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| Making Vietnamese savory pancakes (banh xeo) skillfully means the pancake is thin, round, evenly golden brown, and doesn't fall apart. |
For most families in the Mekong Delta, banh xeo (Vietnamese savory pancake) is an indispensable dish during the mid-year Tet holiday. This is a unique cultural feature associated with local culinary ingredients and strong family bonds.
The 5th of May marks the halfway point of the year. Time always flies by so quickly for us. Some say, "Time flies so fast, before we know it, half a year has passed," or "Before we've accomplished anything, it's already the 5th of May." People in the Mekong Delta rarely call it the Dragon Boat Festival; they usually refer to it as "the fifth day of the fifth month." Each family prepares a feast to offer to their ancestors with traditional dishes. And that feast cannot be without banh xeo (Vietnamese savory pancake). The feast is only truly lively with banh xeo.
This custom dates back a long time and is deeply ingrained in the consciousness of the people of Southern Vietnam. As the 5th day of the 5th lunar month approaches, you can hear the adults in the neighborhood inviting each other to make banh xeo (Vietnamese savory pancakes) or calling their children who live far from home to come back and eat them. Banh xeo helps create a warm atmosphere and strengthens family bonds.
Not only in rural areas but also in cities, on the 5th day of the 5th lunar month, many stalls selling banh xeo (Vietnamese savory pancakes) appear. Signs read, "Banh xeo for sale here, 4th-5th. Price 20,000 VND/piece." These stalls are crowded with people waiting to buy. Many women buy pre-mixed batter to make their own. They just need to read the instructions and mix the water to get the batter ready. All they have to do is prepare the filling and pour the batter. Over time, banh xeo has been "stylized," with colors like green from butterfly pea flowers, orange from gac fruit, green from pandan leaves, etc. But I still prefer the traditional banh xeo the most.
Enjoying a delicious, authentic Vietnamese savory pancake (banh xeo) like in the old days is no easy feat. It takes a lot of time and effort. With so many steps involved, everyone has a hand. Some grate the coconut, others grind the flour, some pick the vegetables, and others mince the meat. Therefore, the women in the family often wake up early to prepare the ingredients.
The rice is soaked overnight and then ground. Turmeric is pounded to extract its juice, which is then mixed into the flour to create a vibrant yellow color—the characteristic color of traditional Vietnamese pancakes. The deliciousness and aroma of the pancake come from the way the batter is prepared. The batter is mixed with coconut milk, finely chopped scallions, and a pinch of salt. Don't forget to add the beaten eggs to the batter to make it crispier and more flavorful.
The filling is very diverse, depending on personal preference. Particularly delicious is the mixture of finely minced Muscovy duck meat and crushed silver shrimp. The meat and shrimp are seasoned to taste and stir-fried until cooked. On the 5th day of the 5th lunar month, with the season of silver shrimp, bamboo shoots, and termite mushrooms, the filling for the banh xeo (Vietnamese savory pancake) is especially tasty. Back then, we could pick a lot of termite mushrooms, sometimes a whole basketful. As for silver shrimp, we'd catch a whole basketful from catching them in traps and pond drains. Nowadays, we rarely get to pick a few dozen termite mushrooms or a few grams of silver shrimp.
The process of pouring the batter requires experience and skillful hands. Using a large pan, heat oil or rendered lard in a hot pan, then spoon the batter evenly over the surface. Use a ladle to pour the batter into the pan, ensuring a thin, even layer. This step demands artistry. Those with skillful hands will make pancakes that are large, perfectly round, and evenly golden brown.
When you pour the batter into the pan, you immediately hear a sizzling sound. Ah, that's probably why it's called banh xeo (Vietnamese savory pancake). The name of the dish and its rich flavor reflect the people of the region where this delicious and famous dish originated: simplicity and rusticity.
When pouring the batter evenly over the pan, cover it with a lid. Wait a few minutes until the batter is cooked, then add the bean sprouts, bamboo shoots, mushrooms, etc. Cover again and wait for the filling to cook until the batter is golden brown and crispy. Fold the pancake in half and remove it from the pan. The process of removing the pancake requires skill to prevent it from breaking.
When making pancakes, if there's leftover batter but the filling (bean sprouts, palm heart, bamboo shoots, etc.) is gone, then there are the crispy pancakes. The pancake is crispy from the edges to the inside. Children love them and eagerly chew on them.
This is the beginning of the rainy season, and the first rains help the wild greens of vegetables like *Centella asiatica*, *Centella asiatica*, *Centella asiatica*, *Centella asiatica*, *Centella asiatica*, and *Centella asiatica* flowers to flourish – perfect for eating with Vietnamese savory pancakes (banh xeo). I make the effort to go out for a while and come back with a huge basket of these vegetables. That's probably why I always eat banh xeo on the 5th of May (the 5th day of the 5th lunar month). This dish is closely associated with local culinary ingredients.
Fish sauce plays a significant role in this dish. Use good quality fish sauce mixed with water or grated coconut, lime juice, sugar, thinly sliced carrots, and finely chopped garlic and chili peppers.
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| These are pancakes with a uniformly crispy crust from the edges to the center. |
The Vietnamese savory pancake (Bánh xèo) is arranged on a tray to offer to the ancestors, then the whole family gathers together to eat the pancakes and chat lively. Few people use chopsticks to eat bánh xèo; it's more delicious when you wrap it with your hands. You pick up a young betel leaf, tear off a piece of pancake with the filling inside, and add some herbs like basil, mint, fish mint, mustard greens, perilla, and so on... The list goes on.
And thanks to the variety of vegetables, the banh xeo (Vietnamese savory pancake) from the Mekong Delta is famous. Wrap it tightly with both hands, dip it into the fish sauce, and enjoy the fragrant crispness of the batter, the freshness of the vegetables, and the salty-sour taste of the fish sauce. It creates a very distinctive and unique flavor and aroma.
Text and photos: HOAI THUONG
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