Vietnamese Spring Roll Recipes

VIETNAMESE SPRING ROLLS

Steps:

• Combine all ingredients except wraps and oil in a bowl.
• On a damp tea towel, place a wrap, and fill with a couple of tablespoons of the pork mixture in a sausage like shape at one end of the wrap.
• Fold sides in, then begin rolling spring roll at the mixture side.
• Seal roll by moistening edge with water.
• Heat oil over medium-high heat.
• Fry rolls, turning frequently until cooked through and golden, about 5-7 minutes.
• Drain on paper towels, and serve with Spring Roll Sauce (Nuoc Mam).
• Keep warm in heated oven.
• Note: The spring rolls may be made ahead, and frozen, and then fried when thawed.
• Spring rolls may be kept in fridge until ready to fry too, up to a day or two in advance.
• Ground chicken may be substituted for the pork, and chopped shrimp may also be added for a special flavor combination.

VIETNAMESE PRAWN SUMMER ROLLS

Steps:

• Make the dipping sauce by pounding the garlic, chilli, ginger and sugar together using a pestle and mortar, then stir in the fish sauce and lime juice. Alternatively, just blitz everything together in a mini blender.
• Soak the rice noodles in a bowl of hot water for 15 mins, then drain well. Assemble all the prepared filling ingredients - once you start, you will need everything to hand.
• When you are ready to make the rolls, dip one of the rice papers in a bowl of hot water, moving it around until the whole wrapper is soft - about 10-15 secs - then drain on a tea towel.
• Place a rice paper wrapper on a board and at one edge of the wrapper, add a few mint leaves, then three prawn halves.
• Place some lettuce on top of the prawns, followed by some noodles, a few strips of carrot and cucumber, some more herbs and finally some beansprouts. Don't overfill the pancakes or they will be hard to roll.
• Lift the edge of the rice paper wrapper nearest to you over the filling and, holding the filling in position with your fingers, start rolling up tightly.
• When you're about halfway, fold the ends of the rice paper in and over the filling so that it is completely enclosed.
• Keep on rolling tightly until the whole rice paper wrapper is rolled up. To serve, cut the rolls in half on the diagonal.

VIETNAMESE FRESH SPRING ROLLS

Steps:

• Bring a medium saucepan of water to boil. Boil rice vermicelli 3 to 5 minutes, or until al dente, and drain.
• Fill a large bowl with warm water. Dip one wrapper into the hot water for 1 second to soften. Lay wrapper flat. In a row across the center, place 2 shrimp halves, a handful of vermicelli, basil, mint, cilantro and lettuce, leaving about 2 inches uncovered on each side. Fold uncovered sides inward, then tightly roll the wrapper, beginning at the end with the lettuce. Repeat with remaining ingredients.
• In a small bowl, mix the fish sauce, water, lime juice, garlic, sugar and chili sauce.
• In another small bowl, mix the hoisin sauce and peanuts.
• Serve rolled spring rolls with the fish sauce and hoisin sauce mixtures.

VIETNAMESE SPRING ROLLS WITH DIPPING SAUCE

Steps:

• Whisk vinegar, fish sauce, sugar, lime juice, garlic, and red pepper flakes together in a small bowl. Set the dipping sauce aside.
• Fill a large bowl with room temperature water. Add rice vermicelli and soak for 1 hour.
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Drop in shrimp and cook until curled and pink, about 1 minute. Remove the shrimp and drain. Slice each shrimp in half lengthwise. Transfer rice vermicelli noodles to the pot of boiling water and cook for 1 minute. Remove and drain in a colander. Immediately rinse the vermicelli with cold water, stirring to separate the noodles.
• To assemble the rolls, dip 1 rice wrapper in a large bowl of room temperature water for a few seconds to soften. Place wrapper on a work surface and top with 4 shrimp halves, 1/4 of the chopped lettuce, 1/2 ounce vermicelli, and 1/4 each of the mint, cilantro, and Thai basil. Fold right and left edges of the wrapper over the ends of the filling and roll up the spring roll. Repeat with remaining wrappers and ingredients. Cut each roll in half and serve with dipping sauce.

