Clem's Ngo Hiang (5-Spice Pork+ Prawn Meat Rolls)

Clem's Ngo Hiang (5-Spice Pork+ Prawn Meat Rolls)

	This is a tasty Teochew dish which brings back memories of childhood and family. In the Teochew language, Ngo means 5, and Hiang means fragrant. Together, the term refers to 5-Spice powder, the distinct smelling/tasting ingredient used in many Chinese dishes. Why the name of a dish would terminate after only the adjective for a meat roll made with pork and prawns, I wouldn't know. If you would like to make your own 5-spice powder, here's how to do it. I have never made ngo hiang before and so, tonight was the night I was going to try! Here's how: INGREDIENTS Pork mince (for those with an aversion to this, you could use chicken instead). Your choice of amount given the number and size of rolls you wish to make but the proportion of pork to prawn is roughly 1:1. I used 500 g of pork mince (75:25 lean to fat). Shelled and deveined prawns. 500 g in keeping with the 1:1 ratio. 5-Spice Powder. 3 - 4 teaspoons (you can use more if you particularly like the fragrance). Oyster sauce. 1 tablespoon (or more). Light soy sauce. 1 tablespoon (or more). White pepper (to taste). MSG (optional). Chicken stock powder (to taste) Starch. A few tablespoons to act as binder in the meat roll filling. 1 whole egg. To act as binder in the meat roll filling. Water Chestnuts. 400 g. This is an essential ingredient which gives the rolls a crunchy mouth-feel. A few sprigs of Spring Onions. Bean curd skin (the thin translucent one). Use an unsalted type if available. If the product is the salted type, note to take care how much salt (via the various ingredients) is in the filling or else you might end up with an over salty roll. METHOD Mince one half of the prawns while cutting the other half into small pieces. Cut the water chestnut medallions into small pieces. Slice the Spring Onions into small pieces. Mix the pork and prawns, water chestnut, starch, egg, and Spring Onion together. Add the oyster and soy sauces, Chicken Stock Powder, White Pepper (if used), and MSG (if used). Set aside for a couple of hours the flavours to meld (I left mine overnight in the refrigerator). If using large sheets of bean curd skin, now is the time to cut them into a size appropriate for the size of the rolls which you wish to make. Using a wet towel, gently wipe the surface of the bean curd skins to moisten them and also to remove some salt if the salted type of skin is used. Moistened skin will fold a lot easier without tearing. At this time you might want (I did) to make a starch glue for sealing the skins on the rolls. Make a small quantity slurry of starch in a cup and then heat it up to boiling in a microwave. The starch will gel and this is your bean curd skin glue.
Pork+Prawn filling ready for assembly into rolls with bean curd skin
	Now assemble your rolls by packing the meat+prawn mixture onto a piece of skin and then rolling the filling with the skin around it, into a log shape. You will need to tuck the ends of the skin on either side of the meat log so that the filling is locked inside the skin. After the rolls are made, here is a step which is optional: Steaming. This helps firm up the meat filling and make it easier to handle for the frying step (it also par cooks the filling so that frying only needs to take care of the skin of the roll). If doing the steaming step, make sure that the rolls are put on a mesh or rack during the steaming so that the skin will not get overly wet. Heat up a lot (enough to float the rolls) of high smoke point cooking oil until the end of a wooden chopstick immersed in it shows bubbles. Fry each roll until the skin is golden or dark brown (as you prefer). Now you have made ngo hiang. Serve hot and sliced. Often eaten with a chilli sauce (your choice of type).

Clem's Ngo Hiang (5-Spice Pork+Prawn Meat Rolls)
ENJOY! www.clemkuek.com 15 July 2026 Created by Clem Kuek