Thai Shrimp Rolls with Peanut Sauce
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These Thai shrimp rolls with peanut sauce are filled with fresh vegetables, juicy shrimp, and served with a creamy peanut-lime dipping sauce. They’re a healthy appetizer that’s easy to make ahead and perfect for parties, lunches, and warm-weather meals.
Looking for a vegetarian version? Try my fresh spring rolls.
What are Thai shrimp rolls?
Thai shrimp rolls are fresh rice paper rolls filled with shrimp, vegetables, herbs, and sometimes rice vermicelli noodles. They’re wrapped in softened rice paper and served with a dipping sauce, most commonly peanut sauce.
Unlike fried spring rolls, these are served fresh, making them lighter and healthier while still feeling filling.
Before you start
If it’s your first time making shrimp rice paper rolls, don’t worry. Most people think rolling them is the hard part, but it’s actually very simple once you’ve made one or two.
The biggest mistake is soaking the rice paper too long. It should still feel slightly firm when you remove it from the water. The wrapper continues softening while you add the fillings.
Another thing that helps is not overfilling the rolls. It’s tempting to add lots of vegetables, noodles, and shrimp, but smaller rolls are much easier to wrap neatly.
Most of the work is simply preparing the fillings. Once everything is ready, assembling the rolls goes surprisingly quickly. And don’t worry if the first one isn’t perfect. The first roll is usually the practice roll!
Praew ♡
Learn Thai cooking step by step
My cookbook is a combination of authentic Thai recipes and Western dishes cooked with Thai flavors and ingredients. It’s a great starting point if you’re new to Thai cooking or want to cook it more often.
Ingredient notes & substitutes
You can find everything at Asian grocery stores or larger supermarkets. For exact measurements, check the recipe card below.
Ingredients for the rolls
- Rice paper wrappers: Make sure you’re buying rice paper wrappers and not spring roll wrappers meant for frying. The wrappers should soften enough to roll but still feel slightly firm when you take them out of the water.
- Shrimp: I usually use medium or large cooked shrimp. Chicken, pork, tofu, or salmon all work well too, so use whatever you enjoy most.
- Vegetables: I like using lettuce, carrot, cucumber, green mango, green onions, mint, and cilantro. This is one of those recipes that’s easy to customize with whatever vegetables you already have in the fridge.
- Rice vermicelli noodles: I like adding rice vermicelli because they make the rolls a little more filling without making them heavy. They’re optional, but I almost always include them.
Peanut sauce ingredients
- Peanut butter: I usually use smooth peanut butter because it mixes more easily.
- Water: Used to loosen the sauce until it’s easy to dip.
- Fresh lime juice: Peanut sauce can feel quite rich on its own. The lime helps keep it fresh and balanced.
- Honey: Balances the lime juice and gives the sauce a gentle sweetness.
- Sesame oil: You only need a little, but it adds a nice flavor that works really well with the peanut butter.
Not a fan of peanut sauce? Thai shrimp rolls are also delicious with my Thai sweet chili sauce for a sweeter option or my nam jim talay sauce if you prefer something spicy and tangy.
How to make shrimp rolls
Step 1: Make the peanut sauce. Combine the peanut butter, water, honey, lime juice, and sesame oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir until smooth and creamy.
Step 2: Cook the rice vermicelli. Cook the rice vermicelli according to the package instructions. Drain and rinse under cold water to stop the cooking and prevent sticking.
Step 3: Cook the shrimp. Cook the shrimp (or your favorite protein) until pink and opaque, then set aside to cool. If using large shrimp, slice them in half lengthwise so they fit more easily inside the rolls.
Step 4: Prepare the vegetables. Wash and dry all vegetables and herbs thoroughly. Slice the vegetables into thin strips and keep everything nearby before you start rolling. Having everything prepared first makes the rolling process much easier.
Step 5: Soften the rice paper. Fill a large bowl or shallow dish with lukewarm water. Dip one rice paper wrapper into the water for about 10 seconds. The wrapper should feel flexible but still slightly firm when you remove it.
Don’t wait until it’s completely soft. It will continue softening while you add the filling.
Step 6: Add the filling. Place the softened wrapper on a clean work surface. Arrange a small amount of lettuce, vegetables, herbs, rice vermicelli, and shrimp near the lower third of the wrapper.
Step 7: Roll. Fold the bottom edge of the rice paper over the filling. Fold in both sides, then continue rolling tightly until completely sealed. Repeat with the remaining wrappers and filling ingredients.
Step 8: Serve. Serve immediately with the peanut sauce for dipping. For the best texture, enjoy the rolls the same day they’re made.
A good shrimp roll should taste fresh and light with plenty of texture from the vegetables, herbs, and noodles. The peanut sauce should be creamy, slightly sweet, and tangy from the lime juice, bringing all the fillings together.
Make ahead tips
These are great for meal prep, but they’re best eaten within 24 hours.
To keep them fresh:
- Wrap each roll individually in plastic wrap.
- Store in an airtight container.
- Refrigerate for up to 2 days.
If the rice paper starts feeling dry, lightly cover the rolls with a damp paper towel before serving.
Thai Shrimp Rolls with Peanut Sauce
Equipment
- Cutting board
- Sharp knife
- Large mixing bowl (for softening the rice paper)
- Small saucepan (for the peanut sauce)
- Pot (for cooking the rice vermicelli)
- Colander
Ingredients
For the rolls
- 30 rice paper wrappers, round spring roll wrappers
- 3.5 oz rice vermicelli noodles, cooked
- 15-30 shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 1 ripe mango, julienned
- 1 large carrot, julienned
- 1 cucumber, julienned
- 8 lettuce leaves, torn into pieces
- 8 green onions, sliced into long strips
- ¼ cup mint leaves
- ¼ cup cilantro leaves
For the peanut sauce
- 1 cup peanut butter
- ½ cup water
- 5 tbsp honey
- 4 tbsp fresh lime juice
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
Instructions
- Make the peanut sauce: Combine the peanut butter, water, honey, lime juice, and sesame oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir until smooth and creamy. Set aside to cool.
- Cook the noodles: Cook the rice vermicelli according to the package instructions. Drain, rinse under cold water, and set aside.
- Cook the shrimp: Cook the shrimp until pink and opaque, about 2 minutes per side. Let cool slightly.
- Prepare the fillings: Julienne the mango, carrot, and cucumber. Slice the green onions and wash the lettuce, mint, and cilantro.
- Soften the rice paper: Dip one rice paper wrapper in lukewarm water for 5–10 seconds until flexible but not completely soft. Place it on a clean work surface.
- Fill and roll: Layer a little lettuce, rice vermicelli, vegetables, herbs, and shrimp in the center of the wrapper. Fold the bottom edge over the filling, fold in the sides, then roll tightly to seal.
- Repeat and serve: Repeat with the remaining ingredients. Serve immediately with the peanut sauce for dipping.
Notes
- Use the nutrition card in this recipe as a guideline.
This is exactly how I was envisioning my Thai spring rolls. Great roll technique and storage advice. I will be saving this page for repeated future reference. Thank you!
You’re very welcome, Alex! Thank you for trying the recipe.
If I’m reading this correctly, the recipe makes 30 rolls but what is the serving that matches up with the nutrition information?
Hello. Values of all the checked ingredients will be added together and divided by 30, the number of servings for this recipe. Most of the kcal is in the sauce, which is added to the shrimp rolls for calculation. The rolls on their own are very low in kcal.
Excellent. Had a little trouble rolling, but soon figured out the method. Love these rolls.
Thank you!