Vietnamese Summer Rolls with Cashew Butter Dipping Sauce

Goi Cuon Recipe

I made Oishii Eats Vietnamese Summer Rolls (Goi Cuon) with Cashew Nut Dipping Sauce this morning on television on ABC7! They came out fantastic and the crew devoured them seconds after the camera shut off.

 

BTW, if you happened to catch the TV segment, the host was referring to this  Steamy HOT magazine photo shoot!

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Both Oishii Eats and I enjoy our shrimp grilled rather than boiled. Below is the Vietnamese Summer Rolls (Goi Cuon) recipe and the Oishii Eats Cashew Butter Dipping Sauce.

Vietnamese Shrimp Mango Summer Rolls Recipe

Traditionally, the shrimp is boiled in Vietnamese Summer Rolls (Goi Cuon). However, I love the flavor of marinated and grilled Lemongrass shrimp in these Summer Rolls. You can find lemongrass in most supermarkets - peel off the outer leaves. Use a microplane zester to zest the bottom 4" of the lemongrass stalk. If you can't find lemongrass, substitute with fresh lemon zest, or just leave it out. You could also marinate the shrimp in a little bit of garlic/ginger/soy.
About the Cashew Butter Dipping Sauce: Most recipes for dipping sauce call for Peanut Butter, however a Cashew Butter or even Almond Butter is more fragrant, delicate and oh-so-delicious. I like my sauce a little thin, so that when I dip my roll in the sauce, it lightly coats the roll and I can still taste the fresh, vibrant vegetables inside.
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 5 minutes
Servings 12 rolls

Ingredients
  

FOR THE SUMMER ROLLS:

  • 1/2 teaspoon fish sauce (substitute with soy sauce)
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated lemongrass
  • freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/4 teaspoon sugar
  • 24 small sized shrimp, shelled and deveined
  • 6 ounces dried rice vermicelli
  • 12 round rice papers (8" diameter)
  • 1 head of butter or Boston Bibb lettuce, leaves separated
  • 1 cup julienned or shredded carrots
  • 1/2 cup julienned red bell peppers
  • 1/2 mango, sliced into thin slivers
  • 24 mint leaves

FOR THE CASHEW BUTTER DIPPING SAUCE:

  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 3 cloves garlic, finely minced (about 3 teaspoons)
  • 1/3 cup hoisin sauce
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 tablespoon chili garlic sauce
  • 3 tablespoons cashew butter
  • 1/4 cup water

Instructions
 

  • In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the fish sauce, lemongrass, pepper and sugar. Add the shrimp and stir to coat. Marinate shrimp for 10 minutes. In meantime, boil a pot of water. Add vermicelli and cook for 4 minutes. Drain immediately, rinse with cold water, and drain again. Try to remove as much water as possible. Set aside.
  • Grill the shrimp in a large skillet with 1 tbl cooking oil on high heat until cooked through, about 2 minutes. You could also skewer the shrimp and grill on your outdoor grill. When shrimp is cool enough to handle, bisect each shrimp down the middle of its back so that you have two identical halves of shrimp. This makes the shrimp thin enough to wrap evenly.
  • Grab a pie plate or rectangular baking dish and fill it with about 1" of warm temperature water. Dip one rice paper round in the dish for a quick 2-seconds. Lift round and let the water drip off. Place on clean, dry work surface. Blot the top of the round with a paper towel. You'll work one roll at a time.
  • Now it's time to roll. The wrapper will still be a little stiff. By the time you finish piling on the ingredients, it will have softened enough to roll. Lay 4 halves of the shrimp in a line near the bottom 1/3 of the round. Top with some lettuce, vermicelli noodles, carrots, bell pepper, mango, and finishing with 2 mint leaves. Try to keep the ingredients compact and piled on top of the shrimp. Starting with the side closest to you, roll up the roll tight, stopping halfway to gently tug back on the roll to tighten. The wrapper is self-sealing. You can use a sharp knife to cut off the two ends to make it look neater.
  • Transfer to platter and cover with plastic wrap to prevent drying. Wipe counter or plate dry and repeat with remaining.
  • Some rice rounds are made thicker than others. If you find your wrapper is a little too stiff by the time you need to wrap, either blot less water off the rice round next time, let it sit for a few seconds before adding ingredients or dip in just slightly warmer water (but not hot!) Just remember to let the water drip off and wipe your working surface dry each time - a dry surface allows the rice paper to stick to the surface and create a little tension so that you can wrap.
  • Also, I've found it's best to work one roll at a time - since it only takes a few seconds for the rice round to soften, you really aren't saving a lot of time by dipping all your rice rounds at once. In fact, if 2 rounds touch each other - they will stick and you'll have a heck of a time getting them apart without tearing or wrinkling. If you must dip all at once, separate each wet round with a damp paper towel.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

 

More great dishes for Chinese New Year

(Feb 7th, Year of the Rat)

Whole Grilled Fish on Banana Leaf – serving whole fish on Chinese New Year signifies abundance!

