What is Bánh Xèo?
Bánh Xèo come from southern and central Vietnam. The name imitates the sizzle of the batter hitting the hot pan. The classic filling is pork belly and shrimp, and you can find that recipe under Bánh Xèo with shrimp. Chay means vegetarian. Vietnam's Buddhist cooking has a chay version without meat and fish for many dishes, usually with tofu and mushrooms. The yellow color comes from turmeric, and the batter contains no eggs.
The right ingredients
- Rice flour: Use rice flour, not glutinous rice flour. Ready-made Bánh Xèo mixes from an Asian grocery store contain rice flour, turmeric and salt, and you stir them with coconut milk and water.
- Tofu: Firm tofu, well pressed and patted dry. Wet tofu does not brown in the pan and makes the oil spatter.
- Shiitake: Slice fresh mushrooms, and soak dried ones first. You can read more under preparing shiitake.
- Soy sauce: The vegetarian nước chấm replaces fish sauce with soy sauce. Regular soy sauce contains wheat, so for a gluten-free sauce use tamari. More ideas for swapping fish sauce and the like are under substituting Asian ingredients.
- Lettuce and herbs: For wrapping you need leaf lettuce or mustard green leaves. Plan on 4 to 5 leaves per person.
How to get Bánh Xèo crisp
Hot pan, little batter
Use a nonstick pan 24 to 26 cm (9 to 10 in) across and heat 1 tbsp oil over medium-high heat. Pour in a small ladle of batter and swirl the pan until the bottom is thinly covered. The batter should sizzle audibly. If it stays quiet, the pan is too cold.
Lid for the filling
Spread the tofu, mushrooms and sprouts over one half and put the lid on for 2 minutes so the sprouts cook. Then keep frying without the lid until the edge pulls away from the bottom of the pan and turns brown. That takes 3 to 4 minutes. Only then do you fold the pancake over. You do not need to flip it.
Common mistakes
- Too much batter: A thick pancake stays soft and tough inside.
- Too much filling: Sprouts and mushrooms release water and soften the batter. A handful per pancake is enough.
- Batter not stirred: The rice flour settles. The last pancakes then turn out thick and floury.
- Waiting too long: After 10 minutes on the plate the edge is soft. Eat the pancakes straight from the pan.
How to eat Bánh Xèo
Break off a piece of the pancake, lay it with mint, cilantro and Thai basil on a lettuce leaf, roll it up and dip the roll in the sauce. With a knife and fork you crush the crisp edge. As a second vegetarian dish, Đậu Hũ Sốt Cà, tofu in tomato sauce with rice, goes well. For a vegetarian round of fresh rice paper rolls such as Gỏi Cuốn, fill them with tofu instead of shrimp.
