Vietnamese Summer Rolls
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Looking for the perfect summer appetizer or light meal? Vietnamese summer rolls, filled with fresh herbs, veggies, and tender shrimp, and paired with an irresistible peanut hoisin dipping sauce, are not only eye-poppingly delicious but also much easier to make than they look!
Vietnamese summer rolls, also known as gỏi cuốn, nem cuốn, salad rolls, fresh spring rolls, or rice paper rolls, are delicate rice paper wrappers filled with a vibrant mix of fresh herbs, crisp vegetables, protein such as shrimp or pork, and vermicelli noodles. Think of them as the healthier, lighter cousin to fried Vietnamese spring rolls. They’re surprisingly easy to make, especially if you set up a little rolling station with all your ingredients ready to go. Start by prepping everything: cook the vermicelli noodles, julienne the veggies, and slice the shrimp in half lengthwise. Then, it’s just a matter of softening the rice paper wrappers in warm water, layering on the fillings, and rolling them up like little burritos.
The star of the show is a quick blender peanut hoisin dipping sauce—so delicious you’ll want to dip everything in it! These summer rolls are incredibly versatile. Serve them as a light appetizer or pair them with other Vietnamese favorites, like pho. They’re also perfect for adding a fresh, colorful touch to any summer party platter.
Table of Contents
What You’ll Need To Make Vietnamese Summer Rolls
- Creamy Peanut Butter: Adds a rich, nutty base to the dipping sauce.
- Hoisin Sauce: Provides a sweet and savory depth to the sauce.
- Sriracha: Adds a spicy kick to the sauce; feel free to double it if you like extra heat.
- Rice Wine Vinegar: Introduces a tangy acidity that balances the flavors in the sauce and adds a refreshing taste to the filling mixture.
- Garlic: Infuses the sauce with aromatic depth.
- Vermicelli Rice Noodles: Offer a chewy texture and neutral base for the filling.
- Matchstick Carrots: Adds crunch and sweetness to the rolls. Buying the bagged version at the supermarket is a great time-saver.
- English Cucumber: Provides a fresh, crisp contrast.
- Scallions: Add a mild onion flavor to the rolls.
- Fish Sauce: Brings umami and a touch of saltiness.
- Sugar: Balances the acidity and adds slight sweetness.
- Rice Paper Wrappers: Thin, translucent sheets made from rice flour and water, commonly used in Vietnamese cuisine for making fresh spring and summer rolls. They become pliable and easy to roll when briefly soaked in water.
- Bibb or Butter Lettuce Leaves: Adds crunch and freshness, while also holding the filling together.
- Cooked Shrimp: Provides protein and a slightly sweet, briny flavor.
- Mint Leaves: Adds a refreshing herbal note and lovely pop of color.
- Cilantro Leaves: Introduces a bright, citrusy flavor and beautiful greens visible through the rice paper.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: Make the Peanut Dipping Sauce
In a blender, combine the peanut butter, hoisin sauce, water, sriracha, vinegar, garlic, and salt. Purée until smooth. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.
Step 2: Make the Summer Rolls
Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook the rice noodles until tender, about 3 minutes. Drain, rinse under cold water until cooled, and drain again.
In a medium bowl, combine the carrots, cucumber, scallions, vinegar, fish sauce, and sugar.
Toss well.
Fill a pie plate or large pot with room-temperature water. Immerse one rice paper wrapper until slightly softened, 5 to 10 seconds.
Remove carefully with both hands and lay flat on a clean surface. Place 3 cilantro leaves and 3 mint leaves in a row slightly left of center on the wrapper, and top with 4 shrimp halves, cut side up, in a row over the herbs.
Hold a lettuce leaf in your hand; fill with about ¼ cup of the carrot/cucumber mixture and ¼ cup of the noodles.
Roll into a cylinder and place to the right of the shrimp on the wrapper, seam side down.
Roll Up: Lift the edge of the rice paper closest to the filling and roll it snugly over the lettuce, carrot/noodle mixture, ensuring the filling is tightly encased. Continue rolling the wrap towards the shrimp and herbs, folding in the sides of the wrapper towards the center, until the entire roll is snug and the rice paper seam seals itself.
