• Skip to main content
  • Skip to header left navigation
  • Skip to header right navigation
  • Skip to site footer
es_ES Español
  • About
    • Meet Tracy!
    • Contact Me
    • Disclaimers & Disclosures
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Cookie Policy
    • Privacy Policy
  • Holidays
    • New Years Eve
    • Valentine’s Day
    • St. Patrick’s Day
    • Easter
    • Fourth of July
    • Halloween
    • Thanksgiving
    • Christmas
  • es_ES
Oh, The Things We'll Make!

Oh, The Things We'll Make!

Make it yourself so that you control the ingredients!

  • Recipes
    • Appetizers & Snacks
    • Soups & Salads
    • Breakfast
    • Lunch & Dinner
    • Desserts & Sweets
      • frozen treats
    • Breads & Wraps
    • MIY Pantry Basics
    • Condiments & Sauces
    • Beverages & Smoothies
    • Story Archives
  • Make it Yourself
    • Arts & Crafts
    • Face & Body
      • Cleansers, Soaps, & Gels
      • Deodorants
      • Hair
      • Skin Care
      • Oral Care
      • Baby & Toddler Care
    • Home & Garden
      • Cleaning & Laundry
      • Garden & Hens
    • Soap Making
    • Upcycling
  • About
    • Meet Tracy!
      • More About Me
    • Contact Me
    • Disclaimers & Disclosures
    • Cookie Policy
    • Privacy Policy
  • Recipes
    • Appetizers & Snacks
    • Soups & Salads
    • Beverages & Smoothies
    • Breakfast
    • Lunch & Dinner
    • Desserts & Sweets
      • frozen treats
    • Breads & Wraps
    • Condiments & Sauces
    • MIY Pantry Basics
    • Story Archives
  • Make it Yourself
    • Arts & Crafts
    • Natural Face & Body
      • Cleansers, Soaps, & Gels
      • Natural Skin Care
      • Natural Hair care
      • Oral Care
      • Deodorants
      • Baby & Toddler Care
    • Soap Making
    • Home & Garden
      • Cleaning & Laundry
      • Garden & Hens
    • Photography
    • Upcycling
  • Holidays
    • New Years Eve
    • Valentine’s Day
    • St. Patrick’s Day
    • Easter
    • Fourth of July
    • Halloween
    • Thanksgiving
    • Christmas
es_ES Español
Closeup of a spring roll that has beeb cut in half on a plate showing the colorful rainbow of vegetables inside.

Eat the Rainbow Spring Rolls

Last Modified: April 19, 2020 // by Tracy Ariza, DDS // March 28, 2020 I may receive a commission if you purchase through links in this post. Learn more here.

es_ES Español

Jump to Recipe Print Recipe
Eat the rainbow! By eating vegetables with a wide variety of colors helps ensure you're eating healthy doses of a variety of vitamins and antioxidants. These rainbow spring rolls help incorporate a healthy dose of colorful vegetables in fun and easy way! #eatherainbow #rainbow #appetizers #healthysnacks #asiancuisine #healthyrecipes #thethingswellmake #miy
Eat the rainbow! By eating vegetables with a wide variety of colors helps ensure you're eating healthy doses of a variety of vitamins and antioxidants. These rainbow spring rolls help incorporate a healthy dose of colorful vegetables in fun and easy way! #eatherainbow #rainbow #appetizers #healthysnacks #asiancuisine #healthyrecipes #thethingswellmake #miy
Eating the rainbow and getting in a healthy dose of colorful vegetables is fun and easy with these colorful rainbow spring rolls.

Eating the rainbow and getting in a healthy dose of colorful vegetables is fun and easy with these colorful rainbow spring rolls.

A plate full of spring rolls filled with colorful vegetables. One has been cut in half to show the filling.
Pin this recipe for later!

Now that spring has finally arrived, I have started to crave more fruits and veggies and have been looking for fun new ways to incorporate more of them into my diet.

If you’re stuck in house confinement like we are here in Spain, I’d suggest trying to incorporate as many vegetables into your meals as you can rather than living off packaged foods and canned goods. Despite some foods and toilet paper disappearing off the store shelves, vegetables seem to stay well-stocked here during the current health crisis.

Now, though, it’s more important than ever to keep your immune system strong. One great way to do so is to eat the rainbow.

What does it mean to “Eat the Rainbow”?

Eating the rainbow is the idea that we should try to eat a wide variety of colorful fruits and vegetables. Generally speaking, the brighter the food, the more it is highly packed with healthy vitamins and antioxidants.

