Rice Paper Dumplings are very popular!

Here, rice paper sheets ("banh trang" in Vietnamese) are used, which are usually used to make Vietnamese Summer Rolls (also called Fresh Spring Rolls) ("Goi cuon" in Vietnamese). The rice paper sheets become soft when quickly soaked in water, allowing you to add filling and roll the rice paper around the filling into small packages.

However, rice paper sheets can also be used to make spring rolls that are fried (the rolls are then called "Nem ran" in the northern part of Vietnam and "Cha gio" in the southern part of Vietnam). Rice paper dumplings can be made slightly more squared in shape, but are otherwise quite similar to fried spring rolls with rice paper.

Frying makes the rice paper crispy on the outside. Since the spring rolls are to be fried, it’s also fine to fill them with raw meat before frying.

This version is filled with minced chicken, cabbage, carrot, and scallions, which are added with garlic, ginger, soy sauce, fish sauce, oyster sauce, and sesame oil for delicious Asian flavors. The fried rice paper dumplings can be dipped in delightful soy sauce dip or sweet chili sauce.

Easy to make at home, and much better than takeaway! 😋

The recipe yields 4 servings. 
 

Ingredients:

♥ 36 rice paper sheets (2 packs of Vietnamese spring roll sheets, see tips)

Filling:
♥ 400 g minced chicken
♥ 250 g cabbage
♥ 2 carrots
♥ 3 scallions
♥ 3 cloves garlic
♥ 2 tbsp freshly grated ginger
♥ 4 tbsp soy sauce
♥ 2 tbsp fish sauce
♥ 2 tbsp oyster sauce
♥ 2 tbsp sesame oil

Frying: 
♥ 0.5 liters neutral oil (e.g., avocado oil, see tips)

Soy sauce dip:
♥ 2 dl soy sauce
♥ 2 tbsp hoisin sauce
♥ 4 tbsp sesame oil
♥ 3 tbsp finely chopped scallions
♥ 1 tsp chili flakes
♥ 1 tsp sesame seeds
♥ 1 lime, juice

Sweet chili sauce dip:
♥ 3 dl sweet chili sauce

Serving:
♥ 1 scallion
♥ fresh cilantro (optional)

Method:

Gather the ingredients.

Put chicken mince in a bowl. Slice cabbage and carrot into thin strips and add to the bowl. Chop the scallions and add them as well.

Add crushed garlic cloves and finely grated fresh ginger. Add soy sauce, fish sauce, oyster sauce, and sesame oil.

Mix the filling well together.

Find a bowl or pan slightly larger in diameter than the rice paper and fill with water.

Soak rice paper in water for about 10 seconds to soften them. I prefer using 2 rice paper sheets per dumpling (see tips).

Place the softened rice papers on a board. Place a large heaping tablespoon of filling on the lower half of the rice paper.

Fold the dough tightly over the filling from the bottom.

Then fold the sides towards the middle.

Then roll up to make a closed package.

Repeat with the rest of the rolls.

Fry the dumplings in oil (preferably avocado oil, see tips) for a few minutes on each side. Make sure two rolls are not too close to each other, as they may stick together.

Then place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Bake them further in the middle of the oven at 220°C for 15–20 minutes. The dumplings are done when the dough is golden and crispy.

Meanwhile, mix together the ingredients for the soy sauce dip and fill a dipping bowl. Put the sweet chili sauce in another dipping bowl.

Serve rice paper dumplings while they are hot and crispy. Optionally, garnish with fresh cilantro and scallions.

Delicious rice paper dumplings with chicken!

Tips:

♥ I have used avocado oil here, which tolerates high temperatures very well.

However, it is perfectly fine to use sunflower oil, canola oil, or another neutral-flavored oil. If you want oil with a lot of flavors, you can fry them in sesame oil or a combination of neutral oil and sesame oil.

♥ Rice paper is naturally gluten-free. It is available in most Norwegian supermarkets. Note that it may say Vietnamese spring rolls on the package.

I prefer using a double layer of rice paper since I like to fry the dumplings in oil first and then in the oven. It is also possible to make the packages with just one layer of rice paper, but they are somewhat more likely to fall apart when frying in a pan, so I recommend just brushing the rolls with oil and baking them in the oven.

♥ Be a little careful when working with soaked rice paper, as it doesn't take much for them to tear.

♥ It is correct that the chicken mince can be raw. The filling gets fully cooked when you fry the dumplings in oil first and then in the oven. If you only wish to fry the dumplings in the pan, they must be fried for at least 5 minutes on each side to ensure the chicken mince is fully cooked.

♥ Personally, I prefer to fry the dumplings quickly in oil first so they get a crispy surface and the dough absorbs some oil. Then I bake them further in the oven to ensure the chicken mince is fully cooked. This way, it's also easier to keep all the dumplings warm until serving.

♥ If you want to reduce the amount of oil, you can simply brush the rolls with oil on all sides and then only bake them in the oven.

♥ Instead of chicken mince, you can use pork mince. For a vegetarian version, you can use tofu.

Enjoy! 😊

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