Banh Xeo
Vietnam’s sizzling crepe: turmeric-coconut rice batter fried shatter-crisp around pork and shrimp, wrapped in lettuce and herbs.
- prep
- 25 min
- cook
- 30 min
- total
- 55 min
- serves
- 4
- level
- medium
Banh xeo means sizzling cake, named for the sound the thin batter makes hitting hot fat. The crepe is rice flour and coconut milk stained yellow with turmeric, there is no egg despite appearances, and the goal is a shattering crispness.
The eating is the best part: tear off a piece, bundle it in lettuce with mint and cilantro, and drag it through nuoc cham. The first crepe traditionally fails and is eaten standing up by the cook.
Banh Xeo is one of the world's classic dishes from 67 countries.
method
Whisk the rice flour, turmeric, coconut milk, water, a pinch of salt and the spring onions into a thin batter. Rest 20 minutes.
Make the nuoc cham: dissolve 2 tablespoons of sugar in 4 of lime juice and 3 of fish sauce with 6 of water, minced garlic and chili.
Heat a nonstick pan hard with a film of oil. Sear a few pork slices and shrimp for a minute.
Pour in a thin ladle of batter, swirling to the edges; it should hiss on arrival. Scatter a handful of beansprouts on one half.
Lower the heat slightly, cover for 2 minutes, then uncover and let it crisp until the edges lace and lift, 2 to 3 minutes more. Fold and slide out.
Repeat, holding finished crepes uncovered. Serve with the herb platter and nuoc cham for wrapping and dipping.
chef's tips
- Thin batter, hot pan, patience at the end: those three make the shatter.
- Crowded pans steam; a 24 cm pan takes one small ladle, no more.
- The lettuce wrap is not garnish, it is the dish’s delivery system.