Naem khao, a popular street food dish from Laos, is the latest Southeast Asian dish to have taken social media by storm. Seen millions of times in viral videos on TikTok and Instagram, this rice salad is made from deep-fried rice balls that are then broken into pieces and – in the original Lao version – served with a fermented pork sausage and various fresh ingredients. Take some cooked jasmine or basmati rice (preferably day-old, but you can cook it fresh and then cool it) and mix it up with chilli paste or red Thai curry paste, a little salt and a drop of oil.
Spread the mixture on a baking tray lined with baking paper and bake at around 180 degrees Celsius (360 degrees Fahrenheit) for around 30 minutes until light brown and crispy. Halfway through, turn the rice over so that it browns evenly and does not burn..
