

Saturday, April 21, 2007

My Oldest Uncle's Wife's Banh Xeo (Vietnamese Sizzling Savory Crepes)

Ah, remember when I said a while back when I made my fried chicken, that my cousins had helped me move? Well, that move places me much closer to my family and closer to food!

In the midst of eating dinner (very tasty homemade char siu (Chinese barbecued pork) ribs), I heard a knock on my door. My oldest uncle's wife had made banh xeo (Vietnamese sizzling savory crepes). Banh xeo are so named because of the xeo, xeo sizzling sound they make on the pan.

(I've got a great video of them being made in my hometown in Vietnam but since I and my family are in it, I can't upload it until someone can teach me how to edit camera video files.)
My oldest uncle's wife even included a little packet of herbs and dipping sauce. Yes, this is the same auntie who sent over a plate of her nem nuong (Vietnamese grilled pork patties) last week.

These are actually the more popular Saigon-style banh xeo, which are yellow from turmeric, pan-sized (In Saigon, they're even larger. Think wok-sized.), and crispy. You'll find this type of banh xeo at most Vietnamese restaurants. Or you can buy a packaged mix at most Asian grocery stores that even includes a bit of turmeric. These were really tasty, but I miss my mom's South Central-style banh xeo, which are not colored, smaller, and crispy on the outside but chewy in the middle.

The filling is thinly sliced shrimp, pork, bean sprouts, chives, and a bit of egg.

Lil' sis is out of town this weekend so I had to let her know what she missed out on. These need to be eaten right away or else they'll get soggy. So I ate one and picked my way around the edges of the other three. I told her I saved the insides for her since they'll be soggy by the time she's back home anyway. ;)


  1. lucky you!

    bruce isnt home so i had van's bakery today. banh bao, eggroll, rice stuff, pomegrate looking dessert...i havent got to my fruit tarts or che 3 color.


  2. I was gonna post and scream the same to you but T beat me to it. You're one lucky girl,man - to be able to eat true-blue, authentic, homecooked Vietnamese food ... I can only view and slobber.

    About editing your vid files. Maybe u can try downloading NTI's CD and DVD maker software. It's rather user friendly and I use it sometimes for my home videos. I prefer to use Sony's Picture Package but you'd have to pay for that.


  3. Haha! What a great excuse to eat the crispy edges! My aunt makes a pretty good banh xeo too.

  4. YUM!! These pictures are making my stomach grumble. I had those over spring break! Banh xeo is my favorite, I wish I knew of a place where I could get it up here.

  5. Man, why do you even need/want to go out to eat when meals like this come knocking at your door?! My mouth is watering.

  6. t,
    That's good stuff too!

    Trust me, I know how lucky I am. :) Thanks for the suggestion but that sounds a little too complicated for me. Heh.

    Nothing like having aunties cooking for ya! :)

    You know, your brother and I never thought the VNese food up there was as good as down here.

    The food doesn't come knocking on my door every day... ;)

  7. I have been craving banh xeo for months! Do you know of a good restaurant in the area that does a good job (your auntie's style)?

  8. Hi Nikki,
    I've never actually ordered banh xeo in restaurants. I'm not as big a fan opting more for banh beo and banh nam and banh it and other rice flour banhs. So whenever my family makes it is good enough to satisfy my cravings.

    The only place I can remember right now is Le Jardin on Brookhurst in Fountain Valley, just north of the 405, cross street is Slater? The banh xeo there was stuffed way more than this and was crispy and yellow. But it's been 2 years since I was there and my dining companion had ordered it, so I can't vouch for whether it's good now. And of course, you always can try ordering it at random at any VNese restaurant and seeing how it goes?

    It was yummy. All gone now. :)





Thank you for reading!