Fresh spring rolls, translucent rice-paper wrappers rolled around poached pork, whole prawns, rice vermicelli, lettuce and herbs, served cold and dipped in a peanut-hoisin sauce or nuoc cham. Light, clean and uncooked, the counterpoint to the fried roll.

Goi cuon are the fresh, unfried cousin of the crisp cha gio, and a Southern Vietnamese specialty. Cool and herbaceous, they suit Saigon's climate, and they are as much an assembly as a recipe: softened rice paper, a leaf of lettuce, vermicelli, herbs, a slice of poached pork and a split prawn laid so its pink shows through the wrapper. The peanut-hoisin dip is the Southern signature. They appear on nearly every Vietnamese menu in the city, from home-cooking rooms to the rooftop kitchen at Secret Garden.

2 editor picks for Goi cuon in Ho Chi Minh City, ranked by editorial score. All Ho Chi Minh City signature dishes · Goi cuon across every city.