When you eat a diet filled with vibrant foods, you are more likely to be getting the nutrients you need than when you are eating a bland-looking diet of brown and white foods like bread and potatoes.

Not only is “eating the rainbow” a healthy way of living, but bright colors also make foods more fun and appealing.

Eating bright foods in salads and smoothies is a great way to get in your fruits and veggies, but it can get boring after a while.

Ingredients

These spring rolls only need a few simple ingredients.

The spring roll wrappers hold it all together, of course. Because they’re thin and translucent, you can get a peek at the beautiful colors within them even before you take your first bite.

Then you have the fillings which mainly consist of veggies. Once you have the prep work done of cleaning and cutting them, you can whip up a batch of these in no time. I used my food processor, and that made the process quick and easy.

Overhead view of 5 bowls with a rainbow of fillings for spring rolls, including sliced red peppers, carrots, red cabbage, green peppers, and bean vermicelli turned yellow with curcuma.
Red and green peppers, carrots, red cabbage, and turmeric enhanced bean noodles make a rainbow of colors for this dish!

I kept my spring rolls vegan, but you can easily add in some fried egg or ground meat if you so prefer.

Health benefits of colorful pigments

Foods that are bright in color tend to be great sources of a variety of pigments. While they are all unique, most share having anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties.

Red

Many red foods are high in lycopene. Lycopene is a red-colored carotenoid found in foods such as tomatoes, watermelons, and papaya. Red peppers also contain lycopene as well as other antioxidants.

I chose red peppers to add a pop of red to my spring rolls, but you can also choose a different red food like tomatoes.

Orange

Many orange foods like carrots are great sources of beta-carotene. Beta carotene is an antioxidant that helps protect cells within our bodies from damage due to oxidation. It is also a provitamin that can be converted into vitamin A.

Beta carotene has been found to be effective in treating sun sensitivity in certain people as well as photoaging. It also helps prevent vision loss in age-related macular degeneration. It may help lower breast cancer risk and is thought to help prevent certain complications during and after pregnancy. (Source)

Combining carotenoids like beta-carotene and lycopene can increase their activity against free radicals. (One more reason to eat a rainbow of colors all at once!)

Yellow

While many yellow foods are also high in beta carotene, I chose to use turmeric to brighten up my rainbow. Turmeric is a very bright yellow color. Its pigment is so strong that it’s perfect to use as a natural food coloring.

Turmeric is the best source of curcumin, a strong antioxidant that is also anti-inflammatory. Curcumin may suppress tumor formation, making it a potential ally in the fight against cancer.

To help increase the bioavailability of curcumin in turmeric, add some freshly ground black pepper. Piperine, the active component of black pepper, is a known bioavailability enhancer.

Closeup of a spring roll that has beeb cut in half on a plate showing the colorful rainbow of vegetables inside.

Green

Green vegetables are often rich in vitamins, minerals, and chlorophyll. Chlorophyll is a green pigment found in plants, algae, and cyanobacteria. It helps plants absorb light and is important for photosynthesis.

Leafy greens are especially rich in chlorophyll, but it can be found in most plants.

Chlorophyllin, a water-soluble analog of chlorophyll, has been shown to be a very effective antioxidant that can protect our mitochondria from all sorts of oxidative stressors.

For the green in your rainbow spring rolls, you can use leafy greens such as spinach, or use green peppers as I did.

Green peppers are rich in a variety of vitamins and minerals. They are especially high in vitamin C, perfect for supporting immune function (which is especially important these days)!

Violet

I skipped over blue in this rainbow, and went right to the beautiful violet found in (ironically) “red” cabbage. Red cabbage gets its beautiful violet color from an anthocyanin pigment.

Anthocyanin pigments are especially fun because they change colors depending on the pH of their environment. I found that out almost by accident when I rinsed the bowl with a few small cabbage pieces left behind and noticed that the rinse water was a beautiful baby blue color! (In acidic environments, it will turn pink or red.)

I ended up using that to my advantage to make a fun, natural color-changing food coloring!

Like the other pigments, anthocyanins are anti-inflammatory antioxidants. They may help prevent diseases such as cancer, diabetes, and metabolic diseases.

A closeup of a rainbow spring roll that has been cut in half to show the filling inside. In the background, 3 rainbow spring rolls are on a plate.

