Vietnamese Savory Crepe (Bánh Xèo)
What is Bánh Xèo?
Bánh xèo are Vietnamese savory crepes, named for the sizzle ("xèo") the batter makes when it hits the hot pan. The thin rice flour batter gets its golden color from turmeric and its richness from coconut milk, and it cooks up crispy and lacy around a filling of pork, shrimp, onion and bean sprouts.
This version doesn't rely on a premix flour bag. A splash of beer and a pinch of baking powder keep the batter light and extra crispy. To eat, wrap pieces in lettuce with plenty of fresh herbs and cucumber, then dip in nước chấm.
Watch How to Make It
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Vietnamese Savory Crepe (Bánh Xèo)
Crispy, lacy Vietnamese crepes made from scratch (no premix bag) with rice flour, coconut milk and beer, filled with pork, shrimp and bean sprouts.
Ingredients
Batter
- 1¼ cups rice flour 200 g
- 5 tablespoon cornstarch 40 g
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
- ¾ cup + 1 tablespoon coconut milk 200 mL
- 1¾ cups + 1 tablespoon beer 430 mL
- 2½ tablespoon water 40 mL
- ⅓ teaspoon baking powder add right before cooking
- 3 green onions sliced
Filling
- 1 lb pork shoulder/butt sliced thinly
- 1 lb shrimp deveined, halved
- 1 large white onion sliced thinly
- bean sprouts
- neutral oil for cooking
To serve
- lettuce or Chinese mustard greens
- Vietnamese herb mix
- cucumbers sliced
- Vietnamese sweet fish sauce dressing (nước chấm)
Instructions
Make the batter
- In a large bowl, whisk together the rice flour, cornstarch, salt and turmeric powder.
- Pour in the coconut milk, beer and water and whisk until smooth. Stir in the sliced green onions and set aside.
- Prep the filling: thinly slice the pork, devein and halve the shrimp, and thinly slice the onion.
Cook the crepes
- Right before cooking, stir the baking powder into the batter.
- Heat about 2 tablespoon oil in a wide pan or wok over high heat. Add a few slices of onion, 2-3 shrimp and 3-4 slices of pork. Sauté until about 80% cooked.
- Pour in a thin layer of batter to cover the pan and add a handful of bean sprouts. Cover with a lid and lower the heat to medium-low.
- Let it cook for 3-4 minutes.
- Remove the lid, drizzle more oil around the rim of the crepe and turn the heat up to high for maximum crispiness.
- When the edges crisp up and the crepe releases from the pan, fold it in half and move it onto a cooling rack. Repeat with the remaining batter and filling.
- Serve with lettuce, Vietnamese herbs, cucumbers and nước chấm for dipping.
Notes
Keep them crispy: For best results, hold the finished bánh xèo in a "keep warm" oven so they stay warm until serving.
Baking powder: Add it just before you start cooking, not when you mix the batter.
