Nam khao is a Lao crispy rice salad made with fried rice balls, fermented pork, vegetables, herbs, and other ingredients. It takes time to prepare, with the rice balls and fermented pork requiring several days to make. The salad is typically served in a bowl with lettuce or cabbage leaves for wrapping.
Nam khao, also known as nam kao tod or nhem khao and is sometimes called Lao crispy rice salad in English-speaking countries, is a common appetizer salad in Laos. The main components are fried rice balls and a type of fermented pork called som moo. It also contains vegetables, herbs and various other ingredients.
Nam khao takes a relatively long time to prepare as the rice must be cooked and fried before the salad can be put together. Some cooks ferment their som moo, which takes even longer to prepare. Som moo is made from fresh minced pork flavored with salt, garlic and chilli. It also contains cooked rice and pork skins. This mixture is left to ferment for a few days.
Rice balls are typically made from jasmine rice or white rice. The rice should be fully cooked before it forms into balls. The cooked rice is mixed with grated coconut, red curry paste, a little sugar, and sometimes fish sauce. The creamy part of the coconut milk or the eggs can be used to hold the mixture together.
Tightly packed balls about 5 cm in diameter are formed from the rice mixture. The balls are usually dipped in beaten egg and then cornstarch, although they can be fried without a coating. The rice balls are then fried until crispy.
Once the fried rice balls are cool enough to handle, they are broken into small pieces to be incorporated with the other salad ingredients. Som moo, chopped shallots, lime juice, fried dried chillies, and chopped roasted peanuts are typical components of nam khao. Other ingredients might include mint, cilantro, fish sauce, and green onions. All salad ingredients are mixed together.
Nam khao is typically served in a bowl with lettuce or cabbage leaves and possibly extra condiments on the side, such as lime wedges, chillies and herbs. Lettuce or cabbage leaves allow you to eat the salad in a wrap-around form, like a burrito. Usually, some of the nam khao is scooped into a lettuce leaf and then seasoned with desired chili or herbs from the diner. The leaf is then wrapped around the filling and the whole thing is eaten together. Sometimes some of the pieces of broken rice balls are re-fried and served with the salad as an extra crunchy topping.
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