Fresh Vietnamese Spring Rolls with Shrimp and Herbs
Rice paper rolls filled with shrimp, vermicelli, mint, and Thai basil, served with a peanut-hoisin dipping sauce.
Goi cuon are the unfried answer to a spring roll: everything goes in raw or quickly poached, then wrapped in a sheet of softened rice paper so you can see the layers of herbs and shrimp right through the wrapper. They take a little practice to roll neatly, but even a slightly messy one tastes exactly the same.
Because nothing here is fried and the filling leans heavily on shrimp, rice noodles, and fresh herbs, these come together as a genuinely light meal or snack, with the mint and Thai basil adding a freshness that a lot of people find easier on the stomach than heavier fried appetizers. The peanut-hoisin sauce on the side adds richness without needing to be piled onto the rolls themselves.
Make a big batch for a group — they're one of the few finger foods that actually get more fun to eat with more hands rolling alongside you.
Ingredients
- 12 rice paper wrappers
- 1 lb shrimp — cooked, peeled, and halved lengthwise
- 4 oz rice vermicelli noodles — cooked
- 1 cup carrot — julienned
- 1 cup lettuce leaves — torn
- 0.5 cup fresh mint leaves
- 0.5 cup Thai basil leaves
- 3 tbsp hoisin sauce
- 2 tbsp peanut butter
- 1 tbsp lime juice
- 1 tbsp water — to thin the sauce
These ingredients are common at South Asian grocers; a well-stocked international supermarket usually carries them too.
Instructions
- 1Dip a rice paper wrapper in warm water for a few seconds until just pliable, then lay flat on a damp surface.
- 2Layer lettuce, a small amount of vermicelli, carrot, mint, and basil across the lower third of the wrapper, then top with 2-3 shrimp halves cut side up.
- 3Fold the sides in and roll tightly from the bottom, like a burrito. Repeat with remaining wrappers and filling.
- 4Whisk the hoisin sauce, peanut butter, lime juice, and water together until smooth.
- 5Serve the rolls whole or sliced in half with the dipping sauce.