Traditional Vietnamese Spring Rolls (Goi Cuon)

• servings: 4 servings
• active time: 1 hour
• total time: 1 hour 15 minutes

Ingredients

2 cloves garlic (minced)

1/4 cup hoisin sauce

1 tbsp peanut butter

1 cup water

1 tsp corn starch

1 tbsp roasted peanuts (optional, chopped into small pieces)

1 lb pork belly (thinly sliced)

1 lb shrimp (halved)

5 oz vermicelli noodles

12 pieces rice paper

1 head lettuce

1 carrot (julienned)

1 cucumber (julienned)

mint to taste

Directions

Vietnamese Peanut Sauce

Heat a tablespoon of oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds.

Add hoison sauce and peanut butter. Saute for another 30 seconds.

Add the water and bring it up to a boil.

Mix corn starch with 1 tbsp of water and add to the sauce. Simmer until it thickens (1-2 minutes).

Pour it into a bowl and set aside. Top with peanuts right before serving.

Spring Rolls

Bring 8 cups of water to a boil and add in the pork belly. Cook the pork belly in boiling water for an hour or until the internal temperature is 160 degrees F.

While the pork belly is cooking, bring 6 cups of water to a boil in a separate pot. Add in the vermicelli noodles and cook for 2-3 minutes. Sample the noodles to make sure they are done. Set aside.

After you cook the vermicelli noodles, bring 6 cups of water to a boil in the same pot and add in the shrimp. Cook the shrimp for 2-3 minutes or until the shrimp turns orange and the meat is orange and white. Set aside to rest for 10 minutes. Slice the shrimp in half.

Slice all your vegetables at this point. Slice your cucumbers and carrots into thin slices.

At this point, your pork belly should be done. Once it's done cooking, set it aside to rest for 10 minutes until it is cool enough to handle. After it rests, shave off the skin and then slice it into thin pieces. The pork belly should be as thin as possible and about 1 inch wide. This shape will help you wrap the spring rolls more easily.

Now you're ready to create the spring rolls. Dip the rice paper in warm water to hydrate it. Lay the rice paper on a flat plate. Place lettuce, mint, carrots, cucumbers, noodles, and pork belly on one end of the rice paper.

Roll it halfway. Make sure to roll it as tight as possible, so it's easier to dip and eat. Place 3 shrimp right in front of your roll. This will allow for the shrimp to appear neatly at the end.

Roll over the shrimp as tightly as possible. Tuck in the sides of the roll before completing your last roll.

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 3 spring rolls
• Calories: 820 kcal
• Total Fat: 65 g
• Saturated Fat: 23 g
• Cholesterol: 368 mg
• Sodium: 997 mg
• Total Carbohydrate: 19 g
• Dietary Fiber: 3 g
• Total Sugars: 5 g
• Protein: 38 g