Vietnamese Nem Rán (Fried Spring Rolls)

  • Total time - 1 hour
  • Preparation - 30 minutes
  • Cooking time - 30 minutes
  • Servings: 4
  • Country: Vietnam
A pile of crispy, golden fried Nem Rán spring rolls, served with a dipping sauce and fresh herbs.

Nem Rán are the perfect appetizer to bring Vietnamese street food straight into your kitchen. The secret to their incredible crispiness is a two-stage frying process, which gives them a bubbly, crunchy texture. They are traditionally served with a bowl of nước chấm sauce for dipping and a platter of fresh herbs and lettuce for wrapping, which helps balance the rich flavor.

Ingredients

For the Filling

  • 250 g ground pork
  • 200 g raw shrimp, minced
  • 20 g glass noodles (mung bean vermicelli), soaked and chopped
  • 10 g dried wood ear mushrooms, soaked and minced
  • 0.5 cup shredded carrot
  • 0.5 cup shredded jicama or taro (optional)
  • 1 shallots, finely minced
  • 1 clove garlic, crushed
  • 1 tablespoon fish sauce
  • black pepper and a pinch of sugar

For Rolling & Frying

  • 16 wrappers rice paper wrappers (Vietnamese style, 22 cm)
  • vegetable oil for frying

For Serving

  • fresh lettuce and herbs (mint, perilla, cilantro)
  • sweet and sour nước chấm sauce

Instructions

Step 1: Prepare the filling

Soak the glass noodles and mushrooms in hot water for 15 minutes. Drain and chop. Mince the shrimp. Grate the carrot and jicama. Combine all filling ingredients in a large bowl and mix thoroughly by hand.

Step 2: Roll the spring rolls

Fill a shallow dish with warm water. Quickly dip one rice paper wrapper, lay it on a flat surface. Place a spoonful of filling on the bottom third, fold the bottom edge over, fold in the sides, and then roll it up tightly but gently.

Step 3: Two-stage frying

Heat about 5 cm of oil in a pot to 160°C (320°F). Fry the rolls in a first stage (about 5-7 minutes) until lightly golden and cooked through. Remove them and let them cool on a wire rack.

Step 4: Second fry (for crispiness)

Increase the oil temperature to 180°C (350°F). Fry the cooled rolls again (about 2-3 minutes) until they are a deep golden brown and super crispy.

Step 5: Serve

Serve the hot rolls immediately with a bowl of nước chấm sauce and a platter of fresh lettuce and herbs. The traditional way is to wrap a spring roll in a lettuce leaf with herbs before dipping it in the sauce.