Place on a baking sheet, seam-side down, leaving a little space between the rolls so they don’t stick together, and cover with a damp towel. Repeat with remaining ingredients, replenishing water as needed.
To serve, cut each roll in half crosswise, if desired, and serve with peanut sauce for dipping.
Frequently Asked Questions
No, despite its name and strong odor, fish sauce doesn’t taste fishy. Instead, it adds a wonderful umami or savory depth of flavor to many Asian dishes.
Definitely! You can substitute the shrimp with cooked pork, chicken, tofu, or even extra vegetables. Just ensure the protein is thinly sliced for easy rolling.
Yes, summer rolls can be prepared up to a few hours ahead of time. Cover the entire baking sheet with plastic wrap, leaving the damp towel in place as instructed in the recipe, and refrigerate until ready to serve. To serve, remove the summer rolls from the refrigerator and let them sit at room temperature for 15 minutes to take off the chill. The peanut hoisin sauce can be made a day or two in advance. Store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator and give it a good stir before serving.
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Vietnamese Summer Rolls
Looking for the perfect summer appetizer or light meal? Vietnamese summer rolls, filled with fresh herbs, veggies, and tender shrimp, and paired with an irresistible peanut hoisin dipping sauce, are not only eye-poppingly delicious but also much easier to make than they look!
Ingredients
For the Peanut Hoisin Sauce
- ⅓ cup creamy peanut butter (recommended: Skippy)
- ¼ cup hoisin sauce
- ½ cup water
- 1 tablespoon sriracha (double for a spicier sauce)
- 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
- 1 clove garlic, roughly chopped
- ¾ teaspoon salt
For the Summer Rolls
- 3 ounces dried vermicelli rice noodles
- 1½ cups store-bought shredded/matchstick carrots
- 1 cup julienned seeded English cucumber, from 1 small cucumber
- 3 scallions, light and dark green parts, thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
- 2 teaspoons fish sauce
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 12 (8½-inch) rice paper wrappers
- 12 bibb or butter lettuce leaves (from 1 to 2 heads; remove any hard ribs)
- 24 medium-sized cooked shrimp, halved lengthwise (see note)
- 1 cup loosely packed small mint leaves (if large, roughly chop them)
- 1 cup loosely packed cilantro leaves
Instructions
For the Peanut Hoisin Sauce
- In a blender, combine the peanut butter, hoisin sauce, water, sriracha, vinegar, garlic, and salt. Purée until smooth. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.
For the Summer Rolls
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook the rice noodles until tender, about 3 minutes. Drain, rinse under cold water until cooled, and drain again. Transfer the noodles to a large plate and set aside to dry.
- In a medium bowl, combine the carrots, cucumber, scallions, vinegar, fish sauce, and sugar. Toss well.
- Fill a pie plate or large pot with room-temperature water. Immerse one rice paper wrapper until slightly softened, 5 to 10 seconds. Remove carefully with both hands and lay flat on a clean surface.
- Place 3 cilantro leaves and 3 mint leaves in a row slightly left of center on the wrapper, and top with 4 shrimp halves, cut side up, in a row over the herbs. Hold a lettuce leaf in your hand; fill with about ¼ cup of the carrot/cucumber mixture and ¼ cup of the noodles. Roll into a cylinder and place to the right of the shrimp on the wrapper, seam side down.
- Roll Up: Lift the edge of the rice paper closest to the filling and roll it snugly over the lettuce, carrot/noodle mixture, ensuring the filling is tightly encased. Continue rolling the wrap towards the shrimp and herbs, folding in the sides of the wrapper towards the center, until the entire roll is snug and the rice paper seam seals itself. Place on a baking sheet, seam-side down, leaving a little space between the rolls so they don’t stick together, and cover with a damp towel. Repeat with remaining ingredients, replenishing water as needed.
- To serve, cut each roll in half crosswise, if desired, and serve with peanut sauce for dipping.
- Note: I buy cooked shrimp for this recipe. However, if you'd like to cook the shrimp yourself, begin with shell-on shrimp. Fill a large bowl with ice and cold water and set next to the sink. Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Add the shrimp and cook, stirring occasionally, until bright pink and cooked through, 1 to 2 minutes (the water needn't return to a boil). Drain the shrimp in a colander and then immediately plunge them into the ice water to shock them and stop the cooking process. Let sit until chilled, about 15 minutes. Peel the shrimp and set aside.
