Gỏi Cuốn - Vietnamese Spring Rolls

If phở were the most popular Vietnamese dish outside of Viet Nam, I would guess that bánh mì were the second, and gỏi cuốn the third.

I make phở regularly when it's soup weather, but I've never attempted to make bánh mì. For starters, there's no way I can replicate the bread. And when one can buy a bánh mì for less than $4, why go through the trouble to make it at home?!

Which brings us to gỏi cuốn. This is a refreshing food item that is better made at home than at restaurants/delis, IMO. The home version will consist of the exact amount of ingredients that you want, and of course, they'll be fresher. What are the ingredients, you ask.

There's pork belly:

Shrimp:

Rice vermicelli:

And the ubiquitous fresh veggies and herbs. In this case mint, chives, lettuce, and bean sprouts:

Which all gets wrapped up in rice paper:

Here's the finished spring roll along side with the hoisin & peanut dipping sauce.

Mời ăn!