Bánh Bèo (Vietnamese Steamed Rice Cakes)

Up close of several steamed Vietnamese rice cakes on a table.

Bánh Bèo (Vietnamese Steamed Rice Cakes)

Bánh bèo or Vietnamese steamed rice cakes are a popular Vietnamese appetizer made with soft bouncy rice cakes that are topped with softened mung beans, dried shrimp, scallion oil, crispy fried shallots, and served with a side of Vietnamese dipping sauce.

Course Appetizer, Appetizer & Sides, Lunch & Dinner Recipes

Cuisine Vietnamese

Keyword banh beo, banh beo recipe, vietnamese steamed rice cakes

Prep Time 25

Cook Time 30

Resting Time 1

Total Time 1 55

Servings servings

Calories 281kcal

Author Megan

Equipment

Ingredients

Batter

1 cup + 1 tablespoon (120 g) rice flour
1 ½ tablespoon (20 g) cornstarch
2 ½ tablespoon (21 g) tapioca starch
½ teaspoon (3 g) salt
2 cups hot water not boiling

Mung Bean

½ cup peeled split mung beans
1 cup water
½ teaspoon salt

Shrimp

½ lb shrimp
1 cup water

Green Onion

3 stalks green onion diced
1 tablespoon olive oil
¼ teaspoon salt

Dipping Sauce

½ cup reserved shrimp water from above
¼ cup fish sauce
¼ cup Coco Rico
2 cloves garlic minced
¼ cup sugar
3 tablespoon lime juice
1 red bird’s eye chili thinly sliced (Optional)

Additional Toppings

Crispy fried shallots

Instructions

Banh Beo Batter

Mix the batter. In a large mixing bowl, add the rice flour, cornstarch, tapioca starch, hot water and salt. Mix until combined. Cover and let the batter rest for 1 hour.

Shrimp

Cook the shrimp in water. On a large skillet on medium high heat, add the shrimp and just enough water to cover the shrimp about 1 cup. Cover and cook for 1 minute on each side. Transfer the shrimp to a food processor and save the remaining shrimp water for the sauce.
Chop the shrimp. Pulse the shrimp in a food processor for about 30 seconds or until finely chopped.
Dry the shrimp. Using the same cleaned skillet, add 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil on medium heat. Add the chopped shrimp and cook for about 6-7 minutes periodically stirring until the shrimp is dried, lightly golden brown and fluffy. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.

Mung Beans

Cook the mung beans. Rinse the mung beans until the water runs clear. Then place the mung beans in a rice cooker with 1 cup water and 1/2 teaspoon salt and mix until combined. Cook in the rice cooker like you are cooking rice. Once cooked, mash the mung beans in the rice cooker and set aside. If the mung beans are dry, add 1-2 tablespoons of hot water.

Green Onions

Prepare the green onion. In a small saucepan over medium heat, cook the green onion, oil and salt for 2 minutes or until the green onions soften.

Dipping sauce

Mix together. In a medium mixing bowl, mix together the reserved shrimp water, fish sauce, coconut water, garlic cloves, sugar, lime juice and bird’s eye chili. Set aside.

Steam and assemble

Steam the banh beo. Fill your steamer basket 3/4 of the way with water and bring to a boil. Grease each small 3 inch plate with vegetable oil and place them into your steamer. Mix up your batter and pour it into a measuring cup with a pour spout. Gently pour the batter into the dishes halfway, cover and steam on medium heat for about 4-5 minutes or until set.
Assemble. Add a small dollop of mung bean, dried shrimp, few pieces of green onion with a drizzle of scallion oil, and crispy fried shallots on top of each dish. Serve with dipping sauce and enjoy!

Notes

If the mung beans are dry, add 1-2 tablespoons of hot water at a time and mix until the mung beans have a mashed potato-like consistency.
Save the shrimp water. Remember to save the shrimp stock after you cook the shrimp for the dipping sauce. This will create a more well-rounded umami flavor in the dipping sauce.
Let the batter rest for a minimum of 1 hour. Letting the batter rest, gives time for the rice flour to absorb the liquid and fully incorporate it into the batter.
Steam on medium-high heat. Make sure the steamer is not too hot that it will boil the steamed rice cakes.
Different sized containers will yield different cook times. I used small 3-inch wide and 1/2 inch thick plates for this recipe which took 4 minutes to steam. If you use thicker plates or muffin tins and fill them higher it may take up to 7-8 minutes to steam. You will know if they are done steaming when the entire plate is set and the tops are slightly sticky and springy.

Nutrition