Chinese Style Steamed Fish

Chinese BBQ Pastries – super easy using store-bought puff pastry

Did you try this recipe? Please leave a star rating in the recipe card below and leave a review in the comment section! I always appreciate your feedback and I know other readers do, too!

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55 Comments

  1. I loved that recipe! I also tried it on my way! If you want to see the result go see on my site! 🙂

    Reply
  2. Thanks for this wonderful recipe! We have eaten this almost every day for two weeks. They are so addictive. My only change was adding cilantro and using almond butter instead of cashew (it is all I could find).

    Reply
  3. The cashew butter dipping sauce is awesome,a great idea with a lot of rolls and as a salad dressing. Thank you.

    Reply
  4. Oh wow. They look so cute. Unfortunately I don’t have any of the ingredients around apart from the butter. Definitely going to try these though.

    Reply
  5. My Husband bought me my first bread maker – now researching to get the most out of it. Been doing a lot of bookmarking 🙂

    Reply
  6. I almost forgot. I ordered your book from Amazon and it arrives today. I look forward to reading it and trying your recipes.

    Reply
  7. Can you tell me if it’s customary to eat Summer Rolls with or without chopsticks?

    Reply
  8. yes I did read this recipe. It look really good. I think I know how to cook the shells after reading this recipe. Thanks for sharing your recipe. Will write back and let ya know how it turned out.

    Thanks,
    John

    Reply
  9. Ok, so I think I gained 10 pounds eating these! Ok probably not possible, but still…Yummyummyummy. I didn’t put red pepper in mine, instead I julienned some cucumber. (it’s what I had around) But the lemongrass shrimp definitely puts these in a different category than what I usually get at a typical Vietnamese joint! So where is this julienne peeler you’ve talked about? Because I gave up on my mandolin doing a decent job and hand-julienned everything. Boo. Anyway, I will definitely have to make these again!

    Reply
  10. OOps, I meant to ask. Is there anyway to put a link for a WAV file that would pronounce the dishes? I’d love to know how to say some of the items. Thank you for the wonderful recipes and FABULOUS photographs. They make me want to cook everything.

    Reply
  11. OH YUmmmmmm and my tummy is full of egg rolls. I want to try spring rolls then, the summer rolls. Cashew sauce sounds terrific. Years ago, my mom took me to this wonderful restaurant near Hammond IN. They had some type of peanut butter sauce in their rolls. Can you imagine if they had been made with cashew butter and a bit of cayenne pepper? Ohhhhh here I go again. Yummmm

    Reply
  12. Hi Jaden! Love the new look of your site – and it looks like I have a lot of catching up to do! 🙂 Your boys are cuter than ever!!

    I can’t wait to try the Cashew/Almond Butter Dipping sauce (I’m allergic to peanuts). Do you prefer one over the other (cashew/almond)? I’m just not sure which one to try first…

    Reply
  13. Hola from Panama! I LOVE your blog, recipes and the photos…oh, your boys are gorgeous! Keep up the good work =)
    Melissa

    Reply
  14. What a great video! Your kids are precious.

    I must say that we eat summer rolls pretty much constantly in our house.
    I prefer the bahn trang wrappers that come in the package with the rose on them. I think they are a bit sturdier and easier to roll.

    One of our favorite things is to stuff them with the Cambodian Chicken Salad from the Elephant Walk cookbook.

    Reply
  15. Totally awesome and one of my very favorite foods.

    Reply
  16. You look gorgeous!!! You’re as hot as sichuan peppercorn salt on one side and hot chili sauce on the other! Thanks for your comments!

    Reply
  17. Hi,
    Just wanted to say that you have a very beautiful and inspiring blog.

    Reply
  18. Well done! Both the recipe AND the video. You look great!

    Reply
  19. You look hot on that picture!
    Now don’t tell your husband i said that.
    He doesn’t read your blog anyway, right, right? 🙂
    I love the cashew butter dipping sauce with the rolls, sounds great! I gotta try it.

    Reply
  20. Alejandra- Just use more vegetables and meat!! zucchini, green bell, arugula, tofu, napa cabbage, shredded chicken, shredded pork…

    Reply
  21. Great Great shot!
    By the way, you have been tagged for ’08!

    Reply
  22. These look so good! I keep a low carb diet and would want to replace the vermicelli with something. Do you (or any of your lovely readers)have any suggestions?

    Reply
  23. Hey SK – Love the video! I’m glad you’re not cooking Miss Oishii-eats, I’m sur her students would miss her! ;o)

    Reply
  24. I would have been a lot happier after making this recipe, as opposed to the “dip the rice papers in a pot of boiling water for one minute” recipe I used before. I had many ouchies.

    Reply
  25. Jaden,
    This recipe and video are great! I can’t wait to make my own. What type of wine would you drink with these? Riesling or Gewurztraminer?
    Kathleen

    Reply
  26. Good job with the show! Gotta watch those “uh”s and “um”s though…

    I missed the tool that you used to julienne the carrots. Could you show us that tool again?

    Reply
  27. Excellent video! Where can I get cashew butter, or what can I substitute it with?