Preparation

Clean and slice the veggies

  • Prepare the vegetables by washing them thoroughly and then cutting them into small pieces. I used the slicing blade of my food processor to finely slice the bell peppers and the red cabbage. I then used the grating blade to finely grate the peeled carrot.
  • slicing the bell peppers in a food processor
  • Grating a carrot in a food processor.
  • Shredding red cabbage in a food processor.

Prepare the vermicelli

  • Boil some water and add in the rice or bean vermicelli, soaking for as long as instructed on the package of your particular noodles.
  • Meanwhile, heat some extra virgin olive oil or coconut oil in a frying pan and add in a finely minced garlic clove. Once you have finished soaking the noodles, drain them and throw them into the pan with the oil and garlic. Add some turmeric and salt and sauté all of the ingredients together for a minute or two. Season them with plenty of freshly ground black pepper to help increase the bioavailability of the turmeric.
  • Once you have prepared all of the colored ingredients, separate them into bowls to make it easier to put the spring rolls together.
  • Overhead view of bean vermicelli in a stainless steel bowl soaking in warm water.
  • overhead view of a stainless steel pan with olive oil and minced garlic
  • Overhead view of bean vermicelli in a stainless steel pan with turmeric sprinkled on top.
  • Overhead view of cooked bean vermicelli in a pan. (It's yellow because it has been seasoned with turmeric.)
Preparing the vermicelli

One thing I noticed when making these again with a different type of bean vermicelli is one turned orange rather than yellow. I thought I had added too much turmeric, but then later realized it was a reaction with the particular noodles used.

Overhead view of 2 bowls of bean vermicelli seasoned with turmeric: one is yellow and the other is orange.
Two different brands of bean vermicelli seasoned with turmeric

What’s even more interesting is that when the orange noodles were cooled in the fridge, they turned yellow again! (I’d still prefer eating them warm, but thought the observation was interesting.)

I wanted to give you a heads up in case your noodles aren’t yellow and you can’t figure out why!

Roll the spring rolls

  • Spread a damp cloth out on your counter.
  • Dip a spring roll wrapper into a pan full of water and place the wrapper onto the cloth.
  • Start placing the ingredients onto the wrapper, leaving around an inch of space on top, bottom, and on either side. I added the ingredients in order of the colors of the rainbow. ?(Red on left followed by orange, yellow, green, and violet.)
  • Fold both the top and bottom of the wrapper over the ingredients, and then roll it up. Start rolling from one side and push the ingredients into the center as you roll. The spring roll should seal itself when you finish wrapping the clean edge over your roll.
  • Place spring roll wrapper on damp cloth.
  • Fill with veggies.
  • Overhead view of 2 spring rolls wrappers covered with colorful veggies and bean vermicelli, ready for rolling into spring rolls.
  • Fold the top and bottom edges over the filling.
  • Roll up the spring rolls.

Serving

These spring rolls are tasty when served in a dipping sauce. You can either dip in homemade soy sauce, or choose a sweeter sauce like sweet and sour sauce.

We served these rolls alongside some garlic shrimp the other day. (I’ll have to share the recipe soon!) We found they paired up wonderfully!

I placed some shrimp in the center and drizzled it with the garlic olive oil before taking a bite.

Delicious!

Watch how to make it

Craving more?Subscribe to my newsletter for the latest recipes and tutorials!
A plate full of spring rolls filled with colorful vegetables. One has been cut in half to show the filling.

Eat the Rainbow Spring Rolls

Eating the rainbow and getting in a healthy dose of colorful vegetables is fun and easy with these colorful rainbow spring rolls.
5 from 3 votes
Print Pin Rate
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Servings: 8 spring rolls
Calories: 85kcal
Author: Tracy Ariza, DDS

Equiment

  • Food Processor

Ingredients

  • 8 spring roll wrappers

Vegetables for filling

  • 1 small red pepper
  • 1 small carrot peeled and finely grated
  • 1 small green pepper
  • 1/4 small red cabbage

For bean vermicelli

  • 100 g rice or bean vermicelli
  • 1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
  • 1/2 tsp. turmeric
  • 1 clove garlic minced
  • salt
  • black pepper

