I first tried this dish in Luang Prabang, Laos many years ago. We were out riding bicycles and found a lady by the side of the road making them. She had a steamer basket over a simmering hot pot of water that was covered in a pantyhose / cheesecloth material. She would pour the batter over the cloth, spread it out with her ladle and it would turn into this delicately thin rice paper sheet. She would then add a porky mushroom filling and carefully roll it up. A few times later and we had full plate of these for our breakfast.

Making your own rice paper at home can be frustrating, there is a hack that uses the microwave but I’m yet to try it. Instead I use the dried rice paper sheets from the Asian grocer. Whilst it’s not exactly the same, we really enjoy it, and it doesn’t take much effort to create a scrumptious meal.

Cheat’s Banh Cuon

Adapted from Luke Nguyen

Print Recipe

Ingredients

  

• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 2 garlic cloves, diced
• 4 red Asian shallots, diced
• 300g minced pork
• 15g dried shredded fungus (or 4 fresh wood ear mushrooms, thinly sliced)
• 1 tsp fish sauce
• ½ tsp sugar
• sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• 10 round rice paper sheets

Nuoc Cham Sauce

• 1½ tbsp fish sauce
• 1½ tbsp white vinegar
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
• ½ bird's eye chilli, finely chopped
• juice of ½ lime

To Serve

• 1 bunch perilla, leaved picked
• 1 bunch mint, leaves picked
• 2 handfuls bean sprouts
• 2 tbsp fried red Asian shallots
• 2 Lebanese cucumbers, sliced into batons
• 2 red bird's eye chillies, sliced

Instructions

 

• If using the dried shredded fungus, place in a bowl and cover with hot water. Side aside for 15-20 minutes. Once rehydrated, drain and roughly chop.
• Heat a wok over medium heat. Add the vegetable oil and saute the garlic and shallots for 30 seconds, or until fragrant. Add the pork, mushrooms, fish sauce, sugar and a pinch of sea salt and black pepper. Stir-fry for 4 minutes, then transfer to a bowl and set aside.
• Make the nuoc cham: combine the fish sauce, white vinegar, sugar and 60ml water in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir well and cook until just before boiling point is reached, then allow to cool. Stir in the garlic, chilli and lime juice. Set aside whilst you prepare the rest.
• To assemble the rolls, scoop 1 tablespoon of the pork mixture onto the centre of a noodle sheet, the fold it over to form an open-ended roll?

  Transfer to a steamer

  repeat with remaining filling and rice paper sheet.
• steam
• To serve, top the rolls with herbs, bean sprouts, fried shallots and cucumber. Drizzle over the nuoc cham and scatter over the chilli.