Vietnamese mini savory pancakes (“Bánh Khọt”) are a classic dish of Southern Vietnam. These little treats boast a beautiful golden batter that’s crispy on the outside yet tender and fluffy on the inside. With the addition of mung beans and meat or seafood topping, every bite is heaven on earth!
In today’s post, I’d like to introduce you to a fail-proof recipe to make Banh Khot. With just a little more than an hour of cooking, you’ll be able to enjoy these iconic Vietnamese pancakes in the comfort of your home!
What Is Banh Khot?
Banh Khot is a delicacy of Vung Tau, a coastal province in the Southern part of Vietnam. Despite being a Southern Vietnam classic, many food lovers believe that Banh Khot is inspired by Banh Can, a specialty of central Vietnam, due to the resemblance in their shapes.
The locals often top these pancakes with seafood, such as prawns or squid, ground pork, and mung beans. Similar to Banh Xeo, Vietnamese people enjoy Banh Khot with their well-loved sweet, savory, and spicy Nuoc Cham and an array of fresh herbs.
You might find Banh Khot somewhat similar to Banh Xeo, another popular Vietnamese dish. In fact, the batters for these two delicacies are almost identical. However, while Banh Khot takes the shape of small pancakes, Banh Xeo is bigger and often folded in half.
Tools
A Banh Khot pan is a must-have tool for making this recipe. Fortunately, you can find it quite easily on online shopping sites.
Ingredients
I’ll separate these ingredients into 3 groups: for the batter, for the topping, and for serving.
For The Batter
For the Topping
For Serving
Directions
Without further ado, I’ll share with you my favorite Banh Khot recipe right now. Let’s get to the kitchen!
Step 1: Prepare The Ingredients
Remove the prawns’ heads, peel their shells, and devein them. Cut the prawns into bite-sized pieces. If the prawns are on the smaller side, you can leave them uncut.
Likewise, chop the squid into bite-sized pieces.
Finely chop the scallions. Mince the shallots, chili pepper, and garlic.
Julienne the carrots.
Put the carrot slices in a bowl, then add a little sugar and toss well. Doing this will increase their crispness.
Step 2: Make The Batter
Add the rice flour, turmeric powder, soy milk, coconut milk, water, and salt to a large mixing bowl and stir well.
Add 1 tablespoon of cooking oil to the batter and let it rest for about 60 minutes.
Step 3: Stir-Fry The Prawns, Squid, And Ground Pork
Place the pan on the stovetop and add 1 tablespoon of cooking oil. Fry the minced shallots until fragrant, then stir in the prawns and stir-fry them over medium heat. Add 1 teaspoon of salt and 1 teaspoon of pepper.
Do the same thing with the squid.
Likewise, stir-fry the minced pork in the same manner, and season it with 1 teaspoon of salt, 1 teaspoon of pepper, and 1 teaspoon of sugar.
Step 4: Cook The Mung Beans
Put the mung beans into the prepared pot and cook them on medium heat for about 20 minutes
Step 5: Cook The Coconut Milk
Pour 100 milliliters of coconut milk into another pot. Simmer on low heat until the coconut milk is slightly hot and thickens. Add a little salt and turn off the heat. The coconut milk will turn solid when it’s cool.
Step 6: Make The Dip
Pour 3 tablespoons of fish sauce, 1 tablespoon of lime juice, 2 tablespoons of sugar, and about 7 tablespoons of warm water (100 milliliters) into a bowl. Stir well to combine.
Add the minced chili pepper and garlic to the dip and give it a good stir. Then, add the marinated carrot slices.
Step 7: Cook The Pancake
Heat the Banh Khot pan on high heat. Then, lower the heat and add a little cooking oil to each slot.
Once the oil is heated, pour the batter into the pan, filling about ⅓ of the slots’ capacity.
When the batter at the edge of the pancakes is cooked, drizzle a little oil on the rim and add more batter. The extra oil will create a crispier Banh Khot.
Add a dollop of coconut milk to the pancakes when the second layer of batter is cooked.
Top each pancake with seafood or pork as you prefer. Then, sprinkle the scallions over them.
Cook your Banh Khot on low heat until the bottom turns golden. Remove the pancakes from the pan using a spoon.
Repeat until you use up the prepared batter and topping.
Step 8: Enjoy Your Banh Khot
Arrange your Banh Khot on a plate together with fresh lettuce, fish mint, peppermint, Thai basil, etc., and a bowl of dipping sauce. You can enjoy this delicacy by rolling it in rice paper or eating it directly with herbs.
