>> Read more: Guide for street food in Hanoi
Vietnamese Steamed Rice Roll, or Banh Cuon, is a traditional Vietnamese dish which is considered a healthy balance of Asia ingredients. Being made from thin sheets of a steamed rice batter, Banh cuon is often filled with a flavorful mixture of cooked ground pork, minced wood ear mushrooms, and shallots. The rice rolls are severed with fried shallots, a special dipping fish sauce, slices of Vietnamese pork sausage, sliced cucumbers, blanched bean sprouts and some Vietnamese herbs.
Vietnamese banh cuon is different from the rice rolls found at Chinese dim sum, Choeng fun, because the banh cuon crepe is extremely thin and delicate and not topped with sweet soy sauce. The reason for this thinness is the process of how it’s made. Banh cuon can be made extremely thin because it’s steamed over a fabric covered pot which can quickly cook the rice flour, keeping it moist and workable. My mom bought these pots that are specially outfitted with a metal ring where a fine nylon/cotton cloth is tautly stretched across and placed on top of the pot. A very thin layer of batter is poured on to the cloth and evenly spread and steams paper thin, and in less than a minute, a flat and flexible bamboo stick is used to lift off the delicate rice crepe.
This recipe is written for making banh cuon with a nonstick pan since we realize that it’s not practical to make this with the specialized pot and fabric which she brought back from Vietnam. It won’t be as thin as steaming it on fabric, but the result will still be satisfactory, and we hope satisfying.
DISCOVER MORE TOURS IN VIETNAM or ASIA CUISINE TOUR or HANOI STREET FOOD TOUR
