Crispy Vietnamese pancake made with turmeric and coconut milk. Serve with heaps of herbs and lettuce, and a fish sauce dip (nuoc mam). Deeply moreish! Recipe adapted from Hungry Huy. Vegetarian suggestions included after the recipe.
Recipe
Serves: 2 (4 to 6 pancakes depending on pan size*) | Time: 3h50 (of which 3h resting time)
(*) A ø22cm (ø9in) pan yields ~6 pancakes
Ingredients
Batter
- 85g rice flour (~3oz)
- 30g all-purpose flour (~1oz)
- 1 tsp turmeric
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 270ml water (9.13 fl. oz | 1.13cup)
- 130ml coconut milk (~4.4 fl. oz)
- 1 spring onion, sliced
Filling
- 200g shrimp (~7oz)
- 2 tbsp nuoc cham (Vietnamese fish sauce)
- Oil, to fry
- 1/2 onion, thinly sliced
- 150 to 200g bean sprouts (~7oz)
Accompaniments
- 1 head of butter lettuce
- Fresh mint (a few sprigs)
- Fresh coriander (a few sprigs)
- Nuoc cham, for dipping (see substitutions for vegetarian alternative)
Method
Make the batter (5min prep + 3h rest)
- Mix the dry ingredients: in a large bowl mix 85g of rice flour with 30g all purpose flour, 1 tsp of turmeric, and 1/4 tsp of salt (picture 1).
- Add the wet ingredients: 270ml water and 130ml coconut milk. Whisk to combine. The mix should be quite runny (picture 2).
- Cover and refrigerate for 3h. The spring onion will be added right before using.
Prep other ingredients whilst the batter rests
- If needed peel and devein shrimps.
- Marinate in bowl with 2 tbsp of fish sauce. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use (picture 3).
- Tear the lettuce leaves (keeping them whole), rinse and dry.
Make the pancakes (~8min per pancake)
- Slice the spring onion and add to the batter. Give the batter a mix to homogenise as it may have separated (picture 4).
- Heat 1 to 2 tsp of oil in a non-stick pan on medium-high heat.
- Thinly slice 1/2 an onion and if needed cut the prawns into bite size pieces. I had jumbo prawns and cut them in 3.
- Add a few slices of onion and pieces of shrimp to the pan and quickly sauté (picture 5).
- Pour in some batter and quickly tilt the pan to spread evenly. The batter should form a thin layer across the pan (add a little bit more batter to cover the bottom of the pan) (picture 6).
- Top with a handful of bean sprouts (picture 6).
- Cover with a lid and lower the heat to medium / medium-low. Cook covered for 3min.
- Remove the lid and cook for another 5 to 7min. This will dry out the pancake and make it crispy.
- Fold pancake in half and plate (picture 7).
- Make the other pancakes: repeat steps 4 to 9 until you run out of batter. Remember to give the batter a stir before pouring in the pan. I get 6 to 7 pancakes using a ø22cm pan (ø9in). Pancakes may loose a bit of crisp as they sit, you can make pancakes in 2 pan simultaneously to reduce that risk. Do not layer them on top of each other it will steam them and remove all that crisp you worked so hard for.
Serve
- Give your herbs (mint and coriander) a quick rinse and pat dry with a paper towel.
- Serve the banh xeo with lettuce, herbs and nuoc cham dipping sauce.
- To eat (pictures 8 & 9): tear a bit of pancake (roughly 2 bites sized), and wrap it in a lettuce leaf with the herbs. Dip in nuoc cham and ENJOY!
Substitutions
I highlight here possible substitutions to adapt the banh xeo to your preferences, diet and ingredients available to you.
| Recipe components | Possible substitutions* |
| Filling: 200g prawns (+2 tbsp nuoc cham) | • Pork belly (boil until soft and slice into bite size pieces before using) • 100g pork belly + 100g prawns • Skip for a vegetarian version |
| Nuoc Cham | Make a vegetarian Nuoc Cham, mixing: • 1 part soy sauce • 1 part lime juice • 1 part sugar • 1 part water • Chili flakes to taste • 1 whole garlic clove (optional) |
Country
Vietnam
Vietnam
The Global Homecook 