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Fresh Shrimp Spring Rolls Recipe – easy to make, healthy and delicious. Bright and colorful, flavorful and crunchy, these spring rolls are raw, made with rice paper wrappers, shrimp, veggies, rice noodles and served with tasty homemade peanut sauce.
These festive Summer rolls are very easy to make and perfect for an appetizer, lunch or dinner.
Get your ingredients ready, roll then, cut diagonally each Shrimp roll in half and enjoy with a dipping sauce of your choice. This recipe is perfect for inexperienced home cooks and very adaptable.
This is not an authentic recipe, but just the way I make this Vietnamese favorite.
What kind of shrimp to use?
The truth is that any shrimp will work in the recipe. Use white or pink shrimp if possible.
I like to buy per-cooked small (baby) shrimp and use them whole in the wraps. “Whole” meaning, not splitting the shrimp in two halves lengthwise.
Since the shrimp is pretty small and thin, it works well for Spring rolls of this type.
If you choose (or have on hands) medium or large shrimp, even Jumbo, it needs to be cleaned, deveined, tail removed, cooked and then you can cut lenghtwise in half to make two thinned pieces. These will be used in the Shrimp Spring Rolls.
Rice wrappers
You may be wondering – Rice Wrappers – hot or cold water? How long do they need to be soaked? And also how fast shall I roll the rolls?
I usually use lukewarm or cold tap water to soak the wrappers. If the water is too hot, they may get too sticky, hard to handle or even disintegrate inside.
Rice paper wrappers can be found at any Asian store or most big supermarkets. Wrappers that are either eight or nine inches in diameter will be perfect for the rolls.
How to make this Shrimp Spring Rolls Recipe?
- Make the dipping sauce first and chill it.
- Get all of your ingredients ready. Veggies chopped, shrimp – cooked and cut if necessary, noodles cooked, a shallow pan filled with water for the rice wrappers.
- Dip one rice paper wrapper in the water for 20 seconds. Lay wrapper on the dampened towel.
- Add lettuce, veggies and rice noodles.
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Roll up the paper halfway into a cylinder. Fold the sides in an envelope pattern.
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Lay 3 small shrimp along the crease and keep rolling into a tight roll.
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Repeat with the remaining ingredients.
- Serve.
Recipe Variations/Tips:
- Use any veggies you desire. These are just options and what my family enjoys.
- Add fruit – mango, apple or strawberries.
- Not a fan of shrimp? Use shredded chicken, pork or just leave the meat out for Fresh Veggie Spring Rolls.
- Dipping Sauce – I personally find this peanut butter dipping sauce to be perfect for these particular rolls. It is so good, that I often serve it as a salad dressing or with zucchini noodles. But if you are not a fan of it, you can make of purchase a Vietnamese dipping sauce, that goes well with the recipe.
How to store:
These Fresh Shrimp Spring Rolls taste best within 2 hours after they are made.
Past that time, the rice wrappers will harder and may get difficult to chew on.
Make sure, while you are rolling the Summer Rolls, that you cover them with a towel, so they stay moist and fresh.
If for some reason, you end up with leftover rolls, you can refrigerate in an air tight container for up to 2 days.
If the rice paper on hets too hard, you can cover the rolls with damp paper towel and microwave for 10-20 seconds, to soften it. This way rolls wont taste the same as freshly made ones, but it is an option to save any leftovers.
More Shrimp Recipes:
Shrimp Spring Rolls
Ingredients
Spring Rolls:
- 2 oz rice Vermicelli noodles, cooked according to the directions on the package
- 8-10 sheets rice paper, 8 inches in diameter
- 24-30 baby shrimp, cooked, peeled, deveined, 3 shrimp per roll
- 1 cup or more torn butter lettuce, green part only, if using romaine
- 1 tsp sesame or vegetable oil, optional, for the noodles
- 1 large red pepper, cut into thin stripes
- 1 large carrot, cut into thin stripes
- 1 small cucumber, cut into thin stripes (Julienned)
- 1 cup thinly shaved red cabbage
- Fresh cilantro leaves, to taste
- Fresh mint leaves, optional, some people find the taste overpowering
- 2 green onions, chopped (optional, most recipes do not call for green onions)
Peanut sauce:
- 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 tbsp maple syrup or agave nectar
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp grated fresh ginger, optional
- 1/4 tsp or more hot sauce like Sriracha
- 1/4 cup water, to thin the sauce
Instructions
Peanut sauce:
- To make the peanut sauce, in a small bowl combine the peanut butter, rice vinegar, hot sauce, sweetener, soy sauce, garlic. Stir to combine. Add the water, while whisking to thin the sauce.
- You can add chopped peanuts and red pepper flakes to on top of the sauce.
Shrimp spring rolls:
- Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add noodles and cook according to the directions on the package, until al dente.
- Drain, rinse under cold water, transfer to a bowl and drizzle with some sesame oil.
- Fill a shallow cake pan (9-10 inches in diameter) with cold water.
- Place a lint free kitchen towel next to the pan.
- Arrange all prepared fillings, so they are next to the pan.
- Place 1 rice paper at a time in the pan with water. Let it sit for 20-30 seconds, until the sheet is soft and pliable. Place the sheet onto the towel.
- Leave at least 1 inch around the edges, cover the lower 1/3 of the rice paper sheet with lettuce (2 pieces), carrots, cucumbers, cabbage, peppers, cilantro, mint and green onions.
- Roll up the paper halfway into a cylinder. Fold the sides in an envelope pattern.
- Lay 3 small shrimp along the crease and keep rolling into a tight roll.
- Repeat with the remaining wrappers.
- Store in the fridge for up to 2 days.
- Serve with peanut sauce.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Yes! The more we try new foods, the more we can refine our palate!