Fresh Spring Rolls with Peanut Sauce
These Fresh Spring Rolls with Peanut Sauce are packed with crisp veggies, rice noodles, and an optional protein like shrimp, chicken, or tofu, wrapped in delicate rice paper and served with a delicious peanut dipping sauce. The perfect appetizer, light meal, or snack!
Fresh Spring Rolls with Peanut Sauce Recipe
These delicious fresh spring rolls are one of my go-to recipes when I’m craving something light and full of flavor. I always serve them with a creamy, savory-sweet peanut dipping sauce, which makes this recipe irresistible.
They are also so easy to customize. You can use your favorite fresh vegetables for that satisfying crunch, herbs to get an extra burst of flavor, and your favorite type of protein, like chicken, beef, pork, or tofu, if you want to make them vegetarian.
And did I mention how fun they are to assemble?! Whether you’re new to making fresh spring rolls or have years of experience, this recipe is easy, delicious, and perfect for sharing!
Ingredients For Making Fresh Spring Rolls with A Creamy Peanut Sauce
Scroll down to the recipe card to see the complete list of ingredients.
For the spring rolls:
- Protein. In this recipe, I will be using shrimp because I love them. But you can also use cooked chicken, beef, pork, or tofu. Skip adding the protein to make them vegetarian.
- Rice noodles. An optional ingredient that gives the filling more volume.
- Vegetables. Use your favorite fresh vegetables to give these spring rolls that perfect crunch. I like making them with lettuce, carrots, red cabbage, and cucumbers.
- Herbs. I love adding a couple of sprigs of cilantro to each roll. Mint or basil are also popular options.
- Rice paper wrappers. Made with rice and water and used in many Asian recipes. You can easily find them in the Asian section of most grocery stores.
For the peanut sauce:
- Peanut butter. Use creamy peanut butter to make the dipping sauce.
- Rice vinegar. It gives the sauce a bright, tangy flavor.
- Soy sauce. For flavor and saltiness.
- Maple syrup or honey. For a sweeter sauce. I prefer to use maple syrup because it’s not as thick. You can also use hoisin sauce.
- Sesame oil. For texture and nutty richness.
- Water. To thin out the sauce.
- Optional ingredients. Garlic and ginger for added flavor. Sriracha, chili garlic sauce, chili crisp, or chili crunch, to make it spicy.
These fresh spring rolls are super fun to make! I’m not gonna lie; there is a small learning curve to get them just right. So just be patient and remember that even if they don’t look perfect, they will still come out delicious! 😉
How To Make Fresh Spring Rolls with Peanut Sauce Recipe
Scroll down to the recipe card to see detailed step-by-step instructions.
- Mix all of the ingredients for the peanut dipping sauce and set aside.
- Cook the shrimp in salted boiling water for 2 minutes or until they turn pink. Drain and run them under cold water to stop the cooking process.
- Cook the rice noodles in boiling water according to the instructions on the package. Drain and run them under cold water to stop the cooking process.
- Prepare the fresh vegetables by rinsing the lettuce, cutting the carrots and cucumbers into strips, shredding the cabbage, and cutting the cilantro into short sprigs.
- Fill a deep dish or pie dish with warm water and soak a rice paper wrapper for a few seconds or until it is partially soft.
- Place it on a flat surface and then start layering the veggies, starting with a leaf of lettuce, a small amount of noodles, a few pieces of carrots, cucumbers, cabbage, and a couple of sprigs of cilantro. Place the shrimp in front of the veggies.
- Fold the sides of the rice paper wrapper and then start rolling upward to form the spring roll.
- Serve immediately with the peanut dipping sauce.
Watch the Video
Tips For Success
- Don’t overcook the shrimp. Cook the shrimp in boiling water for only a couple of minutes or just until they turn pink. You can also purchase cooked shrimp to make things easier.
- Place the soaked rice paper wrappers on a moist surface or a kitchen towel to avoid sticking. These rice wrappers stick easily (and very quickly!) to a dry surface, making it very easy to tear as you start rolling them.
- Wrap each roll individually with plastic wrap, especially if you need to store them together. Otherwise, the rice paper wrappers will stick to most surfaces and, worse, to other rolls. Trying to pull those babies apart without tearing them is nearly impossible.
- Speaking of storage, fresh spring rolls are always best as soon as you assemble them. Even if you store them for one day, they will start to dry out, the rice paper wrappers will start to dissolve, and the rice noodles will not be as soft. But if you must, store them inside an airtight container for 1-2 days, at the most.
