“What is a light Thai appetizer that can be vegetarian and gluten-free that everyone will enjoy? Tricky…hmm…oh, I got it! Thai fresh spring rolls!!!”
I was pondering this awhile ago when I offered to bring an appetizer to a baby shower. I knew a few of my friends going were GF and vegetarian, so my Thai fresh spring rolls would be the perfect appetizer that everyone could dig into.
But I didn’t have all the ingredients on hand that I usually like in my spring rolls, like bean thread vermicelli noodles.
But I just left those out, and used what we had, and added in fresh peppers, purple cabbage, mint, cilantro, and I made my legit Thai peanut dipping sauce to go with it.
The legit Thai peanut sauce got rave reviews, and the fresh Thai spring rolls were all quickly devoured by the gluten-free, the vegetarians, and the no dietary restrictions alike!
But I was reminded during the process of making the fresh Thai spring rolls that it can be tricky!
Thai Fresh Spring Roll Recipe Tips
That’s why I wanted to pass on some tips to you, so you can avoid the clumsy mistakes I’ve made and rock it way quicker than I did:
Don’t overload your spring rolls! I’ve added way too much ingredients, and then they don’t stay together well and explode their goodness everywhere. They still taste delicious, but they are hard to handle. Add the bare minimum of ingredients, especially on your first roll and then see if that was enough. If after your trial roll, you think there is room for a little more, add more on the next one.
Make sure you wet the rice paper until it’s soft, but still has some firmness to it. If it’s too soft it will be hard to handle when making the spring rolls and goo together, been there! Just dip the paper in the warm water for about 5 seconds on one side, and 5 on the next and you should be good to go. It will still feel firm to the touch, but that’s ok, it will soften as you add in the veggies and roll it up. If once it’s rolled up, it still feels firm, feel free to sprinkle some water on it to soften it some.
It doesn’t matter too much what goes in your Thai fresh spring rolls, but it’s all about the sauce! I like to look around in our veggie drawer and use up whatever veggies are leftover and the colors look good together. But really the star of the show is always our Legit Thai Peanut Sauce full of Thai flavors like Thai curry paste, natural peanut butter, and coconut milk! Soooo gooood!
Fresh spring rolls apparently started in China, but now are all over the world, and many countries each have their different version. In Thailand, you will find fresh spring rolls mostly in the Northeastern area of Thailand.
But no matter where they come from, Thai fresh spring rolls with Thai peanut sauce are definitely my favorite appetizer to bring to any event whether it’s a potluck or baby shower. Everyone always loves them because they are so fresh, light, gluten-free and of course have an amazing sauce!!
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Thai Fresh Spring Rolls
- Total Time: 40
- Yield: 10 rolls 1x
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
Thai fresh spring rolls with a legit Thai peanut sauce are so refreshing, and the perfect gluten-free appetizer to bring to any event!
Ingredients
- 2 cups thinly chopped red, yellow and orange peppers
- 1 cup chopped purple cabbage
- 1 cup fresh herbs of choice, we like a mix of mint, cilantro, and Thai basil
- 10 leaves of baby bib lettuce
- 20 cooked, deveined, tail-off shrimp of choice (optional)
- 1 serving of rice vermicelli noodles (optional)
- 10 rice paper wrappers
- Legit Thai peanut sauce
Instructions
- Soak the front and back of rice paper in warm water, each side for about 5 seconds until softened some, but still firm.
- Lay the rice paper on a plastic cutting board or ceramic plate. (The rice paper sticks more to wooden cutting boards, so I usually avoid using those when making the fresh spring rolls).
- Lay a few of each ingredient on the rice paper towards the bottom third of it. I start with putting down two shrimp (if using) and put everything else on top of the shrimp. With each ingredient, start with a smaller amount than you’d expect, so you can gauge if you need more or not. If you add too much it will be hard to roll it and become an explosion of veggies, which isn’t bad, but not what you are aiming for.
- Roll up the spring roll like rolling a burrito. Start with rolling up the middle part first, and then folding in the sides, rolling up as tightly as possible.
- Once it’s rolled up, you can either cut it in half with a serrated knife, or leave it as is, your preference.
- Make the legit Thai peanut sauce.
- Serve with the sauce! Enjoy!!
Notes
If you are bringing these to a party, make sure you place them apart on whatever serving dish you are using because they will stick together. You can also wrap them in plastic wrap individually if you want to avoid them sticking together before arriving at an event.
- Prep Time: 20
- Cook Time: 20
- Category: Spring Rolls
- Cuisine: Thai
Those look great… Even tho they are super healthy 😀 Actually I could do with more low fat food… putting on some pounds staying home all day!
Yes! We could all do with some healthy food these days for sure! Lol!