HOW TO MAKE VIETNAMESE FRESH SPRING ROLLS - STEP BY STEP RECIPE

Steps:

• Start by softening the rice papers. I like to use two rice papers per roll, just to make sure they don't break.
• Fill a large bowl with warm water.
• Dip two rice papers (or one) very carefully and gradually for about 1 minute, until totally soften.
• Remove from the bowl carefully.
• Lay rice papers on a clean cloth.
• Make sure they lay flat and straighten out the odd wrinkle.
• Arrange about 4 beautiful mint leaves at the bottom of the rice paper.
• Then top with about 4 shrimp halves.
• Top with a lettuce leaf...
• ...a small handful of vermicelli...
• and a small handful of bean sprouts (there's no photo of the bean sprouts part because I wasn't able to find any the day I took the pics!). Add additional mint leaves.
• That's the moment when you can actually add pretty much anything you have in mind -and in your fridge- (think cilantro, peanuts, chicken, parsley...). Top with a second lettuce leaf. Always keep about 2 inches uncovered on each side.
• Now the rolling part. Fold uncovered sides inward, then tightly roll the rice paper, as shown on the pics. Repeat with remaining ingredients.
• In a saucepan, combine rice vinegar, fish sauce, water and sugar. Heat until sugar is dissolved, then let cool completely. Add garlic and carrots. It keeps about a week in the fridge.
• Serve your homemade spring rolls with the sauce and enjoy!

VIETNAMESE RICE PAPER ROLLS (SPRING ROLLS)

Steps:

• Peanut Sauce: Combine the Peanut Dipping Sauce ingredients. Mix briefly (it won't come together), then microwave for 30 seconds. Mix again until smooth. Set aside to cool. Adjust sour with vinegar, salt with salt and spiciness to taste. Thickness can be adjusted with milk or water once cooled.
• Place vermicelli noodles in a bowl and cover with warm water for 2 minutes, then drain (or follow packet instructions).
• Peel the prawns, slice in half lengthwise and devein (watch video).
• Remove the crunchy core of the lettuce leaves (watch video).
• Tip - LETTUCE BUNDLE (Note 4): Place some vermicelli noodles and bean sprouts in a lettuce leaf, then roll it up, finishing seam side down. Repeat.
• Fill a large bowl with warm water. The bowl doesn't need to be large enough to fit the whole rice paper in one go.
• Place two rice papers together (if using 2). Note which side is the smooth side - this is supposed to be the outside of the spring roll. Submerge the rice papers into the water (both of them at the same time, together) for 2 seconds. If your bowl isn't large enough to fit the whole rice paper in one go, that's fine, just rotate it and count 2 seconds for each section you submerge into the water.
• Place both the rice papers (one on top of the other, they will stick together) on a board or the counter with the smooth side down.
• On the top part of the rice paper, place 3 prawns with a mint leaf in between, as per the photo below.
• Place the lettuce bundle with the seam side down onto the middle of the rice paper.
• Fold the left and right edges of the rice paper in, then starting from the bottom, roll up to cover the lettuce bundle. Then keep rolling firmly. The rice paper is sticky, it will seal itself.
• If you placed the ingredients on the rice paper as per the photo below, your rice paper rolls should look pretty with the prawn and mint leaves on the smooth side of the roll and the seam on the side or underside of the roll.
• Serve immediately with the peanut dipping sauce.

VIETNAMESE FRIED SPRING ROLLS

Steps:

