Banh Bot Loc

Ingredients

Dough

• 300 gtapioca starch
• about 250 ml boiling water
• ½ tspsalt
• 1 tspoil

Filling

• 250 gsmall prawns, peeled
• 200 gpork belly, in small cubes
• 3shallots, chopped
• 2 tbspfish sauce
• 2 tbspsugar
• 1 tspblack pepper
• 1 tbspannatto oil, optional
• 1 tbspoil

To wrap

• banana leaves, softened over a flame, cut into rectangles

Dipping sauce

• 3 tbspfish sauce
• 2 tbspsugar
• 2 tbspwater
• juice of 1 lime
• 2chillies, sliced
• 1 clovegarlic, minced

To finish

• fried shallots
• spring onion oil

To serve

• warm, unwrapped at the table

Directions

1. Pour the boiling water in gradually while stirring with a wooden spoon or chopsticks. Add the water a little at a time, since the amount needed varies with the brand of starch and the humidity. Stop adding water when the mixture just holds together in a rough mass.
2. Knead it while it is still warm, since a cooled tapioca dough is stiff and cracks rather than coming together. Work it for five minutes until it is completely smooth, elastic and no longer sticky. It should feel like a soft, slightly springy modelling clay. Keep it covered with a damp cloth at all times, since it dries out and cracks within minutes.
3. Fry the pork belly cubes until they render and brown, then add the shallots and prawns. Add fish sauce, sugar and plenty of black pepper and cook until the liquid has gone.
4. Cook the filling until it is completely dry, since any liquid will make the dumplings burst in the steamer. The filling should be sticky and caramelised rather than saucy. Let it cool completely before filling anything. Take a small piece of dough and flatten it in your palm into a thin disc.
5. Press it thin, since a thick wrapper is stodgy and stays cloudy rather than turning clear. Put a prawn and a piece of pork in the centre and fold the dough over into a half-moon.
6. Press the edges firmly to seal, working out any trapped air. Pass the banana leaves over a flame until they turn glossy and pliable, which stops them splitting when folded. Brush each leaf lightly with oil, which stops the dumpling sticking. Lay a dumpling on the leaf and fold it into a flat parcel, tucking the ends under.
7. Steam the parcels for fifteen to twenty minutes over vigorously boiling water. They are done when the dough has turned from opaque white to clear and you can see the pink prawn through it. Let them rest for ten minutes before unwrapping. Straight from the steamer the dough is very soft and sticky, and it firms up as it cools.
8. Mix the fish sauce, sugar, water, lime, chilli and garlic into a sharp dipping sauce. Taste it: it should be salty, sour, sweet and hot all at once, and strong enough to season a plain dumpling. Serve them still in their leaves, to be unwrapped at the table. Spoon the sauce over or dip each one, and scatter fried shallots and spring onion oil over.

Technique

• The dough is pure tapioca starch, which is what turns it translucent.
• Boiling water is essential, since cold water gives an unusable slurry.
• They are done when the wrapper turns clear and the prawn shows through.

Substitutions

• Foil in place of banana leaves, accepting the loss of aroma.
• The boiled version, banh bot loc tran, needs no leaves at all.

Variations

• Banh bot loc tran, boiled without leaves.
• Made with prawn alone, without pork.
• Made vegetarian, with mushroom and tofu.

History

Hue court-influenced snack whose clear wrapper shows the filling; sold in small portions as part of the city’s tradition of many little dishes.

Frequently asked questions

What is Banh Bot Loc?

Banh Bot Loc is a snack from Vietnam: translucent tapioca dumplings holding shrimp and pork belly, steamed in leaf. Hue court-influenced snack whose clear wrapper shows the filling; sold in small portions as part of the city’s tradition of many little dishes.

How long does Banh Bot Loc take to make?

Banh Bot Loc takes 1 hr of preparation and 25 min of cooking. The recipe makes about 30 dumplings. It is rated hard to make.

What can I substitute in Banh Bot Loc?

Yes, within limits. Foil in place of banana leaves, accepting the loss of aroma. The boiled version, banh bot loc tran, needs no leaves at all.

What is the most important thing to get right in Banh Bot Loc?

Knead it while it is still warm, since a cooled tapioca dough is stiff and cracks rather than coming together. Work it for five minutes until it is completely smooth, elastic and no longer sticky. It should feel like a soft, slightly springy modelling clay. Keep it covered with a damp cloth at all times, since it dries out and cracks within minutes.