How to Cook Banh Khot

Serves: 4-6

Preparation time: 15 mins

Cooking time: 15 mins

Ingredients needed to make Banh Khot:

• 1.1 lb rice flour
• 0.1 lb sticky rice flour
• 10 medium shrimps, peeled and deveined
• ½ cup mung bean, hulled
• 3 spring onions, chopped
• 1 garlic clove, peeled and minced
• 1 can coconut milk
• Romaine lettuce leaves, rinsed and dried
• Mustard leaves, rinsed and dried
• Fresh basil leaves, rinsed and dried
• Fresh Vietnamese mint, chopped
• Few coriander sprigs, chopped
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tsp ground turmeric
• Vegetable oil, for cooking
• 1 ½ cups water

For the dipping sauce:

• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
• 2 red chillies, chopped
• ½ lime, juiced
• ½ cup water
• 3 tbsp fish sauce
• 3 tbsp sugar

Cooking instructions for Banh Khot:

• Place both the rice flours in a bowl and stir them together to mix well.
• Empty the can of coconut milk into it and stir it into the mixture until they form a smooth batter.
• Add splashes from water into the batter from time to time, while beating it into the batter until blended properly.
• Sprinkle half of the green onions, ground turmeric as well as a dash of salt into it and fold it into the batter until well combined; set aside.
• Rinse the shrimps under running water and chop them into smaller chunks.
• Heat a lashing of oil into a skillet over moderate heat.
• Toss the shrimp chunks into the skillet, along with remaining spring onions as well as garlic.
• Sprinkle a dash of salt and sauté briefly for a couple of minutes, while stirring at times; set aside.
• Pour few drops of oil into each hole of a banh khot pan and heat it over moderate heat until it shimmers.
• Pour small portions of a batter into each greased hole to fill 2/3 of it, place a lid on top and cook for about 5 minutes.
• Remove the lid and place a couple of cooked shrimp chunks on top of each pancake.
• Top it up with a tbsp of mung beans and put the lid back on.
• Cook further for another 5 minutes or until the batter sets and the edges of the pancakes turn crispy.
• Meanwhile, prepare the dipping sauce by placing water and juice in a bowl.
• Stir in sugar until it dissolves and they blend together to form a uniform mixture.
• Drizzle the fish sauce gradually into the mixture until all of it is incorporated into the mixture.
• Add the chopped garlic as well as chillies into the sauce and give it a nice stir until well combined.
• Pour it into a small serving bowl and set aside until the pancakes are ready to serve.
• Once the pancakes are cooked properly, set aside until cool enough to handle and remove from the pan.
• Sprinkle small amount of chopped cilantro and mint leaves on top of each pancake and serve alongside the salad greens and dipping sauce.
• Wrap each pancake with the leafy greens and dip them into the sauce to enjoy its authentic flavours.

Image credit: Wikimedia Commons