Ingredients
- 2 lbs ground pork (you may mix ground turkey or chicken to reduce fat)
- 2 head of garlic (cloves, peeled; we love the intense garlic flavor but use more or less according to taste)
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1/2 tbsp salt
- 1/2 tbsp pepper
- 4 tsp tsp or 1 small package of Alsa baking powder prefered
- 1/4 cup water
- 1 drop red food coloring or 1 tsp caramel syrup (optional and found in most Asian groceries)
- Grilled nem nuong patties (recipe below--we like ours sausauge shaped for easy rolling, split in half)
- 1 package of rice paper wrapper (we love the 3 bamboo brand)
- Fried chive rolls (optional)(see below)
- Lettuce
- Cucumbers, thinly sliced rectangles (about 1 x 3 inches)
- Pickled carrots and daikon
- Mint (rau thom), Cilantro (ngo), Fresh chives (rau he). Other herbs can be substitued such as basil (rau que), perilla (tia to).
- Nuoc mam cham (dipping fish sauce)
Preparation
Step 1
Using food processor, process garlic until fine puree. Combine pork, garlic, salt, pepper and sugar in mixing bowl and mix well. In separate bowl, combine baking powder and water and stir. Mixture will fluff and foam. Add drop of food coloring or caramel syrup (this adds a very nice color to the pork when grilled).
Fold the baking powder into mixture and allow meat to chill for about 30 min to 1 hr or longer. The baking powder adds more bouncier texture. Now you're ready to form the patties. Keep meat mixture in the fridge for a few hours to let it set and easier to handle when forming patties, balls or what I prefer, mini sausages. I find that it's easier to roll in rice paper this way. Keep a bowl of water handy and your hands wet for easy handling.
Grill about 4-5 min per side.
Fried chive rolls are optional, but often found at many restaurants and add a great crunch. Quarter large egg roll wrappers or use square wonton wrappers. Place several chives onto wrapper, roll once and then fold over ends. Roll tightly and use an egg wash to seal the wrapper. Fry until golden brown, drain and set aside.
Have all your mis en place of veggies and nem nuong ready. Dip rice paper in luke warm water and place on plate. Wait about 10s or until paper softens to start rolling. First place the lettuce, then cucumber, fried chive roll, and pickled carrots and daikon near the edge of the rice paper closest to you. Roll rice paper over veggies and then fold over each end. Then place some fresh chives and nem nuong and roll tightly. Do not overstuff, you're not making a burrito! :) Use nuoc mam pha as a dipping sauce.