Instructions

  • Prepare the vegetables by washing them thoroughly and then cutting them into small pieces. I used the slicing blade of my food processor to finely slice the bell peppers and the red cabbage. I then I used the grating blade to finely grate the peeled carrot.
  • Boil some water and add in the rice or bean vermicelli, soaking for as long as instructed on the package of your particular noodles.
  • Meanwhile, heat some extra virgin olive oil or coconut oil in a frying pan and add in a finely minced garlic clove. Once you have finished soaking the noodles, drain them and throw them into the pan with the oil and garlic. Add a bit of turmeric, salt, and pepper, and sauté all of the ingredients together for a minute or two.
  • Once you have prepared all of the colored ingredients, separate them into bowls to make it easier to put the spring rolls together.
  • Dampen a clean cotton cloth and spread it out on your counter.
  • Take a spring roll wrapper and dip it into a pan full of water for around 5 seconds. Shake off the excess water and place the wrapper onto the prepared cloth.
  • Start placing the ingredients onto the wrapper. I begin on the left side with the red peppers followed by the orange carrots, the vermicelli that has been seasoned with turmeric, the green peppers, and then ending with some red cabbage on the left side. Try to keep the ingredients in the center of the wrapper, leaving at least around an inch free on either side (and top and bottom).
  • Fold both the top and bottom of the wrapper over the ingredients, and then carefully proceed to roll up the spring roll starting from one side and pushing the ingredients into the center as you finish rolling it up. The spring roll should seal itself when you finish wrapping the clean edge over your roll.
  • Continue forming rolls with the remaining ingredients and serve immediately or store in the fridge for later.
  • Serve with the dipping sauce of your choice. I like to mix some soy sauce with a bit of lime juice and honey.

Notes

Eating vegetables with a wide variety of colors helps ensure you’re getting a wide variety of vitamins and antioxidants. 
  • Red foods are often high in lycopene.
  • Orange foods are often rich in beta carotene.
  • Turmeric is rich in curcumin. 
  • Green foods are often rich in chlorophyll.
  • Red cabbage is rich in anthocyanins.
Feel free to vary the recipe with other colorful vegetables of your choice.
Some brands of bean vermicelli may turn orange rather than yellow when seasoned with turmeric.
Serve with the sauce of your choice. Homemade soy sauce is a great choice, as is sweet and sour sauce.  
Course Appetizers, Side dishes
Cuisine Asian
Keyword appetizers, spring rolls
Other Diets Dairy free, Gluten free, Vegan
Tried this recipe? Tag me today!Mention @thethingswellmake or tag #thethingswellmake!
Serving: 1spring roll | Calories: 85kcal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 2mg | Sodium: 119mg | Potassium: 114mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 1566IU | Vitamin C: 30mg | Calcium: 19mg | Iron: 1mg

Update Information

This post was originally published on April 21, 2016. It was updated with new pictures, nutritional information, and video in March of 2020.

Category: Appetizers & Snacks, Lunch & Dinner

About Tracy Ariza, DDS

Tracy Ariza, B.A., D.D.S., left dentistry and the United States to found Oh, The Things We’ll Make!, writing to you from the Spanish Riviera. She loves making things herself in order to keep control of what goes in them. While far from perfect, she strives each day to live a healthier, more sustainable lifestyle.

Previous Post: « Two spray bottles and two essential oil bottles, with a lemon cut in half, a squeegee, and a cleaning rag. The Best Essential Oils for Cleaning and Disinfecting
Next Post: Quick, DIY, Origami Flower Pots From Recycled Newspaper A closeup of an origami newspaper pot filled with soil in front of a tray filled with more soil-filled origami pots. »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Purefun

    November 19, 2019 at 10:37 AM

    This is the most fabulous looking yummy meal. My kids will definitely love this colorful dish. Keep posting!

    Reply
    • Tracy Ariza

      December 2, 2019 at 7:39 PM

      I hope they do enjoy it!

      Reply
  2. Helen

    March 27, 2019 at 8:07 AM

    What an absolutely fabulous looking meal! Thank you so much for adding such delicous variety to my weekly meal planner 🙂

    Reply
    • Tracy Ariza

      March 27, 2019 at 7:17 PM

      Hi Helen,
      Thank you!

      Reply
  3. Debbie

    February 17, 2019 at 8:17 PM

    Tried to make these today. The rice wrappers kept breaking in me. Can you tell me what you use and how do we store them? They keep sticking to each other. Thank you!!

    Reply
    • Tracy Ariza

      February 18, 2019 at 7:24 PM

      Hi Debbie,
      I’ve used several different brands from the local Asian supermarket, without issues. I’m away from home, so I’m not sure of the brands right now, but I’ know I’ve tried with several without issues. Perhaps they are getting too wet?
      I should make a video for this post to show the process of hydrating them. That may help.
      Also, I don’t store them once hydrated, I only hydrate them right before I’m about to fill them. I store the opened package in a closed zipper pouch so that moisture can’t get inside.
      Does that help at all?

