Summer Roll Bowls

Love a Vietnamese summer roll but don’t want to fuss with the wrapper? Meet your new favorite summer dinner. Rice noodles, shrimp, avocado, thinly sliced veggies, and a plethora of greens are tossed together in a tangy nước chấm dressing for a refreshing dinner twist.

The dressings:
Vietnamese summer rolls are typically served with a few different dipping sauces: a spicy sweet and sour nước chấm and a thicker peanut dressing grounded in hoisin sauce and spiked with chili garlic paste. In this spirit, I’ve adapted the classic nước chấm to become a light vinaigrette for the noodles and vegetables, imbuing them with flavor without weighing them down. The peanut dressing is perfect for spooning over the assembled dish so you get pockets of that flavor as you enjoy the bowl.

The shrimp:
Poaching might seem like the obvious way to cook the shrimp for this type of dish, but rather than bother with a full pot of water and an ice bath, I’ve taken a cue from Andrea Nguyen and chosen to steam instead. Cooking the shrimp in a small amount of water that’s been highly seasoned with vinegar, salt, and sugar infuses them with tons of flavor in just a few minutes. Be sure to watch carefully once the shrimp go into the pot and stir often, especially if your pot isn’t big enough for the shrimp to lie in a single layer. You want to be sure they’re cooked evenly and take them off the heat the moment they’re pink and opaque. No one likes overcooked shrimp.

Assembling the bowl:
In this age of instagram, everyone wants to see a beautifully displayed bowl with each gorgeous ingredient laid out in its own distinct wedge of space. It’s a great look for a photo shoot, but does it actually eat well? In this case—believe it or not—I actually prefer to enjoy my bowl with all the components separated into their quadrants; this allows me to create a range of different bites by mixing and matching the ingredients. It’s sort of a choose-your-own-adventure meal. But if you prefer to toss everything together all at once, please be my guest!

Make ahead and storage:
Both the nước chấm and the peanut dressing can be made up to 3 days in advance and stored in airtight containers in the refrigerator. (Be aware that the spice in the nước chấm will get stronger as it sits.) The shrimp and the noodles can be cooked up to 2 days before and refrigerated in an airtight container, but I recommend waiting to prep the cucumber, carrot, lettuce, and avocado until just before you’re ready to assemble the bowls. Once cut, they will not keep well.

Did you try making this? Let us know how it went in the comments!