Vegetable Spring Rolls with Peanut Sauce

Vegetable spring rolls are fresh, flavorful, & healthy! A perfect light meal or party appetizer.

I finally decided to try making this easy vegetable spring rolls with peanut sauce recipe from Damn Delicious. I adapted her recipe by adding rice noodles to the spring rolls and some toasted sesame oil & minced garlic to the peanut sauce. Patience is required when working with the rice paper, but it gets easier with practice. My first two rolls fell apart when slicing, because they weren’t rolled tightly enough, so I just threw everything into a bowl and drizzled the top with peanut sauce & some nuoc cham and ate it like a salad. Yum! My kids especially loved these vegetable spring rolls with peanut sauce and devoured them quickly.

Vegetable Spring Rolls with Peanut Sauce

Peanut Sauce:

• ¼ cup creamy peanut butter
• 4 tsp reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 1 tbsp fresh lime juice
• 2 tsp brown sugar
• 1½-2 tsp toasted sesame oil, to taste
• 1 tsp chili garlic sauce
• 1 tsp fresh ginger, grated
• 1 clove of garlic, minced

Vegetable Spring Rolls:

• 4-5 (10-inch) rice paper wrappers
• 2-3 large lettuce leaves, torn into pieces
• ½ cup basil leaves
• ½ cup cilantro leaves
• ⅓ cup mint leaves
• ½ cup purple cabbage, shredded
• ½ cup matchstick carrots
• ½ small English cucumber, seeded & cut into long matchsticks
• ½ cup red bell pepper, seeded & cut into long matchsticks
• ½ avocado, sliced thinly
• 2 oz Maifun rice noodles or rice vermicelli, cooked per instructions, then rinsed under cold water & drained
• Sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste

How to Make Vegetable Spring Rolls with Peanut Sauce

Make nuoc cham (Vietnamese dipping sauce) if using. Set aside to allow flavors some time to mingle.

Make the peanut sauce by combining the peanut butter, soy sauce, lime juice, brown sugar, sesame oil, chili garlic sauce, ginger, and garlic in a bowl. Whisk in 2-3 tablespoons of water until the desired consistency is reached; set aside to allow flavors time to mingle.

Prepare spring rolls by making one at a time. Dip the rice paper for 10-15 seconds in HOT water, then drain and carefully transfer it to a work surface.

Leaving an inch of open rice paper around the edges, place the lettuce, basil, cilantro, and mint in the center of each wrapper. Top with red cabbage, carrots, cucumber, bell pepper, avocado, and rice noodles; season with sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste.

Bring the bottom edge of the rice paper tightly over the filling, and fold in the sides. Continue rolling from the bottom to the top until the top of the sheet, being careful not to tear or rip the rice paper. Cover with a damp paper towel. Repeat with the remaining wrapper and filling.

Slice and serve immediately with the peanut sauce and nuoc cham. Enjoy.