Variations
- Use other types of protein. Seasoned chicken, beef, pork, or tofu are fantastic options. You can also skip the protein and just fill them with fresh vegetables.
- Use your favorite vegetables. I usually use lettuce, carrots, cucumbers, and red cabbage for color. But you can also make them with peppers, avocado, bean sprouts, green onions, jalapeño, and even mango!
- Use your favorite herbs. Mine will always be cilantro. Mint and basil are other fragrant herbs that you can use.
Tools For Making Fresh Spring Rolls with Peanut Sauce
- 8-Quart Stock Pot: If you are not using shrimp that is already cooked, you can use this handy pot to boil the raw shrimp.
- Classic 8″ Chef’s Knife: I use this knife for everything! Use it to cut the lettuce, carrots, and cucumbers.
- Vegetable Peeler: I love using this potato and vegetable peeler to shred the red cabbage I like to add to these rolls. Plus, sometimes I also use it to peel the carrots into strips or ribbons to save time.
More Delicious Appetizer Recipes
- Chicken Lettuce Wraps
- Colombian Shrimp Cocktail
- Shrimp & Guacamole Appetizer
- Pico de Gallo Recipe
- Guacamole Recipe
- Queso Dip
Fresh Spring Rolls with Peanut Sauce
These Fresh Spring Rolls with Peanut Sauce are packed with crisp veggies, rice noodles, and an optional protein like shrimp, chicken, or tofu, wrapped in delicate rice paper and served with a delicious peanut dipping sauce.
Ingredients
Fresh Spring Rolls
- 1 lb medium-sized shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 2 oz vermicelli rice noodles
- 1 package spring roll wrappers
- 1 small head romaine or butter lettuce, ribs removed
- 1 large carrot, peeled and sliced into thin strips
- 2-3 Persian cucumbers or 1 English cucumber, sliced into thin strips
- 1 cup (100 g) red cabbage, shredded
- ½ bunch cilantro
Peanut Sauce
- ⅓ cup (83 g) creamy peanut butter
- 2 tbsp rice vinegar
- 2 tsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
- 2 tbsp maple syrup or honey
- Water, as needed (about 2-3 tbsp)
Instructions
To make the peanut sauce:
- In a small bowl, whisk together the creamy peanut butter, rice vinegar, soy sauce, toasted sesame oil, and maple syrup or honey. Add water a tablespoon at a time until you reach your desired consistency. Set aside while you assemble the spring rolls.
To make the fresh spring rolls:
- Cook the shrimp in salted boiling water for about 2 minutes or until they turn pink. Drain and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process.
- Cook the noodles in boiling water according to the instructions on the package. Drain and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process.
- Prepare the fresh vegetables by rinsing the lettuce and removing the ribs, peeling and cutting the carrots and cucumbers into thin strips, shredding the cabbage, and cutting the cilantro into short sprigs.
- Fill a deep dish or pie pan with warm water. Soak a spring roll wrapper for about 10-15 seconds and then place it on a moist flat working surface or a clean kitchen towel.
- Leaving about 1 inch around the edges of the spring roll wrapper, place a piece of lettuce close to the center, then layer with a small amount of cooked rice noodles, carrots, cucumbers, red cabbage, and a couple of sprigs of cilantro. Place 3-4 shrimp in front of the vegetables.
- Fold the sides of the wrapper over the vegetables. Then fold the edge closest to you over and start rolling the wrapper while making sure everything stays inside to form the spring roll. Repeat this process until you use all of the ingredients.
- Immediately serve the spring rolls with the creamy peanut sauce on the side.
Notes
- Add a pinch of salt to the water before cooking the shrimp to enhance their flavor. You can also purchase cooked shrimp to make things easier.
- Some like to cut the shrimp in half so the spring rolls don’t look too bulky and prevent any tears. I prefer to use them whole so that each roll has more protein.
- Change the protein. Use seasoned grilled chicken, beef, pork, or tofu.
- Make them vegetarian. Use tofu instead of animal protein, or don’t add it at all and make the filling using only fresh vegetables.
- Use other ingredients for the filling like peppers, avocado, bean sprouts, green onions, jalapeño, or mango.
- These spring rolls do not store well, so try to enjoy them the same day you make them. However, if you must, they can be stored in the refrigerator for 1-2 days. Just make sure you individually wrap each spring roll with plastic wrap to keep them from sticking to each other, and keep them inside an air-tight container so the cold air doesn’t dry them out too quickly.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
