Mum Pham's Vietnamese pancakes (banh xeo)

by - June 29, 2011


As a kid Mum Pham used to call me pancake face because my face was big and round like a pancake, which is fair enough. My face is nowhere near as flat or as tasty as the Vietnamese pancakes mum taught me to make recently:


INGREDIENTS

Pancake mix:
4 cups rice flour
6 cups cold water
5 beaten eggs
2 tablespoons tumeric powder
1 tablespoon curry powder
4 spring onions, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon white vinegar

For frying:

Meaty version
3 medium onions, 1-2cm slices
500g bean sprouts
500g shrimps, discard heads and tails
500g pork belly, thinly sliced

Vego version
3 medium onions, 1-2cm slices
500g bean sprouts
500g pre-fried tofu, thinly sliced
300g mushroom, thinly sliced

1. Make the pancake mix by throwing all the ingredients listed above and stirring
2. Heat a frying pan to super hot and pre-fry the onions, pork or tofu, prawn or mushroom
3. Push the contents of the pan onto one half of the pan.
4. Pour a thin layer of the pancake mix around the whole pan face - pick up the pan and swirl it around until the mix is evenly distributed and round (no matter if there's the odd gap)
5. Cover the pan with a lid and leave for about a minute to cook the surface of the mix
6. Put some bean sprout on the half of the pancake with the pre-fried filling and cover with the lid and leave to cook for another minute.
7. Once bean sprouts are cooked (look a little grey), take off the lid and let the pancake fry until the edges start to curl and crisp.
8. Fold the pancake in half by flipping the plain side over the side with the filling and put it on a plate.
9. Repeat steps 1-8 another one or two times and start eating!


When The Phamly eats this meal there's usually someone manning the pans because the dish is best enjoyed hot off the stove. We usually eat the pancake wrapped in lettuce with mint, basil, cucumber and pickled carrot and dipped in fish sauce.

I can't be arsed typing out how to roll it etc. It all ends up mushed in your gut anyway so do what you like!


Captain Catman likes them.

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