Banh Xeo is a crispy pancake made with rice flour, coconut milk and turmeric. I’ve used cooked chicken with my version to cut down on cooking time. You could also use rotisserie chicken as well. These are great as a starter with friends, or for a quick lunch. The spicy nuoc cham dressing brings everything together with its spicy, sweet flavour.
WATCH THIS RECIPE
Crispy Vietnamese Pancakes (Banh Xeo)
PREP TIME
10 minutes
COOK TIME
40 minutes
SERVES
6
Ingredients
140g (5 oz) rice flour
½ tsp turmeric
¼ tsp sea salt
125ml (½ cup) coconut milk
½ cup water
2 spring onions, finely sliced
vegetable oil
1 cup shredded cooked chicken (leftover roast chicken or rotisserie chicken is great)
1 small carrot, julienned into fine strips or coarsely grated
100g (3.5 oz) bean shoots
sprigs of coriander
mint leaves, to serve
lettuce leaves, to serve
Nuoc cham dressing:
3 tbsp fish sauce
2 tbsp white vinegar
3 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp lime juice
1 long red chilli, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
Steps
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To make the batter, combine the rice flour, turmeric and sea salt in a large bowl. Whisk in the coconut milk, ½ cup of water and spring onions. Set aside for 10 minutes.
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For the nuoc cham, whisk together the ingredients and set aside until ready to serve.
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Heat a 22cm non-stick frying pan over medium-high heat. Pour in enough oil to just cover the bottom of the pan. Add one-third of the batter, swirling to thinly cover the pan. Scatter one-third of the chicken, carrot and bean shoots over half the pancake. Top with a couple of sprigs of coriander. Cook for 3-4 minutes or until the pancake is crispy and golden on the bottom side. Fold the pancake over to cover the filling, then slide onto a serving plate and keep warm. Repeat with remaining batter and filling, adding oil each time. Serve with herbs, lettuce and nuoc cham dressing.
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Notes:
– Instead of the chicken, you could substitute any cooked meats or seafood.
Delicious but not totally straightforward
I have made these several times now but its taken a bit of practice to get them crispy. One of the issues is that the batter is too thick and so extra water is needed to thin out the batter, otherwise you get a soggy pancake rather than thin and crispy. It also needs a longer cooking time than I thought but if the pan is too hot it burns the pancake. Apart from that its delicious and can be made with seafood if you don’t eat meat. Success at last!
Thank you for Gluten Free deliciousness
Firstly thank you Marion for your lovely presentation style. Your video was easy to follow and straightforward. I made the pancakes for my son and I after having them from our local Vietnamese restaurant (they are divine) and they turned out pretty good first time! I made them with frozen prawns which I quickly fried beforehand. The Batter was a little thick so I’ll probably add a little more liquid but thank you fur a great recipe. 😊😊😊
Color, Texture, Taste!
This is one of our favorite recipes and the one I’ve come back to most often. It’s addictive and never gets old. It works beautifully with chicken, pork or shrimp. This one is a “home run,” Marion!