She Strengthens

Vietnamese-Inspired Summer Rolls: A Refreshing Twist on a Classic

These light and healthy summer rolls are packed with flavor and texture, featuring cooked shrimp, rice noodles, and an abundance of fresh herbs and vegetables. With a spicy peanut sauce for dipping, they make for a perfect hot-weather appetizer or light lunch.

Gathering Ingredients

To get started, you’ll need natural peanut butter, hoisin sauce, chile-garlic paste, rice stick noodles, and rice paper wrappers. Look for these ingredients in the Asian section of your supermarket, and opt for the Red Rose brand for the wrappers. Don’t forget to pick up fresh mint, basil, cilantro, cucumber, scallions, and lettuce for added freshness.

Game Plan

Before diving in, make sure to prep all your ingredients and have them easily accessible. Give yourself plenty of time and counter space to assemble the summer rolls. It’s also a good idea to have a few extra rice paper wrappers on hand, as it may take a few tries to get the hang of rolling them.

Peanut Sauce

Whisk together 3/4 cup of natural peanut butter, 1/3 cup of water, 3 tablespoons of hoisin sauce, 2 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lime juice, 4 1/2 teaspoons of soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of granulated sugar, 2 1/4 teaspoons of chile-garlic paste, 1 medium garlic clove (mashed to a paste), and 1/2 teaspoon of toasted sesame oil in a medium bowl. Set aside for later use.

Assembling the Summer Rolls

Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil and cook 24 medium shrimp until bright pink and just opaque. Drain, pat dry, and halve each shrimp horizontally. Cook 4 ounces of dried rice stick noodles according to the package directions and set aside.

Arrange all the ingredients in separate containers around a work surface, including the shrimp, noodles, bean sprouts, mint, basil, cilantro, serrano (if using), cucumber, scallions, and lettuce. Place a clean, damp kitchen towel on the work surface and fill a medium frying pan or wide, shallow dish with hot tap water.

Working with one wrapper at a time, completely submerge it in the water until soft and pliable. Remove the wrapper and place it on the towel. Lay 3 shrimp halves in a row, cut side up, just above the center of the wrapper, leaving about 1 inch of space on each side. Layer a scant 1/4 cup of noodles over the shrimp, followed by a few bean sprouts, 2 mint leaves, 2 basil leaves, 1 sprig of cilantro, and 2 pieces of serrano (if using). Place 4 cucumber sticks and 2 scallion pieces on either side of the noodle pile. Roll one piece of lettuce into a cigar shape and place it on top of the noodle pile.

Fold the bottom half of the rice paper wrapper over the filling, holding the whole thing firmly in place. Fold the sides of the wrapper in, and then roll the entire wrapper horizontally up from the bottom to the top. Turn the roll so that the seam faces down and the row of shrimp faces up. Place it on a rimmed baking sheet and cover loosely with plastic wrap. Repeat with the remaining wrappers and fillings, leaving 3/4 inch between each summer roll on the sheet.

Serving and Storage

Serve the summer rolls with the peanut sauce for dipping. If not serving immediately, keep the summer rolls tightly covered with plastic wrap at room temperature for up to 2 hours. Enjoy!