Banh Xeo

Allergens at a glance

• UsuallyCrustaceansPrawns are cooked into the classic pork and prawn filling.
• UsuallyFishFish sauce dip (nước chấm), the standard sauce.
• OftenGlutenMany ready-mixed bánh xèo flours contain wheat flour; scratch batters are rice.
• SometimesEggsSome cooks add egg to the batter or filling, especially in central versions.
• SometimesPeanutsCentral-style versions come with a peanut and soybean dipping sauce.
• SometimesSoyFermented soybean sauce in the central-style dip.
• SometimesSesameRoasted sesame in the central-style liver and peanut dip (nước lèo).

Usually in the standard recipe. Often in many versions. Sometimes in some kitchens, or a cross-contact risk.

Diets

• Not vegetarian as standard: pork, prawns and fish sauce. Bánh xèo chay exists, but ask about the dip.
• Coeliac (celiac) diners: ask whether the batter is pure rice flour or a mix.
• Not halal as standard: the classic filling includes pork.

Recipes change from kitchen to kitchen. If you have an allergy, confirm every ingredient with the restaurant before you order.

What is banh xeo?

Banh xeo is a thin, lacy pancake fried until crisp in a very hot pan, folded around pork, prawns and bean sprouts. The name comes from the sizzle (xèo) the batter makes as it hits the oil. You tear off a piece, wrap it in lettuce or mustard greens with herbs, and dip it.

What's in it

• Batter: rice flour, water, turmeric and spring onion, often with coconut milk in the south
• Filling: pork belly, prawns, bean sprouts, onion and sometimes mung beans or mushrooms
• For wrapping: lettuce, mustard greens, mint, perilla and other herbs
• Dip: nước chấm, a fish sauce, lime, sugar, garlic and chilli sauce

Southern banh xeo is large, folded like an omelette and rich with coconut milk. Central versions (often called bánh khoái in Huế) are smaller and thicker, and are often served with nước lèo, a thick sauce of pork liver, peanuts, sesame and fermented soybean, instead of nước chấm. Bánh khọt, tiny crisp cakes made in a moulded pan, are a close cousin.

Allergens and diets

Expect crustaceans and fish: prawns are part of the standard filling, and the fish sauce dip comes with it. Even if you order a pork-only pancake, it's fried in the same pan as the prawn ones.

Wheat is the less obvious one. A traditional batter is rice flour, but many restaurants and home cooks use ready-mixed bánh xèo flour, and several common brands contain wheat flour, from a small amount to almost a third of the mix. Coeliac (celiac) diners should ask whether the batter is plain rice flour, and ideally see the packet.

The central-style nước lèo contains peanuts, sesame and fermented soybeans, and some cooks add egg to the batter. The wrapping leaves often include mustard greens, so if you avoid mustard, ask for lettuce only. Coconut milk isn't a regulated allergen, but if you react to coconut, ask, because southern batters usually contain it.

On the menu

Pancakes are usually sold individually or by the plate, and they're best eaten straight from the pan before they soften.

Last checked 1 November 2026. Spotted something wrong? Email support@inventum.com.au.