Chicken nems


Chicken nems
Nems are probably the best known Far Eastern dish in France. These small crispy rolls can be made in different flavours: chicken, crab, pork, etc. Making your own is not very complicated, the only difficulty is in the rolling stage. You will find in this recipe full details on how to successfully make chicken nems.

[Translator's note: the "rice paper" used here is not the same as the rice paper used in England under macaroons, it's sold in packs of thin round translucent wafers, rather like papadoms].
492K 103 3.7
Grade this recipe:

Last modified on: April 6th 2017

Keywords for this recipe:
For 40 Chickens nems, you will need:

How long does it take?
Time required for this recipe:
PreparationRestingCookingStart to finish
1 hour 35 min.35 min.11 min.2 hours 21 min.
At what time:
  • When will I finish if I start the recipe at ... ?
    When should I start for the recipe to be ready at ... ?
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Step by step recipe


Stage 1 - 30 min.
Chicken nems
Rehydrate 100 g dried chinese black mushrooms (shiitake).

Drain and dry. If they are not already in strips, cut into small pieces.

Set aside.

Stage 2 - 15 min.
Chicken nems
Wash, peel and grate 1 carrot.

Set aside.

Stage 3 - 10 min.
Chicken nems
Wash and thinly slice 1 leek.

Set aside.

Stage 4 - 10 min.
Chicken nems
Peel and thinly slice 1 shallot and 1 garlic clove.

Set aside.

Stage 5 - 2 min.
Chicken nems
Chop 1 bunch fresh coriander (cilantro) .

Set aside.

Stage 6 - 5 min.
Chicken nems
Lightly cook 1 chicken breast in a little chicken stock.

Note: don't discard stock after cooking, it's going to be used for cooking the noodles.

Stage 7 - 5 min.
Chicken nems
Cut chicken into very small pieces.

Set aside.

Stage 8 - 1 min.
Chicken nems
Cook 100 g fine soya noodles one minute in chicken stock.

Drain and set aside.

Stage 9 - 3 min.
Chicken nems
In a large bowl, put everything you've prepared so far: mushrooms, carrot, leek, coriander, chicken, noodles, shallot and garlic.

Keep back a teaspoonful of grated carrot for the sauce.

Salt and pepper.

Stage 10
Chicken nems
Mix everything well, the best way is to use both hands.

Note: This mixture can be made in advance, and kept in a sealed container in the fridge.

Stage 11
Chicken nems
Rolling nems.

Get everything you need ready on your work surface:
  • a big clean cloth
  • a dish of cold water
  • Rice paper sheets
  • a non-stick baking sheet for putting finished nems on

Stage 12 - 5 min.
Chicken nems
Dip 10 rice paper sheets in cold water for about 5 minutes, to soften them.

Stage 13
Chicken nems
Remove one softened rice paper sheet from water and place on the cloth.

Stage 14
Chicken nems
Remove excess water on top with the cloth.

Stage 15
Chicken nems
On the edge of the rice paper, put a tablespoon of mixture.

Stage 16
Chicken nems
Roll sheet up around filling.

Stage 17
Chicken nems
Midway across sheet, fold sides inwards.

Stage 18 - 45 min.
Chicken nems
And finish rolling to create a small roll, as neat and even as possible.

Make sure you keep the rice paper tight against the filling when rolling to exclude as much air as possible from the nem.

You nem is now ready, put it on the tray, and make the next one. Do this with all the filling.

Stage 19
You can see how to do it in this short video.

Stage 20 - 5 min.
Chicken nems
Prepare sauce: in a bowl mix 3 tablespoons soy sauce with 3 tablespoons of water and 3 tablespoons vinegar.

Add the remaining grated carrot and pepper generously.

Your sauce is ready.

Stage 21 - 5 min.
Chicken nems
To cook your nems, you can use a frying pan with a little oil in, or put them in a deep fryer (in which case they will be very crisp but fattier).

Stage 22
Chicken nems
Serve with lettuce, fresh mint and sauce.
Remarks
You can vary your nems by repacing chicken with something else. You can also omit it totally to make vegetable nems.

Nems, cooked or not, can be frozen.
Keeping
Once cooked, a few minutes.
Source
JP in his time.
Nutritional information
Whole recipe
Energetic valueProteins CarbohydratesFats
982 Kcal or 4,111 Kj63 gr142 gr18 gr
49 %24 %13 %3 %
Per 100 g
Energetic valueProteins CarbohydratesFats
88 Kcal or 368 Kj6 gr13 gr2 gr
4 %2 %1 %<1 %
Per piece
Energetic valueProteins CarbohydratesFats
25 Kcal or 105 Kj2 gr4 gr< 1 gr
1 %1 %<1 %<1 %
% are calculated relative to a Recommended Dietary Intake or RDI of 2000 k-calories or 8400 k-joules by day for a woman (change to a man).
Possible allergens in this recipe: Soybeans, Sulfites
How much will it cost?
  • For 40 Chickens nems : 9.51 €
  • Per Chicken nems : 0.24 €

Change currency:

Note: Be careful, these prices are only an estimate, you can consult the table of prices by ingredients used for this estimate.
This recipe uses (among others)
Dried chinese black mushrooms (shiitake)Dried chinese black mushrooms (shiitake): You can check-out other recipes which use it, like for example: Chinese Soup, ... All
Fine soya noodlesFine soya noodles: You can check-out other recipes which use it, like for example: Chinese Soup, ... All
Soy sauceSoy sauce: You can check-out other recipes which use it, like for example: Sautéed Pork with Peanuts, Thai-style Chicken with Cashew Nuts, Spaghetti with mushrooms, Glazed mushrooms with plain rice, Shiitake eggs, ... All
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