Further Useful Tips
Don’t forget to check out the following tips for alternatives and an easy way to turn Banh Khot into a vegetarian-friendly recipe.
Savory Pancakes Have Never Tasted This Good!
Banh Khot is what many people consider to be a perfect cousin to Banh Xeo. These mini pancakes are super easy to whip up, making them a great choice when you want to treat your family to a delicious Vietnamese recipe without putting in too much effort.
If you have a thing for Asian dishes, you shouldn’t miss out on these Vietnamese mini pancakes. Give them a try, and share your experience with me in the comment section below. If you enjoy this post, don’t hesitate to share it around! Goodbye, and see you soon with more tasty recipes.
Vietnamese Mini Savory Pancakes (Bánh Khọt)
Ingredients
- 10.5 ounces (300 grams) of rice flour
- 0.35 ounces (10 grams) of turmeric powder
- 10 fluid ounces (300 milliliters) coconut milk, divided
- 6.8 fluid ounces (200 milliliters) water
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 6.8 fluid ounces (200 milliliters) soy milk
- 1 tablespoon cooking oil
For the topping
- 3.5 ounces (100 grams) of mung beans
- 10.5 ounces (300 grams) prawns
- 8.8 ounces (250 grams) squid
- 7 ounces (200 grams) of ground pork
- 1.5 teaspoons salt
- 0.5 teaspoon sugar
- 1.5 teaspoons pepper
- Scallions
For serving
- Fresh herbs: Lettuce, fish mint, peppermint, beefsteak plant, Thai basil
- 3 tablespoons fish sauce
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 3.4 fluid ounces (100 milliliters) warm water
- 0.7 ounces (20 grams) carrot
- Garlic
- Chili pepper
Instructions
- Remove the prawns’ heads, peel their shells, and devein them. Cut the prawns into bite-sized pieces.
- Chop the squid into bite-sized pieces.
- Finely chop the scallions. Mince the shallots, chili pepper, and garlic.
- Julienne the carrots.
- Put the carrot slices in a bowl, then add a little sugar and toss well. Doing this will increase their crispness.
- Add the rice flour, turmeric powder, soy milk, coconut milk, water, and salt to a large mixing bowl and stir well.
- Add 1 tablespoon of cooking oil to the batter and let it rest for about 60 minutes.
- Place the pan on the stovetop and add a little cooking oil.
- Fry the minced shallots until fragrant, then stir in the prawns and stir-fry them over medium heat. Season with salt and pepper.
- Do the same thing with the squid.
- Likewise, stir-fry the minced pork in the same manner, and season with salt, pepper, and sugar.
- Put the mung beans into the prepared pot and cook them on medium heat for about 20 minutes
- Pour fish sauce, lime juice, sugar, and warm water into a bowl. Stir well to combine.
- Add the minced chili pepper and garlic to the dip and give it a good stir. Then, add the marinated carrot slices.
- Heat the Banh Khot pan on high heat. Then, lower the heat and add a little cooking oil to each slot.
- Once the oil is heated, pour the batter into the pan, filling about ⅓ of the slots’ capacity.
- When the batter at the edge of the pancakes is cooked, drizzle a little oil on the rim and add more batter.
- Add a dollop of coconut milk to the pancakes when the second layer of batter is cooked.
- Top each pancake with seafood or pork as you prefer. Then, sprinkle the scallions over them.
- Cook your Banh Khot on low heat until the bottom turns golden. Remove the pancakes from the pan using a spoon.
- Repeat until you use up the prepared batter and topping.
- Enjoy with fresh herbs, rice paper, and the dipping sauce.
Video
Notes
- The total time is for making 6 servings.
- You can blend cold rice with a little water and use this mixture to replace soy milk.
- Feel free to customize the topping to your liking. Besides seafood and pork, I also love adding quail eggs to my Banh Khot.
- If you want to go vegetarian, try making the topping with mung beans and finely chopped mushrooms.
- To save time, you can also use pre-made Banh Khot or Banh Xeo flour. The result might not be as delicious, though.
Tien – Alden
Content Writer
Expertise
Home Cooking, Recipe Development, Food Editor, Beverage Editor, Cooking-video Maker, Asian Food Content Creator
Education
Saigon Tourism College
Advanced Culinary Workshop, Beijing
Vietnamese Traditional Cooking School
American College of Vietnam
Alden is a skilled chef with expertise in Asian cuisines, known for blending traditional Vietnamese and Chinese cooking with contemporary innovations. Alden’s passion for Asian flavors and her creative approach to both food and beverages inspires fellow chefs and those aspiring to enter the field.