- Make-Ahead Instructions: Summer rolls can be prepared up to a few hours ahead of time. Cover the entire baking sheet with plastic wrap, leaving the damp towel in place, and refrigerate until ready to serve. To serve, remove the summer rolls from the refrigerator and let them sit at room temperature for 15 minutes to take off the chill.
- Note: The nutritional information for each serving includes 2 summer rolls and approximately 3 tablespoons of the peanut hoisin sauce.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (6 servings)
- Serving size: 2 summer rolls
- Calories: 284
- Fat: 1 g
- Saturated fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 37 g
- Sugar: 4 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Protein: 5 g
- Sodium: 355 mg
- Cholesterol: 32 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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We invited some friends over for drinks on our deck and I served these along with a few other cold apps. These went very quickly, and the sauce — OMG — delicious!! My friend asked for the recipe, so I’d call that a winner. Thanks Jenn!
These turned out very well, but definitely more time consuming unless you have experience with the wrappers.
The sauce for these is amazing. I used the leftover sauce on grilled chicken thighs.
what leftover sauce?! 😉
When this came in my email a few days ago, I knew I had to try it. But, I had to make a different dipping sauce because my husband is extremely allergic to peanuts. I found a recipe for Nuoc Cham and made that and your rolls for dinner. We loved it! Will definitely make it again. And if you can suggest any other dipping sauce (no nuts of any kind), that would be most welcomed.
These rolls are delicious- refreshing and light. I followed the recipe exactly except I chopped up the mint and cilantro and mixed them together instead of using whole leaves of each. I also found that they were just as good the next day so could be made ahead if you keep a damp towel over them and keep some space between the rolls so they don’t stick together. We actually preferred them cold vs room temperature. The rolls were a huge hit with my family and my 4 year old grandson devoured them. He dipped his in soy sauce but everyone else thought the peanut sauce was the bomb!
Thanks Jenn for another amazing recipe!
This recipe was amazing! The sauce alone…..is absolutely perfection! I used seasoned ground chicken instead of shrimp. Mine weren’t as pretty as yours but they tasted incredible. Thank you!
Hi! Do you have any recommendations on how best to cook the shrimp? Thanks!
Hi Jeanne, I buy cooked shrimp for this recipe. However, if you’d like to cook the shrimp yourself, begin with shell-on shrimp. Fill a large bowl with ice and cold water and set next to the sink. Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Add the shrimp and cook, stirring occasionally, until bright pink and cooked through, 1 to 2 minutes (the water needn’t return to a boil). Drain the shrimp in a colander and then immediately plunge them into the ice water to shock them and stop the cooking process. Let sit until chilled, about 15 minutes. Peel the shrimp and set aside. (I just added this note to the recipe.)
Great recipe!! Delicious. I had recently had some shrimp summer rolls from a food cart here in Portland, Oregon, and they had a surprising slice of mango inside. Yumm! I added it here and enjoyed it very much. Thank you!
Hi Jenn! Love all your recipes, you are my go-to website for everything 🙂 I have been talking about making summer rolls the past three days – so crazy you added this recipe today.
I want to make some of these to have tonight and some for my parents to enjoy tomorrow – do you think they will be okay in the fridge? Or should I just prep extra ingredients to make them again tomorrow?
They should be fine, Karly—just cover them with a damp towel.
How do you keep the rolls from drying out?
While you’re assembling the summer rolls, you’ll keep them covered with a damp towel. (And if you make them ahead, you’ll leave the damp towel in place and cover the baking sheet with plastic wrap. Hope you enjoy if you make them!
Where I worked, it was easy to get these for lunch but now I can’t find them anywhere . I Would love to try these but I need a suggestion for a dipping sauce that isn’t nut based. While I love the peanut sauce, my husband is REALLY allergic to peanuts and other nuts. Any ideas?
Hi Cindy, These rolls are often served with nuoc cham, which is made from fish sauce, lime juice, sugar, water, garlic, and chili. It’s tangy, slightly sweet, and a bit spicy—you can find a simple recipe online. You could also try diluting a good quality hoisin sauce with a bit of water. Hope that helps!
Thanks…I didn’t see your response until after I made the recipe and did use the nuoc cham, which was a good alternative
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