Preparation of Vietnamese summer rolls, also called fresh spring rolls, is not as simple as it appears. These flavorful, transparent bundles of vegetables, rice noodles, a few bits of shrimp or pork with spicy sauces which often set the tone for a wonderful Vietnamese meal are difficult to assemble. I tried my hand at making them before without much luck and it was time to try again. The technique seemed simple enough, just like rolling cabbage rolls or burritos, but working with the rice wrapper presented challenges I had to overcome.
The summer roll is uniquely Vietnamese. The spring roll, the summer roll’s precursor, arrived in Vietnam during the 1,000 years of Chinese rule. The spring roll originated in eastern China during either the Jin Dynasty (266-420 CE) or Tang Dynasty (617-907 CE) as a wheat flour pancake filled with seasonal spring vegetables – carrots, bamboo shoots, mushrooms, cabbage, chili and garlic. These filled pancakes were a welcome reprieve from a long winter of pickled vegetables and, hence, their name. Over several subsequent dynasties, the filling of Chinese spring rolls included other ingredients and they gradually assumed their current fried cylindrical form.
Vietnamese cooks, known for their ability to adapt foreign culinary influences to their own taste, modified Chinese fried rolls by filling them with chopped or ground meats, glass noodles, shredded vegetables, mushrooms and shallots. The Vietnamese version (cha gio) was initially wrapped in an egg wrapper and deep-fried to a golden-brown crunchy exterior.
But fried spring rolls are too heavy to eat in Vietnam’s hot and sticky summer, so Vietnamese cooks developed a lighter fresher summer roll (gỏi cuốn), using rehydrated rice paper, rather than wheat flour, and a raw filling. These freshly made summer rolls have transparent skin and are filled with crisp, julienned vegetables, herbs, rice vermicelli and often incorporate cooked leftover shrimp or meats. They are served uncooked and cooled with spicy dipping sauces which reflect regional preferences.
The summer roll’s transparent skin starts as a brittle disk of translucent rice paper which must be hydrated to be workable. If soaked insufficiently, the wrapper will break and can’t be rolled into shape. If soaked too much, the wrapper becomes gelatinous and disintegrates. In my previous attempt at making summer rolls, I had a hard time gauging how long to soften the rice wrappers. They were either too hard or too soft. So, now I was determined to carefully follow instructions gleaned from YouTube videos and advice from online posts, to produce compact and flavorful shrimp and vegetarian rolls with two dipping sauces – a peanut sauce and fish sauce-based nước chấm, an absolute must on Vietnamese tables.
The summer roll has several essential ingredients: rice paper wrappers made of a few simple ingredients (rice flour, tapioca starch, water, salt) and rice vermicelli (a thin form of rice noodles, also called rice sticks). Summer rolls are packed with fresh vegetables and herbs. The vegetable and herb assortment may include carrots, butter or another soft lettuce, red or green cabbage, bell peppers, avocado, cucumber, zucchini, red and yellow beets, chives or scallions, cilantro, mint and Thai basil.
In preparation, I stocked my fridge with shrimp and assorted vegetables that others recommended and purchased rice vermicelli and a package of rice spring roll wrappers. To make the two dipping sauces, I supplemented basic pantry ingredients with Thai birdseye chilis, shrimp paste, lemongrass and galangal, a rhizomatous spice similar to ginger.
The day before assembling the summer rolls, I made both sauces since they keep well in the refrigerator without a loss of flavor or texture. Several hours in advance of assembling the rolls, some veggies were julienned into 3-4 inch ( cm) sticks and others were sliced paper-thin to avoid sharp edges which can tear the rice paper. These pre-cut vegetables were wrapped tightly in plastic and kept cold. I peeled, poached (in water flavored with 2 tablespoons of fish sauce dip nước chấm), chilled and sliced each shrimp lengthwise into two pieces, removing the dark vein.
From prior experience, I know that working quickly was essential for success in making summer rolls and that this is possible only if all ingredients and equipment are ready. So, I prepared a mise en place, a French culinary term which means “putting in place”, so all ingredients would be in easy reach, ready to use. I arranged the pre-cut vegetables on a platter, chopped the herbs, organized my work area and set up an assembly line.
To soften the rice wrapper, I filled a bowl large enough to submerge the rice wrapper with several inches of warm water. A plastic cutting board covered with a patterned kitchen towel provided the assembly surface. (Because the softened rice wrapper becomes almost transparent when wet, the towel pattern helps with visibility.) I was now ready to work.
With some apprehension, I began assembling the summer rolls. Again, the first few wrappers dissolved before my eyes and were discarded. After several tries, I got the timing right – 10-15 seconds in water softens the rice paper so that it is pliable enough to roll and fold but not too fragile. A few rice wrappers also burst from overstuffing, but I learned from each experience how much filling to add and after a few tries, was able to do it quickly and easily, producing properly filled rolls.
To simplify my efforts and focus on technique, I made only two kinds of summer rolls, classic shrimp summer rolls and currently popular vegetarian rolls. But many other versions are possible. When I traveled in Vietnam, I encountered summer rolls made with duck, roast pork, shredded chicken and thinly sliced steak or ground beef and even foie gras and tofu with vegetables and herbs. Next time I will experiment with other fillings.
I am pleased with these summer rolls. Their taste is exceptional. Advance preparation of filling ingredients, equipment and work area permitted quick assembly. Timing the soaking of the rice wrapper to 10-15 seconds and working on a damp surface produced evenly hydrated wrappers. But while this batch of summer rolls looks much better than those I made previously, there is room for improvement. My summer rolls still are not as compact as those made by Vietnamese home and professional cooks.
I made sixteen summer rolls to practice my assembling skill. But there is no need to make as many summer rolls as I did as this recipe can easily be halved.
