Remember that scene in A Christmas Story where they're eating dinner, and Ralphie states that his mom hasn't had a hot meal for herself in 15 years? Every time she sits down someone asks for seconds and by the time she gets to eat, her foods gone cold. Yeah probably not because it seems like I'm the only one that liked that movie. You should all take some time out of your busy schedules and bring some Christmas joy into your life.
Anyways, it's kind of like that when my mom makes Banh Xeo. Because they're best eaten as soon as they're taken off the stove, someone has to constantly make them and people eat in turns. Granted, my mom is pretty damn good at it and has 3-4 pans going at a time, but with 8 hungry men (myself, my dad, my brother, and sometimes my uncle and cousins,) as soon as one comes off the stove, it's devoured in minutes and we're waiting for more. And so, mom doesn't get to eat until everyone else is done.
I should call my mom.
Anyways, Banh Xeo, it's a Vietnamese crepe that kinda looks like an omelette, but there's no egg involved. The yellow color comes from turmeric (guaranteed to stain your clothes so be careful.) It's served with a ton of vegetables and herbs and nuoc cham. The name is an onomatopoeia, xeo being the sizzling sound this dish makes when cooking.
Hope you give it a try!
Banh Xeo - Makes about 20 (2-3 per person)
Batter:
400g Rice Flour
2 tsp tumeric
1 tsp salt
500ml water
2 bottles of beer
3 green onion stalks (diced)
Filling:
1 lb pork shoulder or belly thinly sliced
60 shrimp (3 per banh xeo)
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2lb bean sprouts
vegetable oil
Accompaniments:
Lettuce or Mustard Greens
Vietnamese mint, basil, coriander (basically any and all Vietnamese herbs)
Nuoc cham
1. Open one bottle of beer, down it.
2. Combine batter ingredients and 250ml of the remaining bottle of beer (drink the rest) and whisk until smooth. Let sit for at least 30 minutes to allow the rice flour to fully soak up the liquid.
3. Marinade the pork slices in the salt, sugar and pepper for 30 minutes to an hour.
4. In a non stick skillet over med-high heat, cook 4-5 slices of pork and 3 shrimp for 2 minutes in 1 tsp of vegetable oil. Then ladle in the batter and rotate the pan to form a thin even layer of batter.
5. Cover pan and cook for 3 minutes. Add a handful of bean sprouts and cover for an additional minute.
6. Remove cover and let crisp up for another 30 seconds, being careful not to let the batter burn. Fold in half and serve immediately!
