• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Hot Thai Kitchen
  • Recipes by Categories
  • Kitchen Tips & Ingredients
  • Thailand Vlogs
  • My Cookbooks
  • Newsletter
  • Patreon
  • Shop Ingredients & Tools
  • Find an Asian Grocer
  • Merch
  • About
  • Contact
menu icon
go to homepage
subscribe
search icon
Homepage link
  • Recipes by Categories
  • Kitchen Tips & Ingredients
  • Thailand Vlogs
  • My Cookbooks
  • Newsletter
  • Patreon
  • Shop Ingredients & Tools
  • Find an Asian Grocer
  • Merch
  • About
  • Contact
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • ×

    Home » Recipes » All Recipes » Entrées

    Rice & Sausage Salad ยำแหนมข้าวทอด (yum naem kao tod)

    Published: Feb 13, 2014 · Modified: Dec 7, 2020 by Pailin Chongchitnant · This post may contain affiliate links

    Jump to Recipe·Print Recipe

    A little known dish outside of Thailand but this recipe is an explosion of flavour! Fried rice balls flavoured with Thai curry, mixed with sour sausage and a ton of herbs. There is nothing like it!

    Watch The Full Video Tutorial!

    All my recipes come with step-by-step video tutorials with extra tips not mentioned in the blog post, so make sure you watch the video below to ensure success - and if you enjoy the show, please consider subscribing to my YouTube channel. Thank you!

    Ingredients

    Here are all the ingredients you'll need to make this recipe. For amounts, check out the full recipe card below.

    The Rice Balls (Kao Tod)

    • Red curry paste
    • Fish sauce
    • Sugar
    • Kaffir lime leaves, center rib removed, thinly julienned
    • Coconut meat
    • Egg
    • Freshly cooked rice

    For the Batter (optional, see note)

    • Rice flour
    • Water

    For The Salad Bar

    • Naem (sour fermented sausage), see note
    • Ginger, thinly julienned
    • Peanuts, whole, roasted
    • Cilantro, roughly chopped
    • Green onions, chopped
    • Shallots, thinly sliced
    • Sawtooth coriander or mint, roughly chopped (optional)
    • Chili flakes
    • Fresh lime juice (I used about half a lime for every serving of 2 rice balls)
    • Fish sauce (I used about 2 teaspoons for every serving of 2 rice balls, but start with 1 teaspoon and adjust from there)
    • Crisp lettuce for wrapping such as green leaf, romaine, or butter lettuce

    *If you cannot find naem, you can also use another type of a neutral-tasting sausage (one without any strong, distinct flavour of an herb or spice) and let it marinade in some lime juice to imitate the sour flavour of naem.

    **You may also fry the rice balls without dipping them in batter; please see video (at 6:49) for explanation.

    How to Make Rice & Sausage Salad ยำแหนมข้าวทอด (yum naem kao tod)

    Here are all the steps to make this recipe. If this is your first time, I highly recommend watching the video tutorial to ensure success.

    For the Rice Balls

    1. In a large mixing bowl, stir together curry paste, fish sauce, sugar, kaffir lime leaves, grated coconut meat, and egg until well mixed.
    2. Add the rice and mix well.
    3. Form the rice into balls of about 2-inch diameter; you can also flatten them into pucks if you want to use less oil for frying. Press the balls together tightly.
    4. Preheat frying oil in a pot until it reaches 350 F. Stir the rice flour with water to achieve a thin batter.
    5. Dip the rice balls into the batter, let excess batter drip off, and fry them in the oil until crispy and golden browned, about 8 minutes.
    6. If you're foregoing the batter, it will take slightly less time. Let the rice balls cool while you prep the salad bar.

    To Serve

    1. Break up the sausage into small pieces, set aside. In a mixing bowl, smash the rice balls (about 2 balls per person), and add all other ingredients.
    2. Taste and adjust the flavour and amounts of ingredients to your liking. You can eat the salad just like that or wrap each bite in a crisp piece of lettuce.

    Leftovers?

    Perfect, because it makes a mind-blowing breakfast! Heat up the left over salad and top it with some fried eggs (over easy or sunny-side up is best), toss the egg together with the rice and prepare to be amazed.

