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Vietnamese Summer Rolls with Mango + Peanut Sauce

These Vietnamese Summer Rolls, or fresh spring rolls, are filled with all the healthy stuff such as mango, avocado, carrot, and of course a little rice noodles to get a little more authentic Vietnamese flavor and texture. They are naturally vegan and absolutely great with a super easy peanut dipping sauce!

 

Hand holding a sliced open summer roll dipped in peanut sauce.

 

When I was in Vietnam and Thailand, I was swimming in all the things I love the most: Food with flavor. Summer rolls were some of these, along with mango sticky rice of course. We watched as a man rolled the summer rolls fresh at our table and served them to us. Absolutely delish!

 

I wanted to create my own, with my favorite flavors when I got home. So here I am, only 3 years later. 🙂 Other Thai and Vietnamese inspired dishes I recommend are Thai lemongrass noodle soup or lemongrass chicken thighs (I always pick the dish with lemongrass from a menu!), curry coconut chicken satay, Thai chicken noodle soup and curry coconut carrot soup

 

Cut open summer roll and peanut sauce on a slate. Backlighting.

 

What's the difference between egg rolls, spring rolls and summer rolls?

 

Sometimes these terms are used interchangeably, but there are some variations between spring rolls, egg rolls and summer rolls:

 

  • Spring rolls: originally from China, these are rolled in a paper thin wrapper made from flour and water, and then fried until crispy. The most common fillings are some sort of pork, shrimp, bean sprouts and cabbage. Served with various dipping sauces, like vinegar based, plum sauce, or a sweet and sour sauce (my favorite!). 

 

  • Egg rolls: Eggs rolls are a kind of spring rolls invented in the US. The difference is that the wrapper batter (fun to say) also contains eggs. The eggs result in the wrapper becoming thicker and almost doughy. The egg rolls are often bumpy in appearance, while spring rolls are smooth. Usually filled with a lot of cabbage and some pork. 

 

  • Summer rolls: originally from Vietnam. The summer rolls are uncooked, they are fresh and more like a salad than an indulgent treat. Delicious fresh vegetables, and sometimes cooked shrimp, chicken or beef, a lot of herbs and vermicelli (rice) noodles. The most common sauces for summer rolls are peanut dipping sauce, a hoisin sauce or just plain Sriracha!

 

Honestly, I love all these for very different reasons. Today, we are rocking the healthier summer rolls! 

 

Hand holding a sliced open summer roll.

 

Can you make them ahead? How long can you keep them?

 

I wouldn't classify summer rolls as a make ahead dish. You can make them 2 hours prior to eating, but that hardly constitutes as make ahead in my book. Place them in one layer, preferably not touching each other, and place a wet dish towel on top. You may need to re-soak the towel. Keep out of the sun!

 

Plate with summer rolls and a slate with peanut sauce and more cut open summer rolls.

 

If you really want to make them a day or two in advance, wrap each summer roll tightly in plastic wrap. They will dry out in the refrigerator, but you can spray them with water before serving to moisten them up! Fair warning that fresh summer rolls are always better, but these will be delicious too.

 

Let them stand in room temperature for 30 minutes prior to eating to bring out all the delicious fresh flavors. Click here to read more about keeping summer rolls fresh.

 

The peanut dipping sauce, however, is great for make ahead.

 

How do you eat summer rolls?

 

As I mentioned above, summer rolls are eaten uncooked. You can have cooked meat inside, like shrimp, pork, fish or chicken, but they are also great as a naturally vegan dish. Fill them with all the fresh produce you like, and don't forget the herbs.

 

Rice vermicelli noodles also add a great and a little more authentic Vietnamese flavor and texture to the rolls. Vermicelli noodles are rice noodles made from ground rice, making them gluten-free, and is usually used in Asian cooking (I love them in this Thai lemongrass soup!). 

 

Peanut sauce in a white bowl. Pyramid of summer rolls in the background.

 

But let's be honest, we are here because of the dipping sauce. Summer rolls are perfect to dip in all sorts of sauces. My very favorite is this peanut dipping sauce. It is super easy to make, and tastes of Vietnam with delicious peanut, hoisin and lots of other delicious flavors. The dipping sauce can be made 4 days in advance. Just keep it covered in the fridge. 

 

Other great sauces are avocado sauce (not so traditional, but very much yum), a bang bang sauce or a yum yum sauce (who came up with these names!). 

 

How do I make my summer rolls not sticky?

 

Yes, they are notoriously sticky due to the rice paper wrapper. A lot of recipes call for soaking the wrappers in warm water, but instead, let them soak in cold water. It doesn't take much longer at all. Keeping your work surface wet, also helps to avoid the rolls to stick to your cutting board, but they will still be a sticky piece of action nonetheless. 

 

Summer rolls and peanut sauce on a slate.

 

I sometimes also brush them in a little oil before placing them together on a plate. They will of course be more oily (duh), so if you don't like that, I recommend just keeping your summer rolls sticky, but apart from each other. 

 

Other Summer Roll Tips

 

Another summer roll tip is to use lettuce to wrap the fillings in before wrapping the lettuce in rice paper. They will now be easier to roll and to eat. However, this makes the rolls less pretty (who wants to look at a blob of lettuce?). So I don't do this. Also, I use spinach, which isn't particularly wrapping friendly. 

 

To make a tighter wrap, you can make two stations on your wrapper. More to the left you can place half of your filling, and more to the right (with space in between the left and right fillings), add the other half. Then roll. You will now get a smooth, tight wrap. 

 

You should also always have everything ready prepped; vegetables cut into thin strips, noodles should have been soaked and (if using) meat should be already cooked, before starting to soak the rice wrappers.

