Corn & Trout Banh Xeo
Crispy turmeric and coconut Vietnamese pancakes filled with charred corn and smoked trout, with an icy tangle of herbs and sprouts and a classic dipping sauce. It's always a hand situation. The crispiness, the flavour and the playful ingredients are what I was here for, not perfection.
Serves: 4 (makes 4 pancakes)
Prep time: 30 minutes, plus at least 1 hour resting
Cook time: 1 hour (about 15 minutes per pancake)
INGREDIENTS
For the batter
1 cup rice flour
2 tbsp cornflour
1 tsp ground turmeric
1/2 cup coconut cream
2 cups water
pinch of salt
For the filling
2 corn cobs
spring onions, finely sliced
1 bird's eye chilli, finely sliced
2 smoked river trout fillets, flaked
neutral oil, for the pan
For the herbs and crunch
4 cups bean sprouts, hairy tails removed
1/4 cabbage, finely shaved
2 cups loosely packed mint, coriander and Thai basil leaves
spring onions, finely sliced
For the dipping sauce
1 tbsp sugar
juice of 1 lime
a good dousing of fish sauce
1 garlic clove, crushed
2 tbsp boiling water
METHOD
Prepare the batter at least an hour ahead so it has time to come together. Whisk the rice flour, cornflour, turmeric, coconut cream, water and salt together and rest in the fridge for at least an hour. You do have to whisk it before you use it each time to make sure the solids haven't sunk to the bottom.
Grill the corn over a flame until charred. You don't have to do this, but I quite like the charriness of it. Remove the kernels and toss in a bowl with some of the spring onions and the chilli.
Soak the bean sprouts, cabbage, herbs and remaining spring onions in a bowl of icy water until you're ready to use them.
For the dipping sauce, mix the sugar, lime juice, fish sauce and garlic with the boiling water, just to get all the flavours blooming together.
The trick is to get the pan very hot. Once it is very hot, add a little oil and brush it around if you can. Throw an individual amount of the corn and flaked trout onto one side of the pan. Whisk the batter, then use a measuring cup or small jug to pour it around the outside edges, even on the sides of the pan, and allow it to pull into the middle, as opposed to pouring it into the middle of the pan. Because the pan is so hot, it will start to set immediately. Rotate and swirl the pan so it becomes a very thin crepe and almost travels up the side of the pan.
Continue cooking on medium-high until the very fine edges start to peel away from the pan and you can get a thin spatula underneath. These can be very delicate, and it takes quite a while - probably about 15 minutes. If it's done to your liking on the underside, fold it over, loosen the other half gently with a spatula and slide it straight onto a plate. Repeat with the remaining batter and filling.
Drain the herbs and sprouts and serve alongside. Drizzle the dipping sauce on the pancake, and on each mouthful.
HINTS
I made my own rice flour by blending rice in the Nutribullet using the spice mill blade (not the sharp blending blade). Mine only went through the mill once, so it was a bit robust - which is probably why my pancakes were a little thick and chunky.
This batter makes 4 pancakes, but I stuffed 2 up, so I only ended up with 2. If you're confident, make the full amount of filling - you won't need more than a quarter of a cabbage for 4 people.
You could add chilli to the dipping sauce, but I already had chilli in the pancake, so I didn't.
NUTRITION (per recipe total excluding sides - serves 4 - guide only):
Energy: approx. 1,950 kcal (8,200 kJ)
Protein: approx. 80g
Fat: approx. 75g
Carbohydrate: approx. 245g
Sodium: approx. 5,000mg
This nutrition information is a guide only and may vary depending on brands, exact quantities, and ingredient substitutions used.