Bánh cuốn facts for kids
Thanh Trì style bánh cuốn
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| Type | Rice noodle roll |
|---|---|
| Place of origin | Vietnam |
| Region or state | Northern Vietnam |
| Main ingredients | Rice batter, ground pork, wood ear mushroom, shallots |
Bánh cuốn (say "ban koon") is a yummy Vietnamese dish. It comes from Northern Vietnam. It means "rolled sheets" because it's made of thin, rolled rice sheets.
Contents
What is Bánh cuốn?
Bánh cuốn is made from a very thin sheet of rice batter. This batter is slightly fermented. Inside, it's filled with cooked ground pork. It also has chopped wood ear mushrooms and shallots.
How is it served?
This dish often comes with chả lụa. That's a type of Vietnamese pork sausage. You might also get sliced cucumber and bean sprouts. The special dipping sauce is called nước chấm. It's a kind of fish sauce.
How is it made?
The rice sheet for bánh cuốn is super thin. It's made by steaming the rice batter. The batter is spread on a cloth. This cloth is stretched over a pot of boiling water. It's a light meal. People often eat it for breakfast all over Vietnam.
Different kinds of Bánh cuốn
There are different versions of bánh cuốn. For example, there's bánh cuốn Thanh Trì. This kind comes from Thanh Trì, near Hanoi. Another is bánh cuốn làng Kênh from Nam Định. These versions are not rolled. They are just plain rice sheets. People eat them with chả lụa, fried shallots, or prawns.
Bánh cuốn in other countries
This dish is also popular in other places. In Thai cuisine, it's called pak moh yuan (say "pak maw yoo-an").
Thai variations
Thai cooks make the rice sheets extra thin. They try to add as much filling as possible. The sheets are often made with arrowroot flour. This gives them a soft, tapioca-like feel. Sometimes, natural colors are added. Butterfly pea flowers make blue sheets. Pandan leaves make green sheets.
The most common filling is ground pork. It's mixed with cilantro roots, pepper, garlic, shallots, and preserved radish. You can also find fillings like chicken or mushrooms.
Sauces and toppings
Thai food is known for its strong flavors. So, sauces and toppings are important for pak moh yuan. A sweet chili sauce is common. Some regions use seafood sauces. For a sweeter taste, coconut milk can be drizzled on top. Finally, fried garlic is often sprinkled on top. It's served with lettuce and fresh chili.
Another Thai version is khao phan (say "kow pan"). This means "rice wrap." It's a special dish from Uttaradit province. People eat it fresh there. It can also be sun-dried. The dried versions often have spices. They are used as a wrap for spicy salads. These salads often have rice noodles and minced pork.
Gallery
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Bánh cuốn Tây Hồ with shrimp tempura and chả lụa.
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A dish of homemade bánh cuốn
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The batter for khao phan, as the noodle roll is called in Thailand, is spread out over a cloth stretched over a pot of boiling water.
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Rolling up the finished product.
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A variation of the Thai khao phan with black sesame seeds and served with a spicy dipping sauce called nam chim chaeo.
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Khao phan phak, a variation with stir-fried vegetables.
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Bánh cuốn sold at a market in California.
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Pak Moh Yuan, tri-colored rice sheets served with cilantro and fried garlic
Bánh ướt
Bánh ướt (say "ban uht") means "wet cake." It is a thin Vietnamese pancake wrapper. It's made of rice noodle sheets. People eat it with nước chấm (fish sauce). It also comes with fried shallots and chả lụa (Vietnamese pork sausage).
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Typical serving of Bánh ướt
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Bánh ướt
