Banh xeo (sizzling cakes) recipe
These savoury pancakes are absolutely divine. Stuff them full of bean sprouts, prawns and pork or chicken, and enjoy the crunch.
Gaitri says: "The Vietnamese word ‘xeo’ (pronounced ‘sayo’) represents the sizzling sound made when the batter for these pancakes hits the pan. Ingredients, preparation and names vary across the country, and southerners are reputedly more generous with the filling than northerners. Eat them the Vietnamese way: wrap bits in lettuce leaves with herbs to taste. Or serve folded, as a wrap in its own right, doubling the amount of filling."
Ingredients
For the batter- 125 g rice flour
- 0.5 tsp turmeric
- 0.25 tsp salt
- 175 ml coconut milk
- 175 ml water
- 2 spring onions, very finely sliced
- 100 g pork or chicken breast, thinly sliced
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 splash neutral-tasting oil, for cooking
- 1 small onion, sliced lengthways
- 100 g prawns, peeled, deveined and chopped if large
- 75 g bean sprouts
- 1 handful mint
- 1 handful Thai basil
- 1 handful coriander leaves
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
Details
- Cuisine: Vietnamese
- Recipe Type: Main
- Difficulty: Medium
- Preparation Time: 80 mins
- Cooking Time: 10 mins
- Serves: 4
Step-by-step
- Sift the rice flour, turmeric and salt into a bowl. Add the coconut milk and water and whisk well to make thin, lump-free batter.
- Stir in the spring onions and leave for 30–60 minutes. Stir well before using and before ladling out each pancake.
- Mix the meat with the garlic and 1½ tsp of the soy sauce. Cover and chill until needed. Cook the filling just before you make the pancakes. Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a wok and stir-fry the onion briefly.
- Add the meat and stir-fry until almost cooked. Stir in the prawns. When they are almost cooked through, add the bean sprouts and remaining soy sauce. Remove from the heat and keep warm.
- Put 1 tsp of oil in a 23–24cm non-stick frying pan over a high heat. Keep the heat high. Add about 75ml of the batter and swirl quickly but gently to cover the base of the pan (the batter is delicate).
- Cook until crisp on the bottom and dry on top. Spoon a quarter of the filling over half of the pancake, fold over and slide onto a plate. Keep warm. Make the rest in the same way.
- Give everyone an individual dipping bowl. Cut each pancake into 4–5 pieces. Take a flexible lettuce leaf and top with the pancake and some mint, (Thai) basil and/or coriander leaves to taste. Fold into a parcel and enjoy.
Recipe taken from Wrapped by Gaitri Pagrach-Chandra, published by Pavilion.
Photography by Keiko Oikawa
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