Bánh xèo (literally "sizzling cake") are Vietnamese savoury pancakes made out of rice flour, water and turmeric powder or coconut milk (in the Southern regions), stuffed with slivers of fatty pork, shrimp, and bean sprouts and then pan fried. Traditionally, they are served wrapped in mustard leaf, lettuce leaves, and stuffed with mint leaves, basil, fish leaf and/or other herbs, and dipped in a prepared nước mắm called nuoc cham (Vietnamese fish sauce thinned with water and lemon). In the Central region, the pancake is dipped in a special 'tuong' sauce which consists of liver, hoisin sauce and garlic.
Southern style Bánh xèo are larger compared to the small pan-fried versions in the Central regions. Called "banh khoai" or stuffed omelette, today it is one of the best known dishes from the Central region. It made with rice flour and flavoured with cumin, it is fried until deliciously crispy around the edges in pans over charcoal burners. It is filled with little mounds of pounded pork, egg, shrimps, a few bean sprouts and some mashed green beans, and then folded over. To eat it, a piece is broken off with chopsticks and wrap it in fresh mustard greens with fresh herb leaves, slices of green banana and green fig, and dip it in a sauce (called 'tuong') which consists of liver, hoisin sauce and garlic.
The fresh herbs, which include the spicy, red-tinged cumin leaf, help to reduce any oiliness in the fried dish, as does the sourness of the banana and fig, which are also digestive aids.
Other variation of bánh xèo are bánh khoái in Huế city and Nghệ An province, bánh căng or bánh căn in South Central region, bánh khọt in Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu province.
In Cambodian cuisine, there is a similar dish called banh chiao which is derived from bánh xèo.
Preparation
Firstly, rice flour is mixed with turmeric flour, coconut water, sugar, salt and diced green onion. Secondly, enough cooking oil is added to a big skillet to make a layer lower than that of the crepe mixture. After the oil has been heated well, the crepe mixture is poured into the pan centripetally. The name bánh xèo is derived from the loud sizzling sound – onomatopoetically called xèo xèo – created when the batter hits the hot oil. While one hand is used for pouring the mixture fast, the other hand is used to revolve the pan quickly. The next step is putting bean sprouts, shrimp, and green beans into the mixture. The fire is kept at a high heat while the mixture is cooking. As soon as the edge turns yellow and crisp, the cake is ready to be served. The requirement is that the edge is crispy while the central part of the cake is still soft.
See also
External links
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