Fresh Spring Rolls

My love of spring rolls started when I moved to Madison, WI and there was a spring roll food cart walking distance from where I lived. They served giant spring rolls stuffed with shrimp or chicken and tons of veggies with a fantastic peanut butter dipping sauce for an insanely low price. When I moved and was no longer within walking distance of the food truck, I decided to combine my favorite spring roll ingredients and make my own! They did not disappoint and are a fun summer meal.

Fresh Spring Rolls

If you don't want to make peanut sauce these also taste delicious dipped in sweet and sour sauce. 

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Prep Time 25 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 35 minutes mins

Course Main Course

Servings 4

Ingredients

  

Spring Rolls

• 12 rice paper wrappers
• 7 oz rice noodles
• 1/2 pound peeled and deveined raw shrimp
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• salt to taste
• pepper to taste
• 1 avocado cut into thin pieces
• 2 large carrot cut into thin 2 inch long strips or shredded
• 1/2 large cucumber cut into thin 2 inch long strips
• 3/4 cup mint chopped
• 3/4 cup basil chopped
• 2 cups spinach chopped

Peanut Sauce

• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp rice vinegar
• 1 tbsp honey
• 5 tbsp water

Instructions

 

Spring Rolls

• Cook rice noodles according to package directions. Once cooked rinse with cold water and set aside.
• In a medium pan over medium-high heat add olive oil. Once oil is hot, add shrimp, seasoning with salt and pepper. Cook for about 2 minutes per side until the shrimp are pink and fully cooked. Cut each shrimp in half and set aside.
• Prepare the rest of the ingredients so that they are all cut and ready to make the spring rolls.
• Soak one piece of rice paper in cool water for about 10-15 seconds. The back of the rice paper package has specific instructions for soaking time.
• Remove the rice paper from the water and quickly fill it with a small handful of rice noodles, shrimp, 2 thin slices of avocado, a couple of pieces of carrot and cucumber, and a sprinkle of mint and basil. Wrap like a burrito. You have to do this process quickly or the rice paper will become too soft to wrap.
• Continue to make spring rolls until you've used up all of your ingredients. Enjoy with peanut sauce.

Peanut Sauce

• Whisk together peanut butter, soy sauce, rice vinegar, honey, and water in a small bowl. This mixture will be hard to mix at the beginning and then will start looking clumpy. Continue to whisk for a couple of minutes until peanut sauce is smooth.

Notes

You can make these vegetarian by holding out the shrimp.

You can substitute shredded chicken for the shrimp. 

Add your favorite veggies. Some other options are thinly sliced radish, chopped green onion, or thinly sliced mango. 

Finding the right size bowl for soaking the rice paper in water can be challenging. I found that my 8-inch round cake pan perfectly fits the rice paper. 

These are best enjoyed immediately after making. After 2 days in the fridge, I find that the avocado starts to brown and the rice paper isn’t as tender so make sure to eat these within 24 hours!