Bánh Cuốn (Vietnamese Rice Rolls)

Method15 steps · about 9 hr 30 min

1. 1

   Step 1: Combine all flours into a large bowl or container with the water. Mix to combine and soak for eight hours or overnight.

   Soak rice-roll batter · 480 minUses 200 g rice flour · 40 g tapioca starch · 40 g potato starch · 1320 g filtered water

   
2. 2

   Step 2: With a ladle, carefully remove and discard half of the water (660g if you didn't scale the recipe) making sure to NOT disturb the flour.

   Uses Three flours mixed with 1320 g water and soaked eight hours or overnight

3. 3

   Step 3: Hydrate the dried wood-ear mushrooms (15 g) in filtered hot water about 30 minutes until fully softened. Rinse and finely chop. Peel and finely chop the onion (127 g) and jicama (172 g). Squeeze the chopped jicama by hand to remove as much moisture as possible and set it aside.

   Hydrate dried wood-ear mushrooms · 30 minUses 15 g dried wood-ear mushrooms · hot filtered water · 127 g onion (peeled and finely chopped) · 172 g jicama (peeled and finely chopped)

   
4. 4

   Step 4: Heat a pan over medium heat, then add oil (2 tbsp) and onion. Saute until lightly browned. Then add pork (300 g), salt (1 tsp), MSG (1/2 tsp), and pepper (1 tsp) to the pan then saute on medium, continually separating the pork so it's not clumped and cooks more evenly.

   Uses 2 tbsp neutral cooking oil · 300 g ground pork · 1 tsp salt · 1/2 tsp MSG (monosodium glutamate) · 1 tsp ground pepper · 127 g onion peeled and finely chopped

   
5. 5

   Step 5: When the pork is mostly cooked, add the squeezed chopped jicama and sauté until almost no liquid remains in the pan. Add the hydrated chopped mushrooms and sauté 2–3 minutes so they retain a slight crunch. Cook until the ground pork is fully cooked through, reaching 160°F (71°C).

   Uses 172 g jicama peeled and chopped, with excess moisture squeezed out · 15 g dried mushrooms hydrated in separate hot water, rinsed and chopped · Ground pork sautéed with onion, filling oil, salt, MSG and pepper

   
6. 6

   Step 6: If using green onions (29 g), add now and shut off the heat. Mix to combine and reseason to taste.

   Uses 29 g green onions (optional) · extra filling salt only to taste · extra filling pepper only to taste · Pork cooked to 160°F with jicama and mushrooms; pan moisture evaporated

   
7. 7

   Step 7: Just before you're ready to cook, add the salt (1 tsp) to the batter and mix to thoroughly combine.

   Uses 1 tsp salt · Settled batter after 660 g soak water carefully discarded

8. 8

   Step 8: Place your steamer pot on the stove filled 2/3 of the way with water and get it boiling on max heat.

   Uses water to fill steamer pot two-thirds full

9. 9

   Step 9: Stir the bowl of batter EVERY time just before taking a ladle out to make sure the flour and water is mixed evenly. Pour a thin layer onto the steaming screen and quickly spread out the batter out evenly. It may pool in the center if the fabric isn't fully taut, so don't let it. You can tell that you've taken too long to spread the batter if the ladle starts to stick to the steaming cloth.

   Uses Drained batter mixed with 1 tsp batter salt immediately before steaming

   
10. 10

    Step 10: Close the lid and let it steam for about 40 seconds, open the lid and check. When you open the lid, you know it's done when the cake is starting to bubble on the fabric. Its also more clear after cooking and not as white.

    Steam rice sheet · 1 minUses A ladle of well-stirred batter spread evenly on the taut steaming cloth

    
11. 11

    Step 11: Remove the rice cake. Use your stick to dig under one side of the circle in about 2 inches and lift up from left to right. The first few are typically not as good as the steamer fabric is still priming, so don't judge the result until you get to your 3rd one.

    Uses Rice sheet steamed about 40 seconds until bubbling and more translucent

    
12. 12

    Step 12: Now's the time to adjust the batter. If the final steamed roll is too thick, add 1-2 tbsp cold water to the batter. If it's too thin you can add 1 tbsp rice flour. It's too thin if you can't spread the batter to make a sheet without any holes. It's too thick if it doesn't spread easily and is unwieldly to remove from the screen.

    Uses 1–2 tbsp cold water · 1 tbsp rice flour · The first cooked sheet used to check the remaining batter consistency

13. 13

    Step 13: Lay it on an oiled plate or tray (oiling each time before laying down bánh cuốn so it doesn't stick)

    Uses a little wrappingoil from the three-tablespoon batch on each plate/tray · Cooked rice sheet lifted carefully from the steaming cloth

    
14. 14

    Step 14: Here's one way to make longer bánh cuốn quickly. Remove the rice sheet from the stick by cutting it along the stick length with a spoon or knife. Add about 1 full tsp of filling into each sheet, and fold about 1/4 of the way in.

    Uses Cooked rice sheet laid on the lightly oiled plate or tray · One heaped teaspoon of the cooked filling per sheet

    
15. 15

    Step 15: Continue folding about 3 times until the sheet is used. Repeat with the remaining batter and cooked filling, stirring the batter thoroughly before every ladle. Serve immediately with cucumber, already-blanched bean sprouts, ready-fried shallots, sliced ready-cooked cha lua, chopped mint and prepared fish-sauce-based dipping sauce.

    Uses cucumber · bean sprouts (blanched) · fried shallots · cha lua (Vietnamese pork sausage) · mint (chopped) · fish sauce-based dipping sauce nước chấm · Rice sheet with cooked filling and the first quarter fold made