Vietnamese Pancake/Sizzling Crepes Recipe (Banh Xeo)

Banh Xeo is typical Vietnamese food street. This savory crepes are made from rice flour, coconut milk, curry powder or turmeric powder, pork, shrimps and bean sprouts. Some people add steamed mung beans and mushrooms; then pan fried. When the batter pour into the hot skillet, they make "sssssssssssssehh-ao" sound. That's how this traditional crepes got its name.

This delightful and crispy savory crepe is very addicted. Many people enjoy this crepes for snacking or tea time. Banh Xeo are easy to fix. Here is my simplified recipe of Vietnamese sizzling crepes. I always fix this loaded crepes for potluck or bbq party and always a hit among family, friends and colleagues. These crepes is healthier than traditional western crepes since it's loaded with protein and fiber. You can improvise this recipe by adding your favorite meats and vegetables. Bon appetit.

Serve: 5 crepes

Ingredients:

1/2 lbs medium shrimps, peeled and deveined

1/2 lbs boneless pork, thinly sliced

1 onion, thinly sliced

3 cups bean sprouts

1/2 cup vegetable oil

sweet and sour fish sauce (dipping sauce)

vegetable garnish (mint, cilantro, coriander, basil, etc)

Batter:

2 1/4 cups rice flour

1/4 cup cornstarch/tapioca starch

2 1/2 cups water

1 cup coconut milk

1/2 tsp Vietnamese Madras curry powder

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 scallion, chopped

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine rice flour, corn starch, water, coconut milk, curry powder, scallion, turmeric powder. Stir it well. Set aside for about 30 minutes.
2. To make filling, divide the shrimp, pork slices and onion into 5 portions. Set aside and line up these ingredients near the stove next to batter, bean sprouts and oil.
3. Heat 1-2 tablespoon oil in a 10 - 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Sauté one portion of pork, shrimp and onion for about 45 seconds to 1 minute or until aromatic.
4. Corn starch will have easily settled at the bottom of the bowl. Use ladle to give the batter a good stir. Pour in 1/3 to 1/2 cup of batter, shaking and swirl the skillet to coat the bottom completely. The batter will make sizzling sound. Put one portion of bean sprouts on the half side. Lower the heat and cover and cook for about 3 minutes or until the bean sprout have wilted.
5. Remove the lid then add 1 tbsp of vegetable oil around the edge of the pan. Lower the heat, uncovered and continue to cook about 3 minutes or until it crispy enough. Loosen the crepe and check if the bottom is crispy. Use lower heat if you need to cook it longer. When it's crispy, use spatula to fold crepe in half and transfer it into serving platter. Make more crepes with the remaining batter and fillings.
6. Serve with vegetables salad/herbs. Common way to eat this crepe is place it on lettuce leaf and add mint, basil, cilantro and coriander leaves on top then roll it up. Then you can dip it in sweet and sour fish sauce or your favorite dipping sauce.

Ingredients:

3 cloves garlic, finely minced

1/2 cup water

6 tbsp fish sauce

3 tbsp sugar

3 tbsp lime juice

1 tsp chili paste (optional)

In a small bowl, mix all the ingredients and stir well to dissolve the sugar. Set aside.