick.)
- Place vermicelli noodles in a glass bowl and cover with boiling water. Let sit for 5 minutes then drain with cool water; set aside.
- Place apple radish slaw in a small bowl and begin creating an assembly line with the noodles, shrimp and cilantro sprigs.
- To soften the rice paper, fill a shallow pie plate or cake pan with boiling water. Add one rice paper at a time and soak for 5 seconds then move to a plate to fill and roll.
- Working from the center of the roll, add two shrimp slices and top with noodles, a couple tablespoons of slaw and several cilantro sprigs.
- Fold in the sides then bring bottom over the filling and tuck while rolling tightly. t
- Place on a platter and continue rolling remaining 11 sheets.
- Serve with dipping sauce on the side.
I will be remembering these when the hot weather rolls in, they look delicious.
These look so fresh! I’d love to make this :)
Liz,
why did I never think about a pie plate for softening my wrappers? I do this ridiculous dip and spin action, which accomplishes the job but is certainly not as elegant.
I like how you’re repurposing the salad in this–normally I’m using my summer rolls as a protein leftover delivery vehicle, but I’ll remember this for my salad leftovers.
Thanks!
Hi I would love to send this info and recipes to our granddaughter who is trying to loose weight.
Those summer rolls look so fresh and good!
Thank you for the nice recipe, Liz. Have a great weekend and make it a safe one.
I love spring rolls, LOVE them. In fact, this is what I typically get instead of sushi at restaurants or in grocery stores. I prefer the wrap to the rice I guess. Thanks for the recipe!!
These look astoundingly delicious! My sister-in-law is Vietnamese and I’m slowly working all her secret family recipes out of her… ;-). Maybe I can surprise her one day with these!
I love spring rolls. Great flavors, my friend!
I love the, “no fork required” and how you have been changing it up to suit the post!
haha – I forgot I did that!! I love that someone actually noticed. :)
This looks so fresh and inviting! Love a good spring roll.
So do I – in fact, wish I had some now!!
These look SO. GOOD. I love spring rolls but have never tried to make them at home. I know my older son would love these too. Must try them this weekend! :)
They are so easy to make!! And you can let the kids fill them with whatever they love to eat!
These are screaming summer!
So fresh and delicious looking…. I am really loving the addition of honey, jalapeño here, it will just make these so perfect.
Love These!
Thank you so much – I love the subtle spicy sweetness from the slaw!
Fresh herbs make everything better!! Beautiful pictures–these look delicious and perfect for the warmer days.
I couldn’t agree more!!
Love how fresh these are, perfect for summer!
Thank you Angie! So great meeting you!!
I love these liz!! So fresh and summery! YUM!
I agree – I’m ready for fresh summer foods!
These sound so refreshing!
I absolutely adore spring rolls, and could happily eat these every day for lunch. Great idea to include the honey lime slaw!
Perfect summer dinner! Love how light and fresh it is!
Thank you so much!! Super light and flavorful – enjoy!
These look amazing! I am ready to try to make them – when I finally get some time. I love how fresh they look!
Yes you must make these – you will love filling them with a million different things!!