Name: Southern-Style Bánh Xèo (Crispy Vietnamese Rice Pancakes)
Prep time: 35 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 110 min
Cuisine: Vietnam
Ingredients: 350 g pork tenderloin, trimmed and left whole; 1.5 L water; 5 g fine salt; 300 g raw medium-large shrimp, peeled and deveined after cooking; 250 g rice flour (not glutinous rice flour); 50 g tapioca starch; 550 ml water; 200 ml canned coconut milk, stirred smooth; 1 tsp (about 3 g) ground turmeric; 50 g scallions, thinly sliced; 5 g fine salt; 2 medium yellow onions (about 200 g), thinly sliced; 300 g bean sprouts, rinsed and drained; 90 ml neutral cooking oil for the pan; not all is absorbed; 200 g lettuce leaves, washed and dried; 200 g mustard greens, washed and dried; or use more lettuce; 30 g fresh mint, washed and dried; 30 g fresh cilantro, washed and dried; 200 g cucumber, thinly sliced; 8 rice-paper sheets, optional for wrapping bites; 60 ml fish sauce; 90 ml water; 60 ml fresh lime juice; 40 g granulated sugar; 10 g garlic, finely minced; 5 g red chilli, finely sliced; adjust to taste

Crispy golden Vietnamese rice pancake folded around shrimp, pork and bean sprouts, served with greens and nước chấm. — Bánh xèo served hot with herbs and nước chấm.

Yield 4 servings (8 pancakes)

Cook 45 minutes

Passive 30 minutes batter rest

Total 1 hour 50 minutes

Calories About 700 kcal per serving

Ingredients ↓

Overview

Southern-Style Bánh Xèo (Crispy Vietnamese Rice Pancakes)

Bánh xèo gets its name from the lively sizzle when batter hits a hot pan. This southern-style home version makes eight thin, crisp rice pancakes with pork, shrimp, onion and bean sprouts. Serve them hot with lettuce, mustard greens, herbs, cucumber and nước chấm. Styles vary around Vietnam; this recipe is one practical version.

The thin batter cooks into a golden shell with crisp, lacy edges. Coconut milk gives the southern-style batter a gentle richness, while turmeric gives it its sunny colour. The filling is deliberately simple: cooked pork and shrimp, sweet onion and crunchy bean sprouts. At the table, wrap a piece with leafy greens, mint, cilantro and cucumber, then dip it in a bright fish-sauce dressing.

This version poaches the pork and shrimp separately before they go into each pancake. That makes doneness easier to check and keeps each pancake cook quick. Use rice flour, not glutinous rice flour, and rest the batter so the starch hydrates evenly.

Ingredients

Pork and shrimp

350 g pork tenderloin, trimmed and left whole
1.5 L water
5 g fine salt
300 g raw medium-large shrimp, peeled and deveined after cooking

Rice pancake batter

250 g rice flour (not glutinous rice flour)
50 g tapioca starch
550 ml water
200 ml canned coconut milk, stirred smooth
1 tsp (about 3 g) ground turmeric
50 g scallions, thinly sliced
5 g fine salt

Filling and greens

2 medium yellow onions (about 200 g), thinly sliced
300 g bean sprouts, rinsed and drained
90 ml neutral cooking oil for the pan; not all is absorbed
200 g lettuce leaves, washed and dried
200 g mustard greens, washed and dried; or use more lettuce
30 g fresh mint, washed and dried
30 g fresh cilantro, washed and dried
200 g cucumber, thinly sliced
8 rice-paper sheets, optional for wrapping bites

Nước chấm dipping sauce

60 ml fish sauce
90 ml water
60 ml fresh lime juice
40 g granulated sugar
10 g garlic, finely minced
5 g red chilli, finely sliced; adjust to taste

