BANH XEO (VIETNAMESE CREPES)

Ingredients:
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Crepe Batter:
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3/4 cup dried yellow mung beans
2 cup fresh or canned coconut milk
1 cup rice flour
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp tumeric

Accompaniments And Filling:
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4 oz. pork butt or shoulder, cut into 12 thin slices
12 raw medium shrimp, shelled, deveined and halved lengthwise
1 1/2 tblsp nuoc mam (Vietnamese fish sauce)
4 large garlic cloves, minced
1/4 tsp sugar
Freshly ground pepper
2 cup thinly sliced fresh mushrooms
2 cup fresh bean sprouts
1 large onion, thinly sliced
3/4 cup vegetable oil
Nuoc Cham with Shredded Carrots and Daikon (recipe follows)
Vegetable Platter (ingredients follow)

Instructions:
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Make the crepe batter:
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Cover the mung beans with water and soak for 30 minutes. Drain. Set aside 1 cup for the filling. Place the remaining 1/2 cup in a blender with the coconut milk and process to a fine puree. Add the rice flour, sugar, salt and tumeric; blend well. Strain the mixture into a bowl or jar and refrigerate.

Steam the reserved mung beans for about 20 minutes, or until tender. Allow to cool. Cover and set aside.

Note:
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The batter can be prepared one day ahead, and the accompaniments assembled just before serving. The crepes can be cooked and stuffed a few hours ahead, and reheated as needed.The use of coconut milk in this recipe is traditional of southern Vietnamese specialties. Traditionally, the crepe is prepared in a wok, but a good omelet pan is fine too. Remember to stir the rice batter well before each addition to the pan.

Prepare the Nuoc Cham and Vegetable Platter, and set aside. (See recipes below.)

In a bowl, combine the pork and shrimp with the fish sauce, garlic, sugar and black pepper to taste. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

In another bowl, combine the mushrooms, bean sprouts, onion and the cooked mung beans. Divide the mixture into six separate mounds on a tray.

Heat 2 tblsp of the oil in a skillet over high heat. Add the pork and shrimp mixture and stir-fry for 2 minutes, or until the pork loses its pink color and the shrimp turn opaque. Remove to a platter.

In a wok or an 8″ nonstick omelet pan, heat 2 tblsp oil over moderately high heat. When the oil is very hot, stir the rice batter well and pour 1/2 cup into the wok. Quickly tilt the wok to spread the mixture into a thin pancake. Scatter 1 mound of the vegetables, 2 slices of pork and 4 pieces of the shrimp on the lower half of the pancake. Reduce the heat to moderate. Cover the pan and cook for about 5 minutes, or until the bottom of the pancake is brown and crispy. Fold the pancake in half and slide it onto a platter. Keep warm in a low oven. Repeat with the remaining oil, batter and filling, making 5 more crepes.

To serve, each diner places the rice crepe with some filling on a lettuce leaf with selected herhs from the Vegetable Platter and strands of carrot and daikon from the dipping sauce. The bundle is rolled up, dipped in Nuoc Cham and eaten out of hand.

Nuoc Cham With Shredded Carrots And Daikon
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Ingredients:
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Nuoc Cham:
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2 small garlic cloves, crushed
1 small fresh red chile pepper, seeded and minced
2 tblsp sugar
2 tblsp fresh lime or lemon juice
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1/4 cup nuoc mam (Vietnamese fish sauce)

1 small carrot, shredded
1 small daikon or turnip, peeled and shredded
1 tsp sugar

Instructions:
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Combine the garlic, chile and sugar in a mortar and pound with a pestle to a fine paste. Add the lime juice, vinegar, fish sauce and 1/4 cup water. Stir to blend. (Alternately, combine all ingredients in a food processor or blender and process for 30 seconds, until the sugar dissolves.

Toss the carrot and daikon shreds with the sugar in a small bowl. Let stand 15 minutes to soften the vegetables.

Add the Nuoc Cham to the softened vegetables and stir.

Vegetable Platter:
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1 large head of Boston lettuce, separated into individual leaves
1 bunch of scallions, cut into 2″ lengths
1 cup coriander leaves
1 cup mint leaves
1 cup fresh Asian or regular basil leaves
1 cucumber, peeled in alternating strips, halved lengthwise and
sliced crosswise
4 oz. fresh bean sprouts

On a large platter, decoratively arrange the ingredients in separate groups.