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Cambodia, Asia · Bai Cha (Cambodian Fried Rice with Chinese Sausage)

Crispy Rice-Paper Bai Cha Parcels with Lime-Chilli Dip

Lap cheong and garlic fried rice wrapped in rice paper and pan-fried into crunchy, chewy golden squares, with a zingy lime-chilli dip: street-snack style.

ServingsServes 2
Total cooking time35 min
DifficultyMedium

Method

  1. Make the dip: dissolve the sugar in the fish sauce, lime juice and water, then add the thinly sliced chillies.

    Add in this stepFish sauce (for the dip) 1½ tbspLime juice (for the dip) 1½ tbspSugar (for the dip) 1½ tspWater (for the dip) 1½ tbspBird's eye chillies 1

  2. Dice the sausage into 5 mm cubes and finely chop the garlic. Heat a little of the oil in a 26 cm frying pan over medium heat and stir-fry the sausage and garlic for , until the garlic smells sweet and the sausage releases its fat.

    Add in this stepVegetable oil 0.6 tbspChinese sausage (lap cheong) 60 gGarlic cloves 3

    medium heat

  3. Push everything to one side, add the beaten egg and scramble it, then add the cold rice, soy sauce, oyster sauce, pepper and sliced spring onions and stir-fry over medium-high heat for , until the rice is fluffy and dry. Spread it on a wide plate and let it cool for 5 minutes; warm filling tears the rice paper.

    Add in this stepEggs 1Cooked jasmine rice, a day old and chilled 300 gLight soy sauce 1 tbspOyster sauce 2 tspWhite pepper 1 pinchSpring onions 1

    medium-high heat

  4. Fill a wide bowl with lukewarm water, dip a rice paper sheet for just 2 seconds and lay it on a damp board; it will soften as you work. Spoon about 3 tablespoons of rice into a square in the middle, then fold in the sides, the bottom and the top to make a flat square parcel. Make 6 pc this way and keep them apart so they don't stick. If a sheet tears, use two together.

    Add in this stepRice paper sheets (22 cm) 6

  5. Wipe out the pan, add the rest of the oil and heat over medium heat. Pat the parcels dry with kitchen paper and lay them seam-side down, 2 cm apart. Fry for per batch, turning once halfway with tongs, until golden, crisp and blistered in places. If it says 1 batch, fry in that many batches. Rice paper can pop and spit, so keep your face back and use a splatter guard if you have one.

    Add in this stepVegetable oil 1.9 tbsp

    medium heat

  6. Drain briefly on kitchen paper and serve hot straight away with the dip. They lose their crunch after about 10 minutes.

Cook's tip

Overfilled parcels burst, so stick to about 3 tablespoons each. Leftover fried rice makes this even quicker. Parcels that touch will tear, so leave space both on the plate and in the pan.

Cooking it at camp

Make the rice filling and the dip at home and carry them cold in the cooler. At camp, wet and wrap the rice paper, then fry in batches in a wide pan on the burner. Wind makes oil spit more, so set up a windbreak.