    Reply
  28. You are gorgeous, Jaden! Excellent video and delicious looking recipe. Next time I’m in the states I’m going to look for one of those cool gadgets! Beautiful boys you have there, too. 🙂

    Reply
  29. How fun to finally watch you live, beautiful and cooking! Thanks for spreading the love of these rolls! They are very, very dear to my heart. I eat them almost every day and my world would be very gloomy without them.
    For our Lunar New Years Party this year , we are having our “very famous” seven course spring roll feast!! There’s gonna be lots of wrappin’ and rollin”. If you’re in Southern California, please stop by. You are always invited!

    Reply
  30. you are really gorgeous! the kids are so saint-looking…lol! i love this recipe and the tips on what to serve on chinese new year! it’s a big help since i am of chinese-spanish descent and we celebrate the chinese new year too. we usually give away “tikoy” or glutinous rice treats and receive them as well. i will definitely try the steamed fish and pastries.

    Reply
  31. I really enjoy summer rolls especially now that I am gluten-free. They are surprisingly easy to make, although my husband was better at making them pretty. haha Thanks for giving me a new twist.

    Reply
  32. Great video! Congratulations! I had bookmarked that recipe on Oishii Eats to try. I really like the sound of the mango in yours.

    Reply
  33. Yes. Please tell people they don’t need to literally soak rice paper or else it’ll turn into mush. Can you believe people argue with me about that point?

    Reply
  34. It’s always a treat to view one of your video—thanks! Those two young men are just getting so handsome!

    Reply
  35. Ahhh… your boys are so cute! They don’t seem like they could cause so much trouble. I grew up on summer rolls and it never occurred to me to use anything other than boiled shrimp and peanut butter. I’ll definitely have to give it a try.

    Reply
  36. the rolls looked refreshing, love them! your guys are always such cuties!

    Reply
  37. That was so wonderful to watch…you’re a natural :-)…love the tips :-)..and your li’l guys are real cuties.

    Reply
  38. Loved the video, Jaden. I’M MAKING THESE TONIGHT! Had lunch at P.F.Chang today and stopped at the asian market on the home, ’cause I was still craving . Picked up some spring roll wrappers and then watched your video. I’m frying them tho’ since it’s winter and cold where I am. I’ve always put my wrappers in warm water so thanks for the tip, I’ll do it your way tonight.
    Your sons are adorable!

    Reply
  39. Oh yum! I must try these…I keep meaning to have a “roll” party with friends

    either that or sushi and porn

    oh the hilarity!

    Reply
  40. Nicely done! 🙂

    Reply
  41. Thanks! I think my problem is that I use like almost boiling water to do the wrapper & its pretty wet too. I will have to try making summer rolls again!

    Reply
  42. Hey, elder son looks like you and does younger son look like his dad? ^_^
    Totally adorable!
    Have you seen the way some guys roll fresh spring rolls? Some end up with ‘bags’.

    Reply
  43. Oh my gosh, your sons are so adoreable! I’m so glad they are enjoying their treats.

    I’ll watch that video later when I get home from work, I can’t seem to get away with watching that stuff while at work, lol!

    Reply
  44. That’s awesome–congrats on the TV bit. The food looks good, too. 😉

    Reply
  45. Nice job on the TV spot Jaden! These look great. I learned how to make them in a Vietnamese cooking class a couple of years ago and haven’t tried it myself yet. Now, I want to try them!

    Reply
  46. I loved watching that video, Jaden! You look spectacular. Thanks for the introduction to Oishii Eats too! This is actually something my husband loves, his nounou was Vietnamese and she used to make these for him when he was a kid. I bet he forgot he told me that. I think I’ll give them a try sometime in the next week and surprise him.

    Reply
  47. Jaden you looked so cute on the video! I am going to make Oishii’s recipe some time soon. I even have the julienne peeler! I am glad there was time for the demo!

    Are you sure those darling boys knocked over your tripod…they look way to innocent to do that. It must have been the villain they were chasing, who did the dirty deed.

    Reply
  48. Yayy.. Now I have to make those rolls. May be for superbowl…hmmm..

    You look hot in that picture btw;)

    Reply
  49. These look great!!

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  50. I love these rolls. I don’t like fish sauce so i will use soya sauce.

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  51. Hey Susie- really, any brand! I wonder if Walmart had pizza stones. I have expensive ones and cheap ones – both work just fine.

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  52. Great job, Jaden!!
    I’m a sucker for anything with shrimp!

    BTW- I got my box! Woo Hoo!!!!

    I am sooo psyched… I have to go find something to dip at lunch today!

    ThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYou!

    TBG

    Reply
  53. It looks delicious! You did a great job! I’m so excited because I just got my Artisan Bread in 5 book! I’m so bummed though because my kids just broke my baking stone…so I must get a new one. Any recommendations???

    Reply
  54. Awesome! Now, we need to see Jaden’s Famous Summer PB&J. Plus, I can’t tell you how great it is to see my friend the mango putting in an appearance. I love mango. I would marry a mango if it were legal.

    Enjoy your day.

    Reply

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