Fresh, vibrant Summer Roll Bowls with peanut sauce—no rolling required! Quick, easy, and perfect for busy families. Customize with your favorite toppings!
Prep Time10 minutesmins
Cook Time10 minutesmins
Total Time20 minutesmins
Course: Family Dinner Ideas
Cuisine: New Zealand
Keyword: summer roll bowls, summer rolls, noodle bowls
In a small pot, heat a little oil over medium heat. Sauté the onion and garlic until softened and fragrant, about 2-3 minutes. If you'd like a little heat, you can add chili flakes at this stage for extra flavor. (I usually add them later to keep a milder version for my non-chili-loving child.)
Add the peanut butter, coconut cream, and water, stir until melted, combined, and smooth. Once the peanut butter, coconut cream, and water are combined and smooth, you can adjust the sauce's thickness by adding more water a tablespoon at a time.
Add the soy sauce, and lime or lemon juice, stir through. Taste, if you haven't added chilli and you wish to, you can add it now.
Set the sauce aside to cool—note that it will thicken a bit as it cools, so you can add a splash of water if you’d like it to be a bit thinner for drizzling or dipping.
Summer Roll Bowl
If you have not already, poach your chicken breast or cook your prawns.
Place the vermicelli noodles in a bowl and cover with boiling water for 2 minutes, then drain and rinse with cold water.
Thinly slice, grate or shred your vegetables: avocado, carrot, cucumber, lettuce
Assemble your summer roll bowls, arrange noodles and vegetables in the bowls, top with chicken or prawns, dress with the peanut sauce then garish with sliced chilli, chopped peanuts and mint leaves.
Enjoy!
Video
Notes
The beauty of these bowls is that the ingredients don’t need to be hot! Swap poached chicken for leftover roast chicken or a store-bought rotisserie chicken for a dinner ready in 15 minutes.Make it a fun, DIY family-style meal! Put all the ingredients in the center of the table and let everyone build their own bowls just the way they like itPEANUT SAUCEOnion and garlic:Chilli flakes: This is optional—use as much or as little as your family prefers! You can also try fresh chili, cayenne pepper, or a dash of Tabasco for some heat.Peanut butter: Smooth or crunchy works, whichever you have on hand!Coconut cream: You can swap this for coconut milk, though it’ll make the sauce a little thinner. Water: This helps adjust the sauce consistency to your liking. Brown sugar: Sweetness is key to a great peanut sauce! Use coconut sugar, honey, or maple syrup if you prefer.Soy sauce: Tamari, gluten-free soy sauce, or coconut amines can be used.SUMMER ROLL BOWLProtein: My summer roll bowls usually feature poached chicken or cooked prawns, but tofu or marinated steak can be just as delicious.Vermicelli: Are thin rice or mung bean noodles, they can also be known as glass noodles.Vegetables: Use your family's favorite in-season vegetables, in this recipe I have used avocado, carrot, lettuce, red cabbage, and cucumber. Shredded green beans, edamame, guacamole, thinly sliced capsicum/bell peppers, spinach, or kale also work well.GARNISHGarnishes make these bowls delicious. I like the combination of fresh mint leaves and roast peanuts with a little chili. You can tailor the garnishes to your favorites. Cilantro/coriander, Thai basil, crispy shallots, and chopped cashews are all lovely too.