    Print
    clock clock iconcutlery cutlery iconflag flag iconfolder folder iconinstagram instagram iconpinterest pinterest iconfacebook facebook iconprint print iconsquares squares iconheart heart iconheart solid heart solid icon
    Yum naem kao tod

    Rice & Sausage Salad ยำแหนมข้าวทอด (yum naem kao tod)

    ★★★★★ 5 from 2 reviews
    • Author: Pailin Chongchitnant
    • Yield: Serves 4
    Print Recipe
    Pin Recipe

    Ingredients

    The Rice Balls (Kao Tod)

    • 3 Tbsp red curry paste
    • 2 tsp fish sauce
    • 1 tsp sugar
    • 3-4 kaffir lime leaves, center rib removed, thinly julienned
    • ½ cup grated coconut meat
    • 1 egg
    • 4 cups freshly cooked rice

    For the Batter (optional, see note)

    • ½ cup rice flour
    • scant ½ cup water

    For The Salad Bar

    • Naem (sour fermented sausage), see note
    • Ginger, thinly julienned
    • Peanuts, whole, roasted
    • Cilantro, roughly chopped
    • Green onions, chopped
    • Shallots, thinly sliced
    • Sawtooth coriander or mint, roughly chopped (optional)
    • Chili flakes
    • Fresh lime juice (I used about half a lime for every serving of 2 rice balls)
    • Fish sauce (I used about 2 teaspoons for every serving of 2 rice balls, but start with 1 teaspoon and adjust from there)
    • Crisp lettuce for wrapping such as green leaf, romaine, or butter lettuce

    *If you cannot find naem, you can also use another type of a neutral-tasting sausage (one without any strong, distinct flavour of an herb or spice) and let it marinade in some lime juice to imitate the sour flavour of naem.

    **You may also fry the rice balls without dipping them in batter; please see video (at 6:49) for explanation.

    Ingredients & Kitchen Tools I Use


    Instructions

    For the rice balls: In a large mixing bowl, stir together curry paste, fish sauce, sugar, kaffir lime leaves, grated coconut meat, and egg until well mixed. Add the rice and mix well. Form the rice into balls of about 2-inch diameter; you can also flatten them into pucks if you want to use less oil for frying. Press the balls together tightly.

    Preheat frying oil in a pot until it reaches 350 F. Stir the rice flour with water to achieve a thin batter. Dip the rice balls into the batter, let excess batter drip off, and fry them in the oil until crispy and golden browned, about 8 minutes. If you're foregoing the batter, it will take slightly less time. Let the rice balls cool while you prep the salad bar.

    To serve: Break up the sausage into small pieces, set aside. In a mixing bowl, smash the rice balls (about 2 balls per person), and add all other ingredients. Taste and adjust the flavour and amounts of ingredients to your liking. You can eat the salad just like that or wrap each bite in a crisp piece of lettuce.

    Leftovers? Perfect, because it makes a mind-blowing breakfast! Heat up the left over salad and top it with some fried eggs (over easy or sunny-side up is best), toss the egg together with the rice and prepare to be amazed.

    Join us on Patreon for bonus content & rewards!


    Did you make this recipe?

    Tag @HOTTHAIKITCHEN on Instagram and hashtag it #HotThaiKitchen!

    More Entrées

    • tomato beef stir fry on an oval plate on green napkin.
      Mother-in-Law's Chinese Tomato Beef Stir Fry
    • A plate of grilled chicken breast with a side of sticky rice
      Ultimate Thai BBQ Chicken (Gai Yang)
    • a bowl of oxtail beef pho with a lime wedge and thai basil on the side
      Aunty's Best Vietnamese Pho Recipe
    • Sweet and sour pork in a blue plate on blue napkin
      Sweet and Sour Pork (No Frying!)

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

      Leave a Reply Cancel reply

      Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

      Recipe rating ★☆ ★☆ ★☆ ★☆ ★☆
      Recipe Rating




    1. Shoua Lor

      May 12, 2023 at 2:19 pm

      Perfect! Every time!

      ★★★★★

      Reply
    2. Jae

      December 04, 2022 at 11:19 am

      Best recipe and very clear direction. A favorite in my home. Thank you Pai!

      Reply
    3. Kathy Johnson

      August 01, 2022 at 8:46 am

      If you can't get the naem sausage, what other sausage could you substitute?

      Reply
    4. Nicole

      February 13, 2021 at 9:08 am

      Love this salad. Your recipes are always spot on! So good

      ★★★★★

      Reply

    Primary Sidebar

    Connect With Me!

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
    Image of Pailin

    Sawaddee ka! I'm Pai, a chef, author, and YouTuber. I'm here to demystify Thai cuisine and help you cook great Thai food at home. Want to learn more about me? Here's my story.

    My Latest Cookbook

    Popular Classics

    • tomato beef stir fry on an oval plate on green napkin.
      Mother-in-Law's Chinese Tomato Beef Stir Fry
    • a bowl of khao soi with shallots, lime, cilantro and fried chilies on top
      Khao Soi: Thai Curry Noodle Soup
    • A plate of grilled chicken breast with a side of sticky rice
      Ultimate Thai BBQ Chicken (Gai Yang)
    • a plate of pad see ew
      Authentic Thai Pad See Ew Recipe

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • Privacy Policy
    • Accessibility Statement
    • Merch
    • All Recipes

    Newsletter

    Sign Up!

    Contact

    • Contact
    • My Cookbook
    • Patreon

    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Copyright © Pailin's Kitchen Inc. 2023