Shrimp summer rolls recipe
Learn how to make delicious shrimp summer rolls with our helpful tips for beginners. Serve with homemade peanut sauce for a burst of flavor.
Servings: 8 rolls
Ingredients
For the shrimp summer rolls:
- 0.5 lb white shrimp 26-30 counts per pound, peeled and deveined
- 4 oz dried Vietnamese rice stick vermicelli noodles aka viet bun noodles
- 2 whole persian cucumber julienned using a julienne peeler
- 1 medium carrot julienned using a julienne peeler
- 6 Garlic chive
- 1 small head butter lettuce
- Thai basil leaves or Italian basil
- Mint leavesBasil
- Cilantro optional
- 8 sheets Rice paper 9-inch (22 cm) round
Tools:
- A large bowl for dipping
- 2 large plates to hold the vegetables and the rolls
- A silicone baking mat optional but helpful
- Paper towels to keep the rolls moist
Dipping sauces:
Instructions
Preparations:
- To poach shrimp, bring a medium pot of water to boil. Add the shrimp and give it a stir to submerge the shrimp under the hot boiling water. Turn off the stove and immediately cover the pot. Let the shrimp soak in hot water for 5 minutes. After soaking, test with one piece to see if the shrimp is cooked through. It should turn pale white color in the center and taste snappy and juicy. If not, cover the pot for 2 more minutes. Drain and set the shrimp aside to cool.
- Once they are cool to touch, use a small paring knife to halve the shrimp (flatten it) so they turn into thin and flat pieces.
- Rice vermicelli noodles: Follow the package instructions to cook the noodles. Some require boiling and others only need hot water soaking. Drain the noodles and rinse under cold water to remove excess starch. Shake well to remove the water and spread them out over a large bowl. You can drizzle a small amount of avocado oil and toss the noodles to prevent them from sticking. Set aside ready to use.
- Cucumber and carrots: Trim both tip ends and julienne the cucumber using a julienne peeler. If you don’t have one, thinly slice it into matchsticks. Measure out the carrot and cut away the thinner end to match the length of the cucumber, about 4.5-inch in length. Julienne it as well. Set them aside over a small sheet pan. You can line the sheet pan with paper towels to help absorb excess moisture from the cucumber.
- Garlic chive: Rinse and pat dry the garlic chive. Trim away both tip ends and dice it to equal length sections to the cucumbers and the carrots, about 4.5-inch sections.
- Butter lettuce, mint, basil, and cilantro: Snap away the lettuce stems, leaving only the tender leaves. Snap away the stems of mint, basil, and cilantro, using only the tender leafy parts.
To start wrapping:
- Set up your workstation with rice paper sheets, a big dipping bowl with room temperature water, shrimp, vegetable and herb trays, an empty large plate to hold the rolls, and finally a silicon baking mat as your work surface. Also prepare a few clean paper towels.
- Moistening: Take one piece of rice paper and slide it into the water bowl and quickly rotate the rice paper for about 5-6 seconds only. The entire sheet should be moistened and should still feel quite firm after dipping.
- Assemble: Immediately transfer the sheet to your work surface - place smooth side down and rough side facing you. To start building the roll, place a single layer of butter lettuce at the bottom corner of the rice paper, place a small amount of vermicelli noodles on top, followed by a small amount of carrots and cucumber, making sure the ingredients are aligned and not poking out.
- Take 2-3 slices of garlic chives and place them right next to (above) the vegetables, then add a few leaves of basil, mint, and cilantro. Finally, place 3 pieces of sliced shrimp (pink color side down) right above the herbs.
- To wrap: carefully and gently bring the bottom side up and away from you and roll over to cover the noodles and the herbs. Fold the left and right sides then keep rolling away from you to seal the roll. Repeat the steps until you finish all the ingredients.
- As you work through the ingredients, rest the rolls on a large plate with some space between them. Lightly moisten the paper towel to cover the rolls. This prevents the rice paper from getting dry and maintains the perfect moisture level.
To serve:
- Soft summer rolls taste best when they are freshly made. I recommend serving them immediately after rolling with either Vietnamese peanut sauce (creamy, nutty) or Nuoc cham sauce (salty, sweet, funky) on the side. You can also slice it into half for easy serving.
Video
Notes
- Low Carb option: You can skip the vermicelli noodles to reduce the total carb count.
- Make-ahead: This dish is all about preparing in advance! You can poach the shrimp up to 2 days ahead, and make the dipping sauces 3-4 days ahead.
- Storage: Once they are made into rolls, store them in a large airtight container, lined with slightly moistened paper towels between each layer.
- To soften the summer rolls after refrigeration: Cover the summer roll with a lightly moistened paper towel and microwave on medium for 20-30 seconds.
- It’s best to only make the number rolls you need on the serving day. Pack all the ingredients separately and assemble the rolls right before serving.
Nutrition
Serving: 1roll | Calories: 76kcal | Carbohydrates: 12g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 0.1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Trans Fat: 0.003g | Cholesterol: 37mg | Sodium: 243mg | Potassium: 118mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 2034IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 32mg | Iron: 1mg