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].
[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].
510 K 3.7/5 (103 reviews)
2 hours 25 min.
Average
40 Chickens nems
17 IngredientsLast modified on: April 6th 2017
For 40 Chickens nems, you will need:
- 1
1 carrot - 2
1 leek - 3
1 shallot - 4
1 garlic clove - 5
1 chicken breast - 6
1 bunch fresh coriander (cilantro) - 7
1 1⁄3 cup dried chinese black mushrooms (shiitake) - 8
½ cup fine soya noodles - 9
40 rices sheets - 10
3 tablespoons soy sauce - 11
3 tablespoons water - 12
3 tablespoons vinegar - 13
salt - 14
pepper - 15
1 chicken stock cube - 16
lettuce - 17
fresh mint leaves
Change these quantities to make:
Change measures:
Times for this recipe
Preparation: 1 hour 35 min.
Resting: 35 min.
Cooking: 15 min.
All in all: 2 hours 25 min.
If you start now, at , you will finish around : ?.Change start time
To finish around 7pm, you'll need to have started before: .Change end time
Step by step recipe
Stage 1 - 30 min.
Rehydrate 1 1⁄3 cup dried chinese black mushrooms (shiitake).
Drain and dry. If they are not already in strips, cut into small pieces.
Set aside.
Drain and dry. If they are not already in strips, cut into small pieces.
Set aside.
Stage 2 - 15 min.
Stage 4 - 10 min.
Stage 5 - 2 min.
Stage 6 - 5 min.
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.
Note: don't discard stock after cooking, it's going to be used for cooking the noodles.
Stage 7 - 5 min.
Cut chicken into very small pieces.
Set aside.
Set aside.
Stage 8 - 1 min.
Cook ½ cup fine soya noodles one minute in chicken stock.
Drain and set aside.
Drain and set aside.
Stage 9 - 3 min.
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.
Keep back a teaspoonful of grated carrot for the sauce.
Salt and pepper.
Stage 10
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.
Note: This mixture can be made in advance, and kept in a sealed container in the fridge.
Stage 11
Rolling nems.
Get everything you need ready on your work surface:
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.
Dip 10 rice paper sheets in cold water for about 5 minutes, to soften them.
Stage 13
Remove one softened rice paper sheet from water and place on the cloth.
Stage 14
Remove excess water on top with the cloth.
Stage 15
On the edge of the rice paper, put a tablespoon of mixture.
Stage 16
Roll sheet up around filling.
Stage 17
Midway across sheet, fold sides inwards.
Stage 18 - 45 min.
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.
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.
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.
Add the remaining grated carrot and pepper generously.
Your sauce is ready.
Stage 21 - 5 min.
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
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.
Nems, cooked or not, can be frozen.
Keeping: Once cooked, a few minutes.
Source: JP in his time.
Nutritional information
| Proteins (gr) | Carbohydrates (gr) | Fats (gr) | Energy value (in k-calories) | Energy value (in k-joules) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whole recipe | 60 RDI=20 % | 140 RDI=10 % | 20 RDI=3 % | 980 RDI=50 % | 4,110 RDI: 50 % |
| Per 100 g | 5 RDI=2 % | 10 RDI=1 % | 1 RDI=0 % | 90 RDI=4 % | 370 RDI: 4 % |
| Per piece | 1 RDI=1 % | 3 RDI=0 % | 0 | 20 RDI=1 % | 100 RDI: 1 % |
How much will it cost?
- For 40 Chickens nems : 9.55 €
- Per Chicken nems : 0.25 €
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)
Like these other recipes: Chinese Soup, ... See them all 1
Fine soya noodles
Like these other recipes: Chinese Soup, ... See them all 1
Water
Like these other recipes: Yeast-based flaky dough (for croissants), Leavened bread, How to heat milk without it catching on the bottom of the pan, Soup Cornouaillaise, Red mixed pickle, ... See them all 135
Other recipes you may also like
French croissants
In this famous and highly technical recipe from a piece of yeast-based flaky dough we are going to cut and shape ("roll") croissants.June 26th 2019625 K 24.4 2 hours 35 min.
How to peel a pineapple
For most recipes it is necessary to completely peel the pineapple, and to keep only the flesh which is then often cut into small pieces. Here is a method.February 21th 2011207 K3.7 20 min.
Red mullet fillets with a reduced white-wine sauce
For this recipe, the red mullet fillets are fried in a large saucepan, then removed and kept hot. The "jus court" sauce is made by reducing dry white wine with spring onions in the pan used to cook the fish. The small quantity of sauce left (its French name literally means "short juice") is very...June 25th 201749 K3.8 30 min.
Baker's pizza
Baker's pizza is very quick to make using a basic bread dough. If you buy the dough ready-made (ask your local baker) and use a good tomato sauce from a jar, you can have it ready for the oven in under 10 minutes.March 31th 201993 K 40 min.
Deep leek and potato quiche
The French make a "tourte" that is smaller and deeper than a normal quiche. This recipe makes the most of this difference: it has plenty of texture and flavour, with bacon, potatoes, leeks, two different cheeses, and an egg and cream filling poured over.April 17th 202272 K 1 hour 40 min.
News list of cooking-ez.com
Sign up to receive the latest recipes (next batch due to be sent on 2025-05-18)
Note: We'll never share your e-mail address with anyone else.
Post a comment or question
Follow this recipe (as 3 people already do)
If you are interested in this recipe, you can "follow" it, by entering your email address here. You will then receive a notification immediately each time the recipe is modified or a new comment is added. Please note that you will need to confirm this following.
Note: We'll never share your e-mail address with anyone else.
Alternatively: you can subscribe to the mailing list of cooling-ez.com , you will receive a e-mail for each new recipe published on the site.