Little Viet Kitchen recipes: From crispy pancakes to beef pho

From her debut cookbook, Thuy Diem Pham shares recipes passed down from her family

(David Loftus)

Vietnamese crispy pancakes with pork and prawns – Bánh xèo miền nam

This is a national street food favourite! Pancake stands fill the markets of Vietnam with tantalising sounds and vibrant colours. Skilfully pan–fried over little gas burners, I would often find myself lost in admiration when stood next to a vendor, salivating at the thought of the first bite that was to follow. This is one of those dishes where variations are found from region to region. The recipe here is the southern version; thin, crispy, large in size and eaten with plenty of fresh herbs! This is my grandpa’s favourite meal and he’s still the champion at rolling the biggest pancake lettuce wraps.

Makes 12 pancakes

225g rice flour
60g cornflour
8g tempura flour or batter mix
200ml coconut milk
large pinch of salt
3 teaspoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
750ml lukewarm water
6 spring onions, finely chopped
4 tablespoons vegetable oil

For the filling

400g pork belly
4 pinches of salt
400g raw prawns, shell on
2 pear squashes (optional), thinly sliced
​50g bean sprouts
2 carrots, cut into fine matchsticks

To serve

20g mint leaves
20 Vietnamese mint
20g Thai basil
20g coriander
20g perilla leaves
3 baby gem lettuces, leaves separated
300ml Classic Fish Dipping Sauce

Prepare the pork belly. Bring a saucepan of water to the boil over a high heat. Add the pork belly, along with 2 pinches of salt. Lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes, drain and plunge in iced water to cool. Slice thinly. Rinse the pan and add fresh water. Bring the water to the boil over a high heat and add the prawns and 2 pinches of salt. Lower the heat and simmer for 4 minutes, then drain the prawns and plunge in iced water to cool. Remove the shells and devein.

Let’s get started on the pancakes. Combine the flours, batter mix, coconut milk, salt, sugar, turmeric and water in a bowl and stir to form a smooth batter. Add the chopped spring onions and place in the fridge for 1 hour to set.

Heat 1 teaspoon of oil in a small non–stick pan over a high heat. Add a few slices of pork belly and pieces of prawn, then ladle over just enough of the pancake batter to form a thin layer over the surface of the pan. Add a small handful of the vegetables, lower the heat, put the lid on and cook for 2½ minutes.

Remove the lid and maintain the low heat for a further 3½ minutes, until the pancake has that signature golden–yellow colour. Use a fish slice to fold the pancake, over the filling, into a half–moon. Take off the heat and it’s ready to eat. Repeat the process with the remaining batter and filling ingredients.

Have your platter of herbs and dipping sauce ready and let the rolling begin. The pancakes are best served wrapped in as many herbs as possible, then dipped in as much sauce as you can scoop… Well, that’s the advice from my household anyway.

(David Loftus)

Prawn and pork summer rolls – Gỏi cuốn tôm thit heo

This famous, deliciously healthy street-food dish is originally from Saigon; however, over the years, different regions have developed their own take on the ingredients. Definitely one of the beauties of this dish is that you are the creator of your summer rolls, so be as creative as you like.

Makes 8 rolls

6–8 sheets rice paper
Classic fish dipping sauce

For the filling

4 pinches of salt
250g pork loin
250g raw king prawns
100g dried rice vermicelli noodles
½ head lettuce, washed and dried
2 carrots, finely sliced
100g coriander, washed and dried
100g mint, washed and dried
100g Thai basil, washed and dried
100g garlic chives

Let’s get started. Bring a saucepan of water to the boil, and add 2 pinches of salt and then the pork loin. Leave to cook for 15 minutes, then drain and plunge into iced water for 2–3 minutes. Drain again, pat dry with kitchen paper and slice very thinly. Rinse the pan and fill with fresh water, adding 2 pinches of salt. Bring to the boil, add the prawns and cook for 2 minutes. Drain and plunge into iced water for 2–3 minutes. Drain again, remove the shells and then slice in half.

Cook the noodles in a saucepan of boiling water, following the timings on the packet. Drain, rinse in cold water, then drain again. Let the rolling begin… Have a bowl of lukewarm water to wet the rice paper, and a chopping board or plate that is big enough to hold your rice paper for rolling.

Dunk the rice paper into the water very quickly and then lay flat on the board. Leave for about a minute, until almost dry before rolling. An easy way to set up is to work with 3 rolls at once. By the time you have laid the filling out on the third one, the first will be ready to roll.

Place your filling ingredients except the garlic chives in a line along the centre of the rice paper. Fold each side inwards towards the centre and then fold the paper from the bottom up, like an envelope. Place a stem of garlic chive across the envelope, with about 2.5cm sticking out of the roll. Press firmly using your fingertips and start folding. Be gentle but firm, controlling the movement and not allowing any of the filling to come out, making sure that the roll is tight. Continue to repeat the process until all your ingredients are used up.

