Gỏi Cuốn: Fresh Vietnamese Summer Rolls

Gỏi cuốn — fresh summer rolls — are the dish foreigners often discover first and remember most fondly. Translucent rice paper wrapped around shrimp, pork, herbs and rice noodles, eaten dipped in peanut-hoisin sauce.

What it is

A round sheet of bánh tráng (rice paper) softened in warm water, then rolled around a layer of pink shrimp halves, a slice or two of poached pork belly, a tangle of bún (thin rice vermicelli), and a generous bundle of fresh herbs — typically lettuce, mint, perilla and chives, with one chive stalk poking out of one end of the roll like a tail. Served at room temperature, never hot, with a small dish of peanut hoisin sauce.

Origin and history

The dish is southern in origin and comparatively young — early-20th-century at most. It is the cold, fresh counterpart to nem rán/chả giò, the fried spring roll. The technique of rolling rice paper around fillings is, however, ancient and shared with neighbouring cuisines.

Where to try it

In HCMC, Quán Ngon at 160 Pasteur in District 1 makes a textbook version for around 60,000 VND for two rolls. Cuốn N Roll in District 1 is a casual sit-down spot that does several variations. In Hanoi, the southern-style rolls are best at southern-run restaurants like Quán Ăn Ngon at 18 Phan Bội Châu. Markets across the country sell them pre-rolled for breakfast for around 10,000 VND each — fine, but the herbs have usually wilted.

How to eat it

Pick up the roll with your hands, dip the end into the sauce, bite. Do not try to use chopsticks — the wrapper is too delicate and the rolls are meant to be eaten with fingers. Some southern households serve the same ingredients as cuốn tự cuốn — "roll your own" — with everything laid out on the table.

Regional variations

The shrimp-and-pork version is the southern standard. Central Vietnam has bò bía, a related roll filled with Chinese sausage, dried shrimp, jicama and egg. North Vietnam tends to stick with fried spring rolls and treats gỏi cuốn as a southern import.

Honest take

Gỏi cuốn is the antidote to a heavy day of eating. If you have just survived a bowl of bún bò Huế and a beer, two rolls and a sauce are the perfect light dinner. The sauce matters more than the roll: a flat, sweet supermarket-style peanut sauce can ruin an otherwise excellent roll.

Related reading: Nem rán and chả giò, Bánh xèo, HCMC food guide, Street food etiquette, Central and southern cuisine.