Gỏi cuốn (Fresh Spring Rolls)

Ingredients

• Rice paper wrappers · 22cm8 sheets
• Cooked shrimp · halved lengthwise16
• Rice vermicelli · cooked80 g
• Lettuce or butterhead8 leaves
• Cucumber · julienned0.5
• Carrot · julienned0.5
• Cilantro, mint, basil · herbs, optional1 handful
• Peanut dipping sauce
• Hoisin sauce3 tbsp
• Peanut butter1 tbsp
• Water · to thin3 tbsp
• Lime juice1 tsp
• Chopped peanuts · to garnish1 tbsp

Steps

1. Cook the vermicelli per the package, rinse in cold water, and drain. Cook the shrimp and halve them lengthwise. Prep the vegetables and herbs.

   ⏲ 7 min

2. Stir the sauce (hoisin, peanut butter, water, lime juice) together and top with chopped peanuts.

   ⏲ 2 min

3. Fill a wide dish with warm water, dip a rice paper 5–8 seconds, and lay it on a board (it firms up but softens quickly).

   ⏲ 30 sec

4. On the lower third, layer lettuce, vermicelli, cucumber, carrot, and herbs, and begin rolling tightly.

   ⏲ 40 sec

5. Halfway, fold in the sides, lay 2–3 shrimp cut-side up near the top, then finish rolling to seal.

   ⏲ 40 sec

6. Roll the rest the same way and serve right away with the dipping sauce (keep the rolls apart so they don't stick).

Tips & Variations

The basics behind this dish

• Knife Skills: Grip, Cuts, and Why Size MattersHow you hold the knife matters more than how fast you cut. The pinch grip, the claw hand, and why uniform size is a cooking decision rather than a cosmetic one.
• Salt: When You Add It Matters More Than How MuchThe same amount of salt either draws water out or seasons all the way through, depending on when it goes in. Osmosis, seasoning in layers, and why salt types are not interchangeable by volume.
• Heat Control: Preheating, Oil, and Reading the PanThe same ingredients become a different dish depending on pan temperature. When to add the oil, how to read heat by sound, and which dishes want low heat instead.