Bánh Xèo (Vietnamese Crêpes)
These lacy thin bánh xèo with a crackly crisp are filled with juicy pork belly, shrimp and bean sprouts. This Vietnamese crepe is the perfect dish to make for your next family dinner!
Servings 12 crepes
Calories 509kcal
Ingredients
Batter
- ½ cup split mung beans soaked overnight
- 1 cup coconut milk full fat, unsweetened and stirred before using
- 2 cup (240 g) rice flour
- 1 cup (122 g) cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon (10 g) all-purpose flour
- 4 cup water
- 2 green onion thinly sliced
- 1 ½ teaspoon (6 g) tumeric powder
- 2 tablespoon (25 g) sugar
- ½ teaspoon (2 g) salt
Filling
- 1 lb pork belly cut into 1/4 inch slices
- 1 lb medium shrimp shelled, deveined and halved lengthwise
- 1 medium yellow onion thinly sliced
- ½ cup split mung beans soaked overnight
- 3 cup bean sprouts
Toppings
- Lettuce
- Mint
- Vietnamese perilla
- Vietnamese dipping sauce
Instructions
Batter
- Prepare the mung beans. In a small bowl, soak 1 cup of dried mung beans in water until softened about 1 hour or overnight. Drain the mung beans and blend a 1/2 cup with coconut milk until smooth. Set aside the other 1/2 cup for steaming.
- Mix the batter. In a large mixing bowl, add the mung bean mixture, rice flour, cornstarch, water, scallions, turmeric, sugar and salt. Mix together to combine. Let the crepe batter rest for at least 2 hours but preferably overnight.
Fillings
- Cook the pork, shrimp and onion. Heat 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil in a wok or a 10-inch nonstick skillet. Add the pork, shrimp and slices of yellow onion. Season with a sprinkle of salt and pepper and cook for 1 minute until the shrimp is pink and done cooking. Set aside.
- Steam the mung beans. In a steamer heat 1/2 of your steamer with water and bring it to a boil. Lay the mung beans over your steamer basket and steam for 15 minutes or until soft and tender. Set aside.
Assemble
- In the wok or large skillet on medium heat, add 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil, a few slices of pork, shrimp and onion one one side of the pan. Stir the crêpe batter and pour 2/3 cup of it into the pan; tilt and swirl the pan to coat the edges until it is an even layer, making sure to cover the shrimp and pork. Scatter mung beans over the crepe and place the bean sprouts on the half of the crepe with the pork and shrimp. Drizzle 2 teaspoons of vegetable oil around the edges. Cover the skillet and cook over moderately medium to steam the bean sprouts for 2 minutes. Then remove the lid and cook on medium high until the bottom of the crêpe is golden and crisp, about 5-7 more minutes. Then fold the crepe in half.
- Slide the crêpe onto a plate and serve with lettuce leaves, mint and nuoc cham (Vietnamese dipping sauce). Repeat with the remaining ingredients, serving the crêpes as soon as they are cooked.
Notes
- Use a scale to measure the flour. This will ensure a foolproof way to know if the banh xeo recipe was followed accurately. If you don’t have a scale, simply fluff up the flour with a spoon and gently drop it into your measuring cup. Do NOT pack the flour.
- Make the batter in advance. The batter needs time for the flour to absorb the liquids and fully reach its crispy potential. The minimum time the batter should rest is 2 hours but preferably overnight.
- Before cooking stir the batter. The flours will sink to the bottom of the batter so give the batter a quick stir before adding it to your hot skillet.
- Make sure your skillet is hot before adding the batter. A hot skillet will ensure the batter will be crispy. Make sure you use medium-high heat to prevent the crepe from burning.
- Cooking time will vary. The cooking times will vary depending on what pan you use, how hot your stove is and how many banh xeo you are making. It is important to keep an eye on the crepe to make sure you do not burn it.
- Drizzle oil along the edges of the crepe. This will ensure the edges are extra crispy as they pan fry in the skillet.
Nutrition
Calories: 509kcal | Carbohydrates: 51g | Protein: 19g | Fat: 26g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 10g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 88mg | Sodium: 169mg | Potassium: 541mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 50IU | Vitamin C: 6mg | Calcium: 67mg | Iron: 3mg