Dale, no wonder there's confusion

[Jenise]

While shopping yesterday, I paused in front of this display of rice paper. Same brand (Three Deer), same product (Banh Trang), both called Spring rolls, but two different shapes with two different pictures: one is square with apicture of fried rolls, and the other is round with a picture of fresh rolls. But both: spring rolls.

I took a picture but can't shrink it to fit forum requirements so you'll just have to use your imagination.

The same sort of thing happens with wonton wrappers. Some are yellow (usually means egg in the pastry), some are white. Some are square, some are round. There are thick ones (Hong Kong style) and thin ones (Shanghai style).

There are two kinds of spring roll wrappers out there. The first kind is made of thin rice paper (banh trang in Vietnamese). The rice paper is soaked to become pliable and then filled. In Vietnam both fresh and deep-fried spring rolls are made using rice paper. In Thai cooking only fresh spring rolls are made with rice paper wrappers. Deep-fried Thai spring rolls are made with wheat pastry-based wrappers.

The pastry-based spring roll wrapper is the second kind. It is used in Thailand for deep-fried spring rolls. They are also used for Chinese spring rolls, which as far as I know are always deep-fried. Egg roll wrappers and spring roll wrappers are different beasts. Egg roll wrappers are made by rolling out a stiff but pliant, stretchy dough. Spring roll wrappers are more like crepes. You mix up a loose, sticky dough, grab it in your hand, and then rub it against a hot, flat griddle. You let it set, but not brown, then peel it off and let it cool. I've never tried to make Chinese spring roll skins from scratch--it strikes me as a skill with a steep learning curve. This type of spring roll skin is commonly sold frozen in Asian markets.

-Paul W

I asked my guests at dinner last night, all use same = spring for fried, summer for not fried rice paper . I'm guessing it's an East Coast thing
Both of my local Vietnamese places do that, though one includes grilled summer rolls
https://www.vietnamscentral.com/scarsdale
https://saigonesehartsdale.com/menu

[Jenise]

Yes, regional differences still prevail. I checked the online menu at a local Vietnamese restaurant. This supports my impressions re spring rolls, and there's no 'summer' option:

Egg Roll/Cha Gio
Deep fried egg roll filled with carrots, onions, cellophane noodles and jicama.

Spring Roll/Goi Cuon
Fresh roll with lettuce, vermicelli noodles, carrots, bean sprouts in rice paper

Crispy Rice Rolls
WF wrapper filled with ground pork, onions, mushrooms, carrots and jicama. Deep fried...