Vietnamese Crispy Pancakes (Bánh Xèo) — Luke Nguyen-Inspired

About This Recipe

This recipe is inspired by Chef Luke Nguyen's deep love for southern Vietnamese cuisine and his SBS travel-cookery series across the Mekong region. Bánh xèo — literally 'sizzling cake' for the sound the batter makes when it hits the wok — is one of the great street dishes of southern Vietnam. The thin turmeric-yellow batter must be poured very thin and sizzled until lacy and crispy, then folded over a filling of prawns, pork and bean sprouts. Eaten by tearing pieces, wrapping in lettuce with herbs, and dunking in nước chấm.

Ingredients

Serves 4

• 200 grice flour
• 30 gcornflour
• 1 tspground turmeric
• 0.5 tspsalt
• 400 mlcoconut milk(thin / second extraction)
• 200 mlsparkling water
• 3spring onions(thinly sliced)
• 200 gpork belly(thinly sliced)
• 200 graw prawns(peeled and deveined)
• 200 gbean sprouts
• 1 smallonion(thinly sliced)
• 60 mlneutral oil(for frying)
• 1 headbutter lettuce(leaves separated)
• 1 bunchmint, perilla, Thai basil and coriander(mixed for the herb plate)
• 60 mlfish sauce
• 60 mlrice vinegar
• 2 tbspsugar
• 1lime(juiced)
• 2 clovesgarlic(minced)
• 1Thai bird chili(minced)

Instructions

1. 1

   Make the batter

   Whisk rice flour, cornflour, turmeric, salt with coconut milk and sparkling water until smooth. Stir in spring onions. Rest 30 minutes — the rest is essential for crispness.

2. 2

   Make the nước chấm

   Whisk fish sauce, rice vinegar, sugar, 60ml warm water, lime juice, garlic and chili. Taste — should be balanced sour-sweet-salty.

3. 3

   Cook the proteins

   In a hot wok with 1 tablespoon oil, stir-fry the pork until just cooked, 2 minutes. Push aside, add prawns and onion, stir-fry 90 seconds until prawns turn pink. Set aside.

4. 4

   Sizzle the pancake

   Heat a 25cm non-stick pan over high heat. Add 1 tablespoon oil and tilt to coat. When smoking, ladle a thin layer of batter (about 100ml) and immediately tilt the pan in a circular motion to spread thin and lacy. Sprinkle a portion of pork-prawn mixture over half. Add a generous handful of bean sprouts.

   The batter MUST sizzle aggressively the moment it hits — 'xèo!' — that's the signal for thin and crispy.

5. 5

   Fold and crisp

   Cover the pan for 90 seconds to steam the bean sprouts. Uncover and continue cooking until the edges are deeply golden and the bottom is lacy-crispy — total 4–5 minutes per pancake. Fold the empty side over the filled side.

6. 6

   Serve family-style

   Slide onto a warm platter. Repeat for the remaining batter (4 pancakes total). Serve with the lettuce leaves, fresh herb plate and nước chấm. Diners tear off pieces, wrap in lettuce with herbs, dunk in sauce.

Variations

• •

  Vegetarian Bánh Xèo: substitute mushrooms and tofu for the meat; use vegetarian fish sauce.

• •

  Mushroom-only Version: use mixed Asian mushrooms — equally beloved by Vietnamese vegetarians.

• •

  Smaller Bánh Khot: use small individual pans for tiny one-bite versions popular in central Vietnam.

Storage

Eat immediately. Cannot be stored or reheated.

Frequently Asked Questions