Vietnamese Grilled Pork Skewer (GF) – NEM NƯỚNG – Culinary Seasons

This recipe goes in a different direction than the other skewers in the series so far. Most have been diced or sliced meats that are marinated, then skewered. These Vietnamese Grilled Pork Skewers are made with ground pork and other ingredients and then formed onto skewers. Then they are grilled. It may seem like it may not stay on the skewer but with the way the ingredients are pureed together the meat becomes easy to form and stays on the skewer when grilling. Brush on the basting liquid and serve with the spicy sauce. You will enjoy the sweet coating of the basting liquid and the vinegar heat of the dipping sauce. Give this recipe a try. It is unique and delicious.

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Hailing from Northern Vietnam

Vietnamese Grilled Pork Skewer or NEM NƯỚNG (sometimes referred to as grilled pork sausage) is from the northern region of Vietnam. Khánh Hòa Province is known for their NEM NƯỚNG. The skewered ground meat is most often made with a higher amount of fat, 25-30% pork belly to meat ratio.

Just as in other countries such as Indonesia with the satays, depending on where you are in Vietnam and depending on what family is making the Nem Nuong they will vary in how they are made and eaten.

One Name but Served Different Depending on Where You Go

After making the mix, forming onto skewers then grilling the cooked pork skewer can be served a variety of ways. One of the more popular ways to eat is to wrap the grilled pork into rice paper with veggies and eat with a dipping sauce. Another way is to eat them over rice noodles. In this recipe I served the skewers over a rice noodle salad. However you choose to eat them, the glaze you will baste on will give a sweetness to the grilled pork. Then paired with the dipping sauce it is delicious without adding other side dishes but I recommended to wrap in rice paper with veggies or serve with a cold noodle salad.

~ The pork mixture has a two step process for assembling the mix. ~ First process the Pork Fat Base as per the instructions and reserve aside while the second step of making the Pork Grind ingredients are processed. ~ Then combine both in the food processor bowl to incorporate them.

~ Traditionally the pork mixture has food coloring or annatto seeds pureed into the mix as well to have a reddish pink color. I did not use either in the mix, the pork will cook up with a whitish grey appearance. The flavors of the pork are great but lacking in the pink color, if you want to add a coloring agent into the mix you can. Plus, I didn’t have either of those ingredients on hand when I made the recipe.