 

Cutting board with all the ingredients.

 

Recipe for these Mango Summer Rolls

 

You can read the full instructions in the recipe card below. Here I will provide just a summary with step-by-step pictures for an easier visualization of the process! 

 

  1. Prepare all the vegetables. Cut into thin strips. Soak rice noodles according to package.
  2. Soak the rice wrapper in cold water until soft, about 3 seconds.
  3. Carefully take the wrapper out of the water and place on a wet working surface.
  4. Fill with prepared vegetables in one corner, with clear edges around. Squeeze lime juice over.
  5. Take the tip from where you put the vegetables, over the vegetables (to roll like a burrito).
  6. (6.-8.) Take the sides in towards the middle and roll to make it tight.

 

Steps to fill a summer roll.

Steps to roll a summer roll.

 

Please enjoy and don't forget some fun cocktails and chocolate ice cream for your summer party! And if you have any leftover mango, that is great for this prosciutto and mango salad.

 

Did you like this recipe? Here's more fresh summer food for you:

 

 

I’d love to hear your thoughts. Comment below or tag me @thegingerwithspice on Instagram. And don’t forget to Pin it for later! To make sure you’re never missing another recipe, please feel free to subscribe to my newsletter. As a thanks you will receive a free e-cookbook Travels Through the Seasons, with many delicious recipes from around the world that suit different seasons of the year. 

 

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Plate with summer rolls and a slate with peanut sauce and more cut open summer rolls.

 

 

📖 Recipe

Hand holding a sliced open summer roll dipped in peanut sauce.

Vietnamese Summer Rolls with Mango + Peanut Sauce

Yield: 14
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes

These naturally vegan Vietnamese Summer Rolls are filled with healthy mango and ginger, and rice noodles to get a little more of the Vietnamese flavor.

Ingredients

Summer Rolls

  • 14 Vietnamese rice wrappers
  • 2 oz rice vermicelli noodles (50g)
  • 1 large mango, sliced
  • 1 large avocado, sliced
  • ½ English cucumber, sliced
  • 1 carrot, cut in matchsticks
  • ¾ cup bean sprouts (75g)
  • 2 inches fresh ginger, finely chopped (5 cm)
  • ¼ cup roughly chopped fresh spinach (4 tbsp)
  • ¼ cup finely chopped mint (4 tbsp)
  • ¼ cup finely chopped cilantro (optional, 4 tbsp)
  • 1 lime, juice only

Peanut Sauce

  • ½ cup water (125ml)
  • 3 tablespoon chunky peanut butter
  • ¼ cup hoisin sauce (4 tbsp)
  • 1 tablespoon sweet chili sauce
  • 1 tablespoon sesame oil
  • 1 clove garlic, grated
  • ¼ cup coarsley chopped peanuts (4 tbsp)
  • 2 tablespoon chopped cilantro (optional)

Instructions

Summer Rolls

  1. Prepare all the fillings first. Cut vegetables and herbs, soak noodles according to package instructions.
  2. In a large shallow pan or bowl, add cold water. Take one rice wrapper and place into the pan. Let it sit until it's pliable and soft, about 3-5 seconds (it will soften more once you're ready to roll it).
  3. In one corner, add the fillings. Keep the edges clean. Try to add all in a clean, same way-pile so it's easier to get a pretty roll. Add a drizzle of lime juice.
  4. Roll like a burrito: take the sides into the center and roll the roll away from you into one tight burrito. Repeat with the other rolls.

Peanut Sauce

  1. In a small saucepan over medium heat, mix water and peanut butter. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer, then add in the rest of the ingredients. Simmer for a minute while you stir it into a smooth sauce (with peanut chunks of course).

Notes

Best eaten immediately. Wrap each roll in plastic wrapper and they can last two days in the fridge. Peanut sauce can keep in the fridge for a week, or frozen for a few months.

Nutrition Information:
Yield: 7 Serving Size: 2 rolls
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 273Total Fat: 14gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 10gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 244mgCarbohydrates: 33gFiber: 5gSugar: 12gProtein: 7g

Nutrition information isn't always accurate, estimate for informational purposes only.

Did you make this recipe?

Please leave a comment on the blog or tag @thegingerwithspice on Instagram, I'd love to see!

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Lathiya

Monday 13th of July 2020

These Vietnamese summer rolls look so appetizing and inviting. I just loved you added mango and that peanut sauce sounds interesting.

Stine Mari | Ginger with Spice

Tuesday 14th of July 2020

Thank you so much, Lathiya. I hope you give them a try sometime.

Ramona

Monday 13th of July 2020

Me and my family love spring rolls, but when it comes to my children it's a whole other story! They go crazy when we make these and I don't blame them. I love the colours coming from the pictures. So vibrant! I will definitely make these for sure.

Stine Mari | Ginger with Spice

Monday 13th of July 2020

Thank you so much, we definitely eat with our eyes too!

Alena

Monday 13th of July 2020

These summer rolls are so perfect in this hot weather! The peanut sauce adds such a delicious and rich nutty flavor too - I don't know if there's a more perfect combo than this!

Stine Mari | Ginger with Spice

Monday 13th of July 2020

Wow thank you so much, Alena! Glad you liked them.

Kushigalu

Sunday 12th of July 2020

Wow. Love the twist and the flavor this summer rolls. So delicious and I love the combination.

Stine Mari | Ginger with Spice

Monday 13th of July 2020

Thank you so much!

Gail Montero

Sunday 12th of July 2020

I always make my Vietnamese spring rolls with shrimp and herbs so I love this delicious mango fruity twist! How summery!

Stine Mari | Ginger with Spice

Monday 13th of July 2020

Can never be too much herbs. :) Thank you so much!

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