Method

Cook the pork. Bring the salted water to a gentle simmer. Add the whole tenderloin and poach gently, turning once, until the centre reaches 63°C. Rest for at least 3 minutes. Transfer to a clean plate, cool promptly and slice thinly across the grain.
Cook the shrimp. Bring the poaching water back to a simmer. Add the shrimp and cook about 2–4 minutes, depending on size, until opaque and 63°C in the thickest part. Cool on a separate clean plate. Keep raw-seafood utensils away from cooked pork and ready-to-eat greens.
Mix and rest the batter. Whisk rice flour, tapioca starch, water, coconut milk, turmeric and salt until smooth. Stir in scallions and leave the batter to rest for 30 minutes. Whisk again before cooking.
Make the dip and prepare greens. Stir fish sauce, water, lime juice and sugar until the sugar dissolves. Add garlic and chilli. Wash and dry the lettuce, mustard greens, mint, cilantro and cucumber; arrange them on a platter.
Heat the pan. Set a 24 cm skillet over medium-high heat. Add a thin film of oil. Add a little sliced onion, several shrimp and a few slices of cooked pork. Keep the remaining cooked filling covered and chilled if there is a delay.
Cook each pancake. Pour in a ladle of batter and immediately swirl the pan so it forms a thin layer. Scatter bean sprouts over one half. Cover briefly until the batter sets and sprouts soften, then uncover and cook until the underside is golden and the edges are crisp, about 2–3 minutes. Fold in half and slide onto a clean plate. Repeat to make eight pancakes, adding a little oil as needed.
Serve. Bring the pancakes to the table hot with the greens, herbs, cucumber, optional rice paper and nước chấm. Tear off pieces and wrap them in greens to eat. Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours at or below 4°C; store pancakes and fresh greens separately. Reheat leftovers to 74°C.

Practical

Practical guidance

The pan must be hot before the batter goes in; the immediate sizzle helps the thin edge set. Swirl the batter as soon as it lands. If the first pancake tears, let the pan heat a little longer and use slightly less batter next time. If the edges soften, uncover the pan and give them another minute to crisp. Serve each pancake as soon as it leaves the pan.

Troubleshooting

Pancake is soft rather than crisp: the pan may be cool or crowded. Use a thin batter layer, uncover near the end and cook until the edge is dry and crisp. Batter clumps or separates: whisk it again before each pour; rice flour settles while resting. Pancake sticks: the pan needs more heat or a light fresh coating of oil before the next one.

Nutrition per serving

Serving size: 2 pancakes, one-quarter of the dip and greens

Nutrition per serving

Serving size2 pancakes, one-quarter of the dip and greens
Calories700 kcal
Carbohydrate85 g
Protein35 g
Fat22 g
Fibre6 g
Sodium1,700 mg

Allergens and food safety

Contains shrimp (crustaceans), fish sauce (fish) and coconut. Check ingredient labels for additional allergens or cross-contact; rice paper and flour can vary by brand. Use a thin-tip thermometer inserted from the side into the centre of the pork: it must reach 63°C, then rest at least 3 minutes. Check the thickest shrimp reaches 63°C; opacity is a secondary cue, not a substitute for temperature. Keep raw pork and shrimp separate from cooked filling and ready-to-eat greens. Refrigerate cooked proteins and leftovers within 2 hours at or below 4°C; reheat leftovers to 74°C.

To finish

Serve each pancake hot so the thin edges stay crisp.
Wrap pieces in lettuce or mustard greens with mint, cilantro and cucumber, then dip in nước chấm.

Southern-Style Bánh Xèo (Crispy Vietnamese Rice Pancakes)

Ingredients

Pork and shrimp

Rice pancake batter

Filling and greens

Nước chấm dipping sauce

Method

Practical

Practical guidance

Troubleshooting

Nutrition per serving

Nutrition per serving

Allergens and food safety

To finish

Vietnamese National Dishes

Cơm Tấm Sườn Bì Chả (Saigon Broken Rice with Pork)

Chả Giò (Southern Vietnamese Fried Spring Rolls)

Mì Quảng (Quảng Nam Turmeric Noodles with Pork and Shrimp)