BANH XEO WITH LOBSTER

Banh Xeo,  is a gluten free Vietnamese savory crepe/pancake. This was my first Vietnamese dish. Thuy, a Vietnamese classmate introduced me to their delicious cuisine and loved, loved Vietnamese food thereafter.

She showed me how to make this dish from scratch and using the rice flour package which i don't really see a big difference. I suggest that you use the package if you can buy them. It's convenient and it will save you time. The Banh Xeo pack comes with turmeric which is just perfect for those who doesn't really use turmeric that often.

BANH XEO  WITH LOBSTER

I cut my crepe in half, roll it w/ a leaf lettuce w/ herbs then dip in the dipping sauce.

Authentic Banh Xeo calls for shrimp and thinly sliced pork (pork belly). Thuy used bacon (not the smoked), rendered the fat, cooked but didn't make it crispy.

For this specific Banh Xeo i used lobster in lieu of shrimp. We had lobsters for Christmas and i saved (freezed) the claws, the shells and juice for 2 reasons, the claws meat for Banh Xeo and the shells/juice for Lobster Bisque. Lobster Bisque blog to follow, i promise! ;)

Ingredients:
(Using the whole pack will make more than a dozen crepe)

For the Batter:
1 pack of Banh Xeo mix
1 can coconut milk
2 C water (add more to achieve pancake consistency)
1/4 C green onions (chopped) optional

For the Filling:
1 lb shrimp (cleaned and devein) I used lobster meat
1 lb. bacon
1 medium sweet onions (julienne)
2 cups bean sprouts (washed )

Herbs and Greens to go w/ the Crepe:
Mint (depends how much you want) - washed
Thai Basil (depends how much you want) - washed
Cilantro (depends how much you want) - washed
Lettuce (depends how much you want) - washed

For the Dipping Sauce:
2 T fish sauce
Juice of 1 lime or lemon juice
1 T sugar
1 Thai bird chili or
1 T sriracha  hot sauce

Whisk and mix all ingredients. Taste and adjust if necessary.

Method:

Blend the whole package and mix thoroughly with two cups of water (add if needed) and a can of coconut milk, a small amount of chopped green onions (optional) and the small pack of turmeric.Let the batter rest for as you prepare the filling and the sauce.

Render the bacon until cooked but not crispy, Remove cooked bacon then chop. Set aside.
Using the same pan w/ little bacon grease cook shrimps until it turns pink and cooked. Set aside.
**I skipped this step since the lobster meat was already cooked.
Saute the onions until cooked.
Then quickly saute the bean sprouts making sure not to over cook them. Set aside.


On a not stick preheated pan, pour 1/3 C batter,  swirl to form a thin cake, then add about 1/2 cup of shrimp/lobster, pork/bacon, onion and bean sprouts mixture.

Continue to to heat the pan with medium heat until the cake turns golden - yellowish brown. Fold the cake together to make a home-style crispy, delicious crepe/pan cake.

Transfer crepe to a serving platter.

Repeat process with the rest of the batter and filling.

Serve with lettuce, herbs and the dipping sauce.

** I cut my crepe in half, wrapped with a leaf of lettuce and little of the herbs. Roll and dip in the dipping sauce.

***You can save the batter for 2 days.

***These are so addictive, i can finish 6 crepes in one sitting. NEED I SAY MORE? ;)

The filling ingredients:
Lobster meat or shrimps,  Sauteed onions, bacon, and bean sprouts

Crepe/Pancake batter

Pour 1/3 C of batter to a heated nonstick pan then swirl to make a thin crepe.

Add the filling mixture.

When the edges of the crepe starts to separate from the pan that's an indication that the crepe is cooked and  can now be folded or flipped. 

Fold the crepe and cook a little bit more until yellow-golden brown.

Serve with green lettuce, herbs and dipping sauce.

I cut my crepe in half. Wrap with green lettuce and  add some herbs.

Rolled and dipped into the dipping sauce.