Vietnamese baby clam with rice cracker or Hen Xuc Banh Trang is a popular dish from the charming city of Hue, Vietnam. While the recipe may be overshadowed, Com Hen (Vietnamese baby clam rice), this local favorite, is unique in serving style.
Hen Xuc Banh Trang has the natural sweetness of succulent clams, perfectly paired with the irresistible crunch of rice crackers. In this article, let me teach you how to create this special Vietnamese dish to satisfy your snack craving.
What Is Hen Xuc Banh Trang?
Hến Xúc Bánh Tráng (Hen Xuc Banh Trang) is a common street food in Central Vietnam, especially in Hue. The dish consists of stir-frying baby clam meat with a bold taste of fermented shrimp sauce. When served with rice, this main dish is called Com Hen (Vietnamese baby clam rice).
However, locals can also serve the stir-fried clam mixture with rice crackers to serve as a snack. The clams are usually praised for their flavorful profile that complements the naturally sweet taste of clam meat.
Don’t forget about the rice crackers, as they are a variant of rice paper but are thicker. People often grill these crackers before breaking them off into small pieces. Then, you want to use the broken rice cracker pieces to scoop up the clam meat.
Depending on everyone’s taste buds, some may add extra herbs like Vietnamese coriander, which has an extra kick.
What Tools Do You Need For Vietnamese Baby Clams with Rice Cracker?
Making Hen Xuc Banh Trang or Vietnamese baby clams with rice crackers only calls for a skillet and a ladle. These utensils are always available in any kitchen, so you don’t have to struggle to find the right one for the bill.
What Ingredients Are Needed For Vietnamese Baby Clams With Rice Cracker?
The ingredients for making Vietnamese baby clams with rice crackers include baby clam meat alongside spices, rice crackers, and fermented shrimp sauce. However, you may want to know other elements that make up the taste as well.
How Do You Make Vietnamese Baby Clams With Rice Crackers?
Making Vietnamese baby clams with rice crackers requires only 2 steps: stir-frying the clam and assembling the dish. So turn on the heat, and let’s get cooking!
Step 1: Stir-fry The Clam Meat
Pour a bit of oil into the skillet and stir-fry the minced onion stalk until they become aromatic. I like using Annatto oil for its vibrant color, but normal cooking oil can also work.
Transfer the baby clam into the skillet and quickly stir-fry the mixture to avoid the meat from being chewy or getting a chewy texture. Season the clam meat with chili powder, sugar, and fermented shrimp sauce.
Keep stirring until all the seasonings dissolve. You can throw in some basil for another layer of flavor, note that using basil leaves are optional.
Step 2: Assemble The Dish
Scoop the clam meat over a serving plate and garnish the dish with crushed peanuts before enjoying the recipe with crunchy rice crackers.
What Are Some Tips For Hen Xuc Banh Trang?
Making Vietnamese baby clams with rice crackers is simple when you know the needed tips, like handling fresh clams. In this case, I suggest letting the meat cool gradually instead of flushing them with cold water. This step prevents the meat from shrinking.
Additionally, the recipes taste best right after leaving the kitchen, offering a warm sensation and a crunchy bite with the rice cracker. Typically, Vietnamese locals grill the rice crackers over charcoal, but you can microwave them for around 1 minute for a crunchy texture.
Furthermore, you can find out more about the elements to serve with Vietnamese baby clams with rice crackers, how to store the dish correctly, and some dish suggestions in the following sections.
What To Serve Alongside Hen Xuc Banh Trang?
Aside from the rice cracker, people even serve the clam with rice or thin rice noodles. Plus, fresh vegetables like cucumbers or lettuce are great for accompanying the savory clam. Another addition is a baguette, where you can stuff the loaf with clam meat.
How To Store Leftover Hen Xuc Banh Trang?
Commonly, the baby clam meat doesn’t last long, so it’s best to consume the dish as soon as possible. I don’t recommend storing any leftovers as the delicacy can cause unwanted food poisoning.
Plus, storing the dish can greatly deteriorate the original flavor. However, you can store cooked clam meat alone in a refrigerator for a couple of days before making the dish.
What Are Other Vietnamese Dishes For You To Try?
Aside from baby clams served with rice crackers, you can try other Vietnamese street food items like Com Hen, Banh Trang Tron, Mi Xao Bo, Cua Rang Me, or Banh Cuon. Each of these following items is popular across the country.
- Baby clam rice (Com Hen): A specialty rice dish from the central region of Vietnam, particularly in the city of Hue. Com Hen features rice, baby clams, fresh herbs, crispy pork rinds, and a variety of aromatic sauces such as shrimp sauce.
- Vietnamese Rice Paper Salad (Banh Trang Tron): A popular street food snack in Vietnam. The recipe is made with torn, thin rice paper sheets and mixed with shredded green mango, herbs, peanuts, dried shrimp, and a tangy dressing of fish sauce, lime juice, and chili.
- Vietnamese Stir-Fried Noodles With Beef (Mi Xao Bo): The dish is a simple combination of egg noodles or instant noodles with thinly sliced beef, vegetables, and a combination of sauces.
- Crab With Tamarind Sauce (Cua Rang Me): A delicious Vietnamese seafood dish known for its sweet and tangy flavors. The dish features fresh crabs stir-fried in a rich and flavorful sauce made from tamarind pulp, garlic, chili, and sugar.
- Vietnamese Steamed Rolled Cakes (Banh Cuon): A beloved Vietnamese dish that consists of delicate and silky steamed rice rolls. It is a thin rice flour batter spread over a fabric-covered steamer to create a thin and translucent rice sheet. The rolls are then filled with a mixture of ground pork filling served with a diluted fish sauce.
Can Vietnamese Baby Clams With Rice Crackers Be Your Next Favorite Snack?
Although Vietnamese baby clams with rice crackers may fall flat with no flavor, they become an outstanding snack when infused with flavorful seasoning and crunchy rice crackers. The recipe is easy to make and doesn’t require a lot of cooking effort.
Don’t forget to share this article with people who love Vietnamese dishes around you. Plus, you can do me a favor and drop your thoughts about this tasty snack. I can’t wait to hear more ideas from everyone.
Hen Xuc Banh Trang or Vietnamese Baby Clams With Rice Crackers
Ingredients
- 1.1 pounds of baby clam meat
- 2 – 3 rice crackers
- 2 teaspoons of fermented shrimp sauce
- 1 tablespoon of minced onion stalk
- 1.5 teaspoons of ground pepper
- 1 teaspoon of chili powder
- 1 teaspoon of sugar
- Basils optional
- Crushed peanuts optional
Instructions
- Stir-fry the minced onion stalk with Annatto or any cooking oil to create the aromatic base.
- Then, add the clam meat and quickly stir the mixture with 1.5 teaspoons of pepper, a teaspoon of chili powder, a teaspoon of sugar, and 2 teaspoons of fermented shrimp sauce.
- Stir thoroughly to distribute the seasoning evenly. You might add basil to include another layer of taste, depending on your liking.
- Assemble the clam over a plate topped with a sprinkle of crushed peanuts. Enjoy with grilled rice crackers.
Video
Notes
- The recipe is based on 4 servings.
- Before serving the clam, you can microwave the rice cracker for around a minute to get a crunchy texture.
- Enjoy the rice crackers with clam meat while they’re still hot.
- Aside from basils, you can use Vietnamese coriander or laksa leaves for a more exotic flavor.
- You can enjoy the clam meat with sliced cucumbers, lettuce, chili sauce, or soy sauce.
- Aside from rice crackers, you can have clams with white rice or bread.
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.