Mastering fresh spring rolls is easier than it looks.
These fresh treats are an easy and fun way to eat more vegetables. Assemble them before dinner and keep them moist by covering with a damp paper towel, or, if you want to make the meal interactive, let everyone wrap their own at the table.
Spring Roll Ingredients
It’s not a fresh spring roll unless it’s wrapped in rice paper. Rice paper sheets are made from white rice flour, tapioca flour, salt, and water. They’re sold as thin dry sheets and can be found in most major grocery stores, or online. To use, simply soften in water, stuff with your choice of fillings, and roll up. The rice paper will stick to itself as it dries.
Fresh Spring Roll Filling Ideas
There are infinite ways to stuff a spring roll. Traditional fillings include mint, tofu, shredded chicken, thinly sliced carrots, and cooked cellophane noodles, but the list doesn’t stop there.
We love slice avocado and cucumbers in vegetarian spring rolls, or pan-seared shrimp for a seafood variation. You could also use leftover chicken. Just shred the meat and wrap it up along with fresh lettuce for a little crunch.
How to Roll Spring Rolls
Rolling fresh spring rolls is easy! Start with your dried rice paper. Fill a shallow bowl or dish with warm water. Working one at a time, completely submerge each rice paper wrapper in the water for 30 to 40 seconds, or until soft and pliable. Transfer the moistened wrapper to a clean, dry work surface. Place a few pieces of carrot and cucumber, a few slices of avocado, a small handful of noodles and a few lettuce, cilantro and basil leaves in the middle of the moistened wrapper. Fold the bottom half of the wrapper over the filling, pressing down to create a seal, then fold the sides of the wrapper towards the center, tucking in the filling. Gently roll up the wrapper (just like a burrito). Repeat with the remaining wrappers and filling.
Tips for Making Spring Rolls
- Use water. Fill a shallow bowl or dish with warm water. Before filling, completely submerge each rice paper wrapper in the water for 30 to 40 seconds, or until soft and pliable.
- Go one at a time. Once you’ve soaked your wrapper, it’s both pliable and fragile. That means, you’ll want to work fast. Fill and roll a single summer roll, then set it aside before moving onto the second, third, and so on.
- Don’t overfill. The less you stuff the wrappers, the easier each portion will be to roll. If you’re having trouble, try removing up about a quarter of the planned filling before you roll, even if that looks surprisingly spare.
- Keep a kitchen towel on hand. We found it useful to dry off our work surface in between each roll, since dipping the wraps in water will leave you with a slippery workspace.
- Be a one-man or one-woman assembly line. Make like a robot to keep things precise. Here’s your task: on your moistened wrapper, place a few pieces of carrot and cucumber, a few slices of avocado, a small handful of noodles and a few lettuce, cilantro and basil leaves in the middle of the moistened wrapper. Fold the bottom half of the wrapper over the filling, pressing down to create a seal, then fold the sides of the wrapper towards the center, tucking in the filling.
Fresh Spring Roll Recipes
Get started with these two easy recipes
Vegetarian Spring Rolls with Spicy Peanut Dipping Sauce
Shrimp Spring Rolls with Spicy Peanut Dipping Sauce
Watch the video to see how it’s done:
