Truly Laos Nem

Nem Thadeu (Lao rice salad)

Finally I find a little time to post a new article! Sorry for those who looked forward to the recipe Thadeu Nem. It's weekend today so I prepare a little complex dish.

The Nem Thadeu is a traditional Lao which is rarely appeared in cookbooks and culinary sites. This dish is less known than lap or tam mak Houng. A little nutrious ( there's no need to eat sticky rice with it) and a little fat because of the rice which has been priorly fried in a lot of oil ...

I do not know what part of the country the recipe for Laos Nem Thadeu originates, however,from my travel experience from Vientiane to Paske, I noticed that there were variations in ingredients and preparation of the dish ...depending on the cook and the region.

I propose the Nem Thadeu in my own way. Follow the guide!

The Nem Thadeu for 2-3 people

Preparation time: 45 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes

Needed:
A frying pan
Tissue paper

Ingredients:
300 g cooked fragrant rice
2 eggs
2 onions, chopped
1 tablespoon of red curry paste
1-2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon of pa nam (fish sauce)
1 teaspoon monosodium glutamate
1-2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon chili powder
50 g grated coconut
50 g of crushed peanuts
1 large lemon or 2 small limes
100 g soft som (fermented pork)
Chives
Mint
Coriander
A few lettuce leaves
Some leaves of banana flower
Cooking oil

In a large bowl put the cooked fragrant rice, add eggs, red curry paste, chopped onions, grated coconut, soy sauce, monosodium glutamate and salt.
Mix well together.

Moisten hands and make balls of rice if possible to equal size (important: the balls should be firm not to break during cooking).

Put oil in a frying pan, wait until the oil is hot before dumping the balls of rice (the ideal is that the oil covers almost all the balls).

Wait until the balls are browned on one side before turning excess oil.
Allow to cool for a few minutes.

Wash and chop the chives, mint and cilantro. Wash the lettuce and banana flower. Set aside.

In a large bowl, crumble rice balls and the soft som.
Add lemon juice (note: not to put too acidity kills the taste!), Chilli powder, pa nam (fish sauce), crushed peanuts.
Season to taste (you can add salt, monosodium glutamate ...).
Add chives, mint and chopped cilantro.
Serve with vegetables such as lettuce and banana flower.

Suggestions:
For those who want to put a little more spice, do not hesitate to add to the decoration of flat dry bird peppers (very spicy !). I do not (see photo) because I did not have that day.
You can the soft som (fermented pork) is what I prefer to eat with the Nem Thadeu ... I always put a lot in preparing the dish. For me it is an essential part of the recipe Thadeu Nem. So do not be so afraid.
If you have a surplus of rice balls, you can freeze them.
It's high time you prepare a Nem Lao. You don't need to take a tour of Laos to taste this dish, right?

Images of Vientiane

It was 4 o'clock in the morning when the bus stopped as if for a new break. However, before scrambling to find our luggage and getting off the bus, we realized that we are in Vientiane, the highlight of our vacation in Laos .


Then begins a long search for guesthouse in the middle of deserted streets. In vain ... The majority of hotels closed at 23:30. Around 5:30, finally I saw a small shop that had just opened. The coffee is not yet ready, but the owner, a Lao very welcoming, invites us to wait. It was time to talk with him about certain features of Laos, more than strained relations maintained by the country with its neighbors Thailand and Vietnam ....

Unlike its neighbors Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia, Laos is seen as a very authentic and preserved. Thailand was marked by its modernity, Cambodians moved us by their hard work and determination to succeed. Everywhere, the stigma of the "Khmer Rouge" are visible . Throughout our trips by bike in the streets of Vientiane, we saw street scenes and meet new warm and happy people.

There are many street stalls filled with men and women who take the time to drink a coffee or sip a beer. You've probably noticed the "Beer Lao" is a speciality here: men and women drink all day. In Cambodia, beer is much less widespread, although the country has its own breweries. But above all, we never will see men and women spend an evening together drinking. The men sometimes meet at the weekend but these evenings often resemble large "organized drinking", 100% male.

In a random walk, we discovered a superb night market full of dishes all delicious alike. We finally tried skewers of pork and caramelized Laap (minced meat mixed with mint, the coriander, lemon and peppers), all accompanied by sticky rice eaten with your fingers.


Other unusual scenes are those of Laos playing petanque. We couldn't resist the temptation to play with them. Despite our great tiles,we finally lost. Final score: 7-11. Whew! The honor is safe.

Several reasons may explain the authenticity of Laos :

- The location: without access to the sea, Laos is a landlocked country and difficult to travel to

- The Communist regime that may slow down the interaction with the market capitalist countries and Western culture.

- The development of ecotourism. This particular form of tour, developed primarily by Germans, encourages people to preserve the biodiversity of their region to the detriment of their economy (without deforestation and animals that destroy the fields, agriculture is less profitable ...).

With the development of ecotourism, many plant and animal species are protected and the ecosystem Laos remains one of the most diverse in the world. Laos, you guessed it, has not left indifferent. One frustration: there isn't more time to discover Vientian.