Essentially, these summer rolls are a fresh salad wrapped in rice paper. Freshness is the key to summer rolls, and they should be served the day made. Paired with two umami-rich sauces, these summer rolls burst with flavor and are an appetizing and versatile way to eat more veggies or main course when paired with shrimp or another protein. These summer rolls, both shrimp and vegetarian with accompanying sauces, are refreshing and colorful and make terrific appetizers or a light summer meal.
Vietnamese Shrimp and Vegetarian Summer Rolls
For rolls
1 pound thin rice vermicelli
16 (8 ½ -inch) rice wrappers
1 head butter lettuce, ribs removed, torn into 2-3 inch ( cm) pieces or substitute with shredded romaine
12 large shrimp, cooked, peeled, and halved lengthwise
24 fresh chives, cut into 4-5 inch ( cm) lengths
2 cups purple cabbage, very thinly sliced
3 large carrots, julienned
1-2 avocados, sliced thin, drizzled with lime or lemon juice to prevent oxidation
2 cucumbers, seeded and julienned
1 yellow beet, sliced paper-thin
1 red beet, sliced paper-thin
2-3 red radishes or 1 watermelon radish, if available, sliced paper-thin
1 cup cilantro leaves
I cup mint leaves
½ cup purchased hoisin sauce
For fish sauce dip*
1 teaspoon rice vinegar
4 tablespoons sugar
4 finger-length Thai birdseye chili, finely chopped, deseeded if preferred
8 cloves garlic, crushed or minced
4 tablespoons lime juice
8 tablespoons fish sauce
For peanut sauce*
about ½ cup (90 g) peanuts
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon shrimp paste
1 small onion, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 inch (2.5 cm) fresh ginger, finely chopped
2 inches (5.5.cm) fresh galangal, finely chopped
2 pieces lemongrass
3 tablespoon deseeded Thai birdseye chili, finely chopped
3 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon brown sugar
4 tablespoons coconut milk or cream (optional)
Preparing fish sauce dip: In a saucepan, mix vinegar, sugar and 1 cup (240 ml) water. Bring to a boil, stirring until sugar dissolves. Set aside to cool. Then, combine the sugar mixture with the remaining ingredients. Mix well and stir in fish sauce. Refrigerate until ready to use. Makes 2 cups (480 ml)
Preparing peanut sauce: Place peanuts on a small rimmed sheet pan and roast for 20 minutes in an oven preheated to 250˚F (120˚C) until lightly browned. Grind ⅓ of the peanuts in a food processor and set aside with remaining peanuts.
Heat oil in a small pan. When hot, add shrimp paste and cook until it becomes aromatic. Add onion and garlic and sauté until soft. Add ginger, galangal, lemongrass and chili and continue sautéing for several minutes until spices become fragrant.
Add water, brown sugar and roasted peanuts. Bring to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes. Transfer mixture to a blender and process to achieve a chunky or purée for a smooth sauce.
Finish sauce with a few tablespoons of coconut milk and more sugar to taste. Serve at room temperature or warm. Makes 1 cup (240 ml). (Excess sauce can be frozen but should be reheated before serving.)
Preparing rice vermicelli: Bring a large pot of water to boil over high heat. Prepare an ice-water bath; set aside. Add vermicelli to boiling water. Turn off heat and soak for 10 minutes just until soft. Transfer vermicelli to ice-water bath to cool. Drain in a colander and cover with a damp towel until ready to use.
Wrapping spring rolls: Once all ingredients and equipment are arranged, dampen the dishtowel and cutting board to keep the rice wrapper from sticking. Place one rice paper in water for about 10-20 seconds or until it becomes pliable. (The wrapper should be soft, but not mushy.) Remove, shaking off excess water and lay it flat on the damp dishtowel.
To make shrimp rolls: Leaving about 1½ inch ( cm) around the edge of the softened rice wrapper, place a lettuce leaf on the bottom third of the rice paper, followed by a small handful of rice noodles, a few carrot strips, cucumber strips and a few leaves of mint and cilantro. (The width of the fillings will determine the width of the roll.) Roll rice paper away from you to cover the lettuce bundle. Then in a row above the lettuce, place 3 shrimp halves, cut sides up and top with 2-3 chives that will stick out at one end. Fold about 1½ inches ( cm) from each side over the filling and roll upward until the filling is tightly enclosed. Repeat until all shrimp are used.
To make vegetable rolls: Starting at the center of the softened wrapper, place a lettuce leaf and top with a small handful of vermicelli. Then, continue adding your preferred assortment of vegetables by placing small amounts in the center, one by one and maintaining the rectangle shape in the middle, being careful not to overfill and tear the rice paper. (The precise order does not matter. If you want a particular ingredient to be visible on the finished roll, place it on the wrapper after you first cover the other ingredients with the wrapper.) Top veggies with a half teaspoon of hoisin sauce. Fold top and bottom sections of the rice paper over the vegetables and roll tightly away from you until the fillings are enclosed. Repeat.
Place finished rolls on an oiled platter and cover with plastic wrap or a lightly damp tea towel at room temperature until ready to serve. Freshly made summer rolls can be served whole or sliced in half on the diagonal with a sharp knife.
Serves 8
Rice wrappers tend to dry out with time or once chilled, so summer rolls are best assembled shortly before serving. Should there be leftovers, each summer roll can be individually wrapped in plastic wrap and kept in the refrigerator overnight to avoid becoming hard and gummy. If there are leftover vegetables, however, you could refrigerate them tightly wrapped and roll more summer rolls the next day.
* Recipes for Fish Sauce Dip (nước chấm) and Peanut Sauce (sot lac), adapted from Bobby Chinn, Wild, Wild East – Recipes & Stories from Vietnam, Barron’s, 2008.
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