• Make dipping sauce:
• Stir together sugar and water until sugar is dissolved. Stir in remaining sauce ingredients, then chill, covered, at least 2 hours.
• Prepare filling:
• Put noodles in a large bowl and cover with hot water by several inches. Soak, pulling noodles apart and stirring occasionally, 10 minutes. Drain noodles and cut into 2- to 3-inch pieces (you should have about 3 cups), then transfer to another large bowl.
• Put mushrooms in a bowl and cover with hot water by several inches. Soak 15 minutes. Drain and rinse mushrooms thoroughly, then drain again. Trim off and discard any hard parts from mushrooms. Finely chop mushrooms. (You should have about 2 cups.) Add to noodles.
• Pulse shallot and garlic in a food processor until finely chopped, then add to noodles along with carrots, pork, fish sauce, sugar, pepper, and salt. Pulse shrimp in processor until coarsely ground. (Do not overprocess or it will become pasty.) Add shrimp to noodle mixture. Mix with your hands until well combined. Chill filling, covered with plastic wrap, until cold.
• Assemble rolls:
• Line 2 trays with wax paper.
• Transfer one fourth of filling to a small bowl and keep remainder chilled, covered. Place 1 wrapper on a work surface, keeping remaining wrappers covered with a clean kitchen towel (to prevent them from drying out). Cut wrapper diagonally in half to form 2 triangles. With long side of 1 triangle nearest you, put 2 tablespoons filling along middle of long edge of triangle, and shape filling into a thin 5-inch log. Fold left and right corners of wrapper over filling, overlapping slightly and aligning bottom edges. (Wrapper will resemble an open envelope.) Dab top corner with yolk, then roll up wrapper away from you into a long thin roll, making sure ends stay tucked inside. Place on a tray, seam side down. Repeat with remaining triangle. Make more rolls in same manner with remaining wrappers and filling, keeping trays of rolls chilled, loosely covered, until ready to fry.
• Heat 1 1/2 inches of oil in a 5- to 6-quart pot over moderately high heat until it registers 365°F on thermometer. Fry rolls in batches of 5 or 6, keeping rolls apart during first minute of frying to prevent sticking, until golden brown and cooked through, 4 to 5 minutes. (Return oil to 365°F between batches.) Transfer as fried to a colander lined with paper towels and drain rolls upright 2 to 3 minutes. To eat, wrap hot or warm rolls in lettuce leaves and tuck in mint and cilantro leaves. Serve with dipping sauce.
• *Available at Asian markets and Uwajimaya (800-889-1928).

CHA GIO (VIETNAMESE FRIED SPRING ROLLS)

Steps:

• Soak the dried mung bean noodles in warm water (submerge them completely) for 30 minutes. Drain thoroughly, and cut into ¼ inch pieces.
• In a large bowl, combine the noodles, ground pork, grated carrot, chopped wood ear mushrooms, shallots, garlic, ginger egg white, fish sauce, vegetable oil, salt, white pepper, and 1 teaspoon sugar. Mix until everything is uniformly combined.
• In a large, shallow bowl or deep plate, dissolve the remaining 2 teaspoons sugar in 1 cup warm water. Sugar is optional but does help the spring rolls to brown when frying.
• To wrap each roll, place a rice paper wrapper into the sugar water for about 5-10 seconds, making sure it is completely submerged. Remove it from the water. It will still be quite firm, but it will soften quickly!
• Place about 40g of filling in a log shape on one side of the wrapper. Begin tightly folding the wrapper over the filling (no air bubbles!), and roll the spring roll forward 1 complete revolution. Lightly press down on each end of the filling to flatten the rice paper and push the filling together to eliminate any air bubbles.
• Fold one side of the wrapper towards the middle of the spring roll. Repeat with the other side. Roll the spring roll forward while tucking in the front to prevent air pockets. The rice paper wrapper will stick to itself. It doesn't require anything additional to seal. Place the rolls on a plate or sheet pan lined with a clean, dry kitchen towel or parchment paper.
• Once wrapped, transfer the spring rolls to the refrigerator and chill for at least 1 hour, so they can dry out and firm up. This step helps minimize the wrapper bubbling when frying (though bubbling is normal). Take them out of the refrigerator 15 minutes before frying.
• Heat about 3 cups of canola or vegetable oil in a medium pot to 335°F/170°C (the oil level should be a little over halfway up the sides). Fry the spring rolls in small batches-about three at a time. Make sure they do not touch just after they are placed in the oil as the skins will be sticky until a crust forms. Cook each batch for 5 to 6 minutes, or until light golden brown. (Frying them in small batches prevents them from sticking to each other.)
• Use a metal slotted spoon to pull them out of the oil. Drain on a rack, and continue frying. Maintain the correct oil temperature by periodically adjusting your heat.
• When ready to serve, refry the spring rolls (yes, they need to be fried twice) at 350°F/175°C for 1 ½ to 2 minutes to make them nice and crispy. Double-frying is important! Serve with fresh lettuce, cilantro, Thai basil, mint and nuoc cham for dipping.