You should have 8 rolls in total. Once made, you can store the rolls in an airtight container to keep them moist for up to 2-3 hours. Serve with the fish dipping sauce.

(David Loftus)

Beef pho southern style –Phở bò mền nam

Beef pho is our national dish and so synonymous with Vietnamese cuisine that the quality of your broth goes a long way to defining you as a chef! Like many Vietnamese classics, the flavours will vary greatly depending on where in the country you are from. As I’m from the Mekong Delta, the recipe I’ve written here is the southern style, which is closest to my heart. Tweaked over generations to suit the tastebuds of loved ones, this is the recipe I have worked on since the launch of The Little Viet Kitchen and is one that I’m proud to share with you here.

Serves 10

3 onions, skins on
200g ginger, unpeeled
2 tablespoons fish sauce
500g dried pho noodles
150g bean sprouts
500g topside steak, thinly sliced

For the spices

10 star anise
5g cloves
3 teaspoons coriander seeds
2 teaspoons fennel seeds
3 cardamom pods, lightly crushed, pods discarded and seeds only
1 cinnamon stick

For cleaning the meat

2 lemons, halved
5 tablespoons salt

For the broth

500g oxtail
500g beef marrow, chopped into 7cm pieces (ask the butcher to do this)
2kg beef brisket on the bone
500g beef flank
500g beef ribs
1 daikon, peeled and halved
120g salt
200g yellow rock sugar or rock sugar, crushed

To serve

200g coriander leaves
200g spring onions, chopped
200g Thai basil leaves
200g sawtooth herb (optional)
4 limes, cut into wedges
5 bird’s eye chillies, sliced
sriracha sauce, for dipping
hoisin sauce, for dipping

On an open gas flame, char the onions and ginger until the skins are blackened. If you don’t have a gas stovetop, then roast in an oven preheated to 180°C/160°C Fan/Gas Mark 4 for 20–25 minutes. Remove, allow to cool enough to handle, then peel the skins off. Rinse in cold water and set aside.

Dry toast all the spices in a small frying pan for 3-5 minutes over a medium heat, until aromatic. Take the pan off the heat and leave to cool. Put the spices into a spice strainer (breaking up the cinnamon stick if necessary) and set aside. Next, prepare the bones and meat. Squeeze the juice of the lemons into a stockpot, throw the lemon halves in and fill with plenty of cold water. Soak the oxtail, marrow, beef brisket, flank and ribs and bones in the water, then add the salt. Stir well and leave for 1 hour.

Discard the lemon halves and set the pot over a high heat and parboil the bones and meat for 5 minutes. Drain, rinse in cold water and leave to dry.

Rinse the pot used for cleaning the bones and meat and fill with 8 litres of water. Add the par–boiled meat. Blast at extremely high heat for 3-4 minutes to force all the impurities to the surface, then skim off the scum until the water looks clear. Reduce the heat to low, partially cover with the lid and simmer for 3 hours.

Add the prepared onions and ginger along with the daikon to the broth along with 120g salt. Stir in the sugar, then continue to simmer for a further 2 hours. Carefully remove the daikon and onion from the broth, add the spice strainer along with the fish sauce. Cook for a further 3 hours.

Taste and adjust the seasoning to your preference. In the north of Vietnam pho is a little saltier, and in the south it is a little sweeter. Take the pot off the heat, remove the bones and meat, and allow to cool. Skim off any fat that has risen to the surface, then carefully and slowly strain the broth through a large sieve into a clean stockpot. Don’t rush this process if you want to produce that signature clarity to the broth.

Soak the noodles in a bowl of cold water for 30-45 minutes. Drain and set aside.

For the meat, debone and tear the brisket meat into strips. Cut the flank into thin slices. If you like, tear the meat off the ribs, or serve it on the bones. Bring a saucepan of water to the boil, then blanch the bean sprouts for 5-10 seconds and drain. Divide the bean sprouts between serving bowls.

Fill the pan with fresh water and cook the soaked noodles for 3-5 seconds, then drain and add to the bowls with the bean sprouts. Add the assortment of cooked meat, then arrange the slices of topside steak on top. Bring the broth to the boil and ladle between bowls. Add the marrow to the bowls, or leave on the side for guests to help themselves. Finish with the herbs and serve with lime wedges and sriracha and hoisin sauces for dipping the meat.*

Finally, enjoy your first spoonful of broth… You deserve it chef!

*Do not add the sauces into the broth. Think of the hours you have spent perfecting it.

Extracted from 'The Little Viet Kitchen' by Thuy Diem Pham. Published by Absolute Press (£22)