      Reply
      • Tara

        March 29, 2020 at 2:41 PM

        Hi Tracy
        I am waiting out this crazyness on an Island in the Caribbean where I spend the winters.
        Made from scratch Worcestershire sauce.
        Waiting to try it out on your spring roll recipe. Cheers Tara

        Reply
  4. Gigi

    January 29, 2019 at 7:53 PM

    Hi! Is there a sauce you would recommend with these or are they just fine on their own? They look great, can’t wait to try!

    Reply
    • Tracy Ariza

      February 1, 2019 at 12:57 PM

      Hi Gigi,
      I ate them along, but you could definitely try dipping them in a sweet and sour or sweet chili type sauce. I bet those would be great with them. 🙂

      Reply
  5. GEMUS 1

    October 25, 2016 at 5:37 AM

    Did you cook them before serving?

    Reply
    • Tracy Ariza

      October 25, 2016 at 10:10 PM

      Hello,
      No, the only thing that was “cooked” in a way was the noodles before rolling them up in the wrappers. I try to get in some raw veggies as often as I can, and I get bored with salads. In something like this, though, I really enjoy them raw.

      Reply
  6. Emily @ Recipes to Nourish

    April 29, 2016 at 12:54 AM

    These are beautiful! Thanks so much for sharing it!

    Reply
    • Tracy Ariza

      April 29, 2016 at 5:23 PM

      Thanks so much, Emily!
      I’ll see you there. 🙂

      Reply
  7. Raia

    April 28, 2016 at 5:56 AM

    I love this idea! I’m pretty sure I could get my kids to eat a rainbow, too. 😉 Thanks so much for sharing it, Tracy! 🙂

    Reply
    • Tracy Ariza

      April 28, 2016 at 3:29 PM

      Thanks so much, Raia.
      I’ll be sure to go visit! 🙂

      Reply
  8. Julia

    April 23, 2016 at 4:00 PM

    I love looking at these! They are just so pretty and cheerful!

    Reply
    • Tracy Ariza

      April 23, 2016 at 4:27 PM

      Thanks, Julia! 🙂

      Reply
  9. Sarah

    April 23, 2016 at 2:06 PM

    I’m with you – in the Spring I just want to eat food that is as bright as vibrant as the weather and wow do these spring rolls accomplish that! They look fantastic!

    Reply
    • Tracy Ariza

      April 23, 2016 at 4:27 PM

      Thanks, Sarah!
      I’ve been feeling great lately eating lots of veggies. 🙂

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Sidebar

Search

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Hello, I’m Tracy!

I love making my own natural products like soaps and lotions and my own pantry items like yogurt and salad dressings.
Why do I do it? Sometimes to save money, sometimes because it's healthier, but I always love having control of the ingredients!​
Oh, the things we'll make!...

More about Tracy

I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

Featured on Buzzfeed, Lifehacker, Fitness, Shape, Country Living, Healthline, Redbook, Redfin

Closeup of 4 bars of homemade soap. Two of them have been wrapped in brown paper and wrapped with ribbons. One soap is wrapped with red ribbon and the other with white ribbon.

Making an Easy, Basic Beginner Soap, and Then Making it Fun!!

Homemade prawn crackers on a plate in front of uncooked homemade prawn crackers and a roll of prawn crackers dough.

Prawn Crackers from Scratch

Impress your friends and save money by making your own soy sauce from scratch. Today we'll learn how to make a homemade shoyu, a fermented Japanese soy sauce made from soybeans and wheat berries. #shoyu #soysauce

How to Make Soy Sauce (Homemade Shoyu)

Two bottles of a homemade conditioner next to a wooden comb and a washcloth.

Easy DIY Hair Conditioner for Natural Hair

A small glass jar filled with an emulsified sugar scrub with a wooden spoon in it.

Easy Emulsified Sugar Scrub

Over head view of a spoon full of tomato paste over a jar full of it. A couple of fresh tomatoes lay next to the jar.

Easy Homemade Tomato Paste Recipe

Featured on Buzzfeed, Lifehacker, Fitness, Shape, Country Living, Healthline, Redbook, Redfin

White logo for Oh, The Things Well Make! website

Copyright © 2023 Tracy Ariza · Disclaimers and Disclosures · Privacy Policy · Cookie Policy