VIETNAMESE SPRING ROLLS RECIPE (GOI CUON)

Steps:

• Add pork, onion, salt and sugar to a small pot and add enough water to cover about 1 inch above the pork. Bring to a boil on high heat and then lower to medium and cook for about 25-30 minutes or until pork juices run clear when poked at the thickest part, or it registers 145 F with an instant read thermometer at the thickest part.
• Cover the pork in a bowl as it cools so it doesn't darken. Once cool, slice the pork as thinly as you can to make rolling easier later.
• Defrost shrimp in water bowl. Once defrosted, de-vein the shrimp. Hold a shrimp up to a light to locate the vein, pierce the whiter part (joint) of the shrimp just below the vein with a toothpick, and pull the toothpick upwards towards the shrimp back. Do this slowly to remove the vein. Piece again at another joint if the vein breaks to remove all traces of vein. Repeat with all your shrimp.
• Cook the shrimp: add shrimp, salt, and enough water in a small pot to barely cover your shrimp. Boil on medium-high heat for only about 1.5 to 2.5 minutes or until the shrimp is no longer translucent. Drain and run under cold water to stop the cooking process.
• Remove the shells and tails from shrimp, and cut the shrimp in half along the body.
• Cook either your rice noodles according to the package instructions. Timing can vary wildly depending on noodle thickness and brand. This can be anywhere from 2 to 10 minutes. Drain and cool the noodles under cold, running water to stop it from cooking further.
• Prepare your vegetables by rinsing and drying them.
• Add warm water to a plate and soak the rice paper sheet for about 5-10 seconds. Soak the rice paper just enough so that it is pliable and easy to handle, but remove the sheet before it gets too soft and sticky. Lay rice paper on a plate and begin to assemble your roll.
• Add lettuce towards the bottom of the rice paper. Leave 1 to 1½ inches of space on either side of the rice paper. Layer with mint and chives. Try to not add too many items because it will be harder to roll and might tear your rice paper.
• Add shrimp in the middle of the rice paper with the orange skin facing down.
• Layer the sliced pork on top of the shrimp.
• Add the noodles across the vegetables, spread evenly across.
• Fold the left and right sides towards the middle so that it's snug. Lay some chives lengthwise with one end poking out. Then fold the bottom up to cover the noodles. You want to keep the roll tight, so lightly squeeze it together as you roll. Continue to roll upwards to complete the spring roll.
• In a pan over medium heat, saute garlic in oil until fragrant.
• Add in hoisin sauce, peanut butter, and water and mix thoroughly.
• Bring to boil, and then immediately turn off the heat and pour into a heat safe dipping bowl. The sauce will slightly thicken as it cools.
• Sprinkle ground peanuts on each sauce dipping bowl, and leave the chile paste on the side so others can add to their own dipping bowl as desired.

FRESH VIETNAMESE SPRING ROLLS

Steps:

• Pick your dipping sauce of choice above and mix all the sauce ingredients together. Make sure to use warm water for the nuoc cham so that the sugar dissolves more easily.
• Taste the sauce and adjust the seasonings as necessary.
• I like to prepare the sauce before making the spring rolls so that the flavors have a longer time to develop.
• Fill a medium saucepan or small pot with water and bring it to boil on high heat (see note 6).
• Once the water boils, add the shrimp and cook for 2 minutes. Remove the shrimp from the water and let them cool for 5 minutes. Peel the shells from the shrimp.
• Lay a shrimp on its side on a chopping board. Gently press the shrimp down with one hand and use the other to slice the shrimp in half, horizontally (knife parallel to the chopping board). Repeat with the remaining shrimp.
• Fill a large saucepan or small pot with water and bring it to boil on high heat.
• Turn off the heat. Let the noodles sit in the hot water for about 5 to 8 minutes. Double check the package directions to see how long they should sit in hot water as the cooking time varies across different brands.
• Once the noodles have softened, drain and rinse the noodles under cold water. I like cutting the noodles with kitchen scissors several times so they are shorter and easier to grab.
• Fill a large bowl with lukewarm water to wet the rice paper sheets.
• Transfer all the vegetables, shrimp, herbs, and noodles into bowls and arrange them on your work top.
• Get a chopping board ready. Dip your hand in the water and brush water over the surface of the chopping board so that it is damp. I usually wet the surface again after every 2 spring rolls. Alternatively, lay a damp paper towel over your work surface.
• Quickly dip a sheet of rice paper in the lukewarm water to moisten the entire surface. This should take no longer than a few seconds.
• Lay the wet rice paper on your work surface. Place a piece of butter lettuce close to the bottom edge of the rice paper. Arrange a small pinch each of rice noodles, carrots, cucumber, red bell pepper, and mint leaves over the center of the lettuce leaf (see note 7).
• Arrange 3 pieces of shrimp about 1 1/2 to 2 inches below the top edge of the rice paper. Make sure that the orange/pink side is facing down.
• Grab the lower edge of the rice paper and lettuce and start rolling up the spring roll. Once you have reached the shrimp, fold in the left and right sides. Finish rolling up the spring roll all the way to the end.
• Repeat the rolling process with the rest of the ingredients. If the chopping board is looking dry, brush some water over the board.
• Serve the spring rolls with the dipping sauce.

SUMMER ROLLS

Steps:

• Add the water to a pot and bring it to a boil. Add the rice noodles and cook per the package instructions, stirring occasionally. Drain and rise under cold water, set aside.
• Combine all the ingredients for the Hoisin-Peanut Sauce together in a small bowl. Whisk it to mix well. Transfer to a dip bowl and garnish with the peanuts.
• In another small pot, bring some water to boil. Cook the shrimp for about 1 minute, or until the shrimp are completely cooked. Drain, let cool, and slice in half lengthwise. Set aside.
• Divide the vermicelli, shrimp, lettuce and carrot into 6 equal portions.
• To assemble the summer rolls, dip one sheet of the rice paper in a big bowl of water. Shake off the excess water and quickly transfer it to a clean, dry and flat working surface, for example, kitchen countertop or a chopping board.
• Place the rice noodles on the bottom part of the rice paper.
• Add the sliced lettuce and carrots.
• Place 3 shrimp halves on top.
• Fold the bottom side of rice paper over the filling securely, then fold the left and right sides of the rice paper over the filing. Make sure the filling is secured tightly.
• Continue to roll the summer roll over, as pictured below. Repeat the same until everything is used up.
• Cut the Summer Rolls diagonally in the middle into halves, place them on a platter, and serve immediately with the Hoisin-Peanut Sauce.

FRIED VIETNAMESE SPRING ROLLS (NEM) RECIPE

Steps:

• Mix together all the ingredients for the Spring roll mixture in a large bowl. Mix well until completely mixed together.
• Roll the spring rolls with the rice paper. You can use water, egg whites, or beer to roll the spring roll. To roll the spring rolls you must moist the paper.
• Fry the Spring Roll for about 10 minutes, or until cooked very well.
• Mix and prepare the spring roll dipping sauce in a separate bowl. Mix together very well.
• Prepare the rice noodles (if dried prepare as per the instructions on the package)
• Wash and cut the salad into small piece-size pieces. Can mix all the vegetables together
• Serve the fried spring rolls with the spring rolls dipping sauce, rice noodles, and spring roll salad.

CHả GIò (VIETNAMESE SPRING ROLLS)

Steps:

• Mix all the filling and seasoning ingredients together in a large mixing bowl.Pro Tip: Use plastic glad wrap to cover the bowl's top as you wrap so that it doesn't become dry during the process. This also means you can seal it for the fridge if you don't end up using it all.
• Put the wrapper on the plate with a corner pointing to you. Spoon about 1 1/2 tsp of the filling into the center of the wrapper and squeeze it to make a log.
• Fold the bottom corner up and over the mince, then pull the log gently towards you to remove any air bubbles.
• Fold the left and right corners into the center.Note: Wrap the wrapper all the way to each end of the log so there are no gaps. Keep in mind that the shape of your mince log will determine how long your Chả Giò ends up being.
• Roll tightly from the bottom up until there's a small triangle left.
• Dip your finger into the egg white and smear some of it on the tip of the triangle.
• Complete the roll by rolling it upward until you have a sealed Chả Giò. Place each finished one on a plate or a tray to fry.Note: If you don't plan on frying them straight away, pack them into freeze-safe bags and let them freeze until you're ready to cook them.
• Bring the oil in a pot to a medium-high heat and gently place the spring rolls in to cook for 5 minutes or until golden.
• Enjoy them fresh as is or serve it with a classic Vietnamese Dipping Sauce (Nước Mắm)!

VIETNAMESE SPRING ROLLS RECIPE

Steps:

• Choose one of the Dipping sauces or make the two if you want to try them both.