Last summer, when I was up in Oakland, I passed a Vietnamese restaurant with a huge sign declaring that they had banh bot chien (Vietnamese fried rice flour cake). Huh! I had never heard of such a dish before.
A bit of Googling turned up a post from Noodlepie about banh bot chien on the streets of Saigon and a recipe from Houston Wok. So the dish looked like simply steamed rice flour, cut into rectangles, pan-fried, then stir-fried with eggs and scallions. Seemed simple enough, but I knew I wanted to make it with banh cu cai/lo bak gou (Vietnamese/Chinese pan-fried turnip cake) for more flavor. I had made turnip cakes once before, but hadn't gotten around to making it again since.
One of students' fathers gave me an entire pan of turnip cake for the lunar new year. It was heavenly. So tender and flavorful with chopped bits of dried shrimp and Chinese sausage. I ate most of it plain since it was so good that it needed little else, but I did save a bit to make banh bot chien.
Just rice flour cake, eggs, and green onions, yet this simple dish was so comforting. Scallions/green onions fit in perfectly for this month's Weekend Wokking challenge of ONIONS.
You'll need:
About 1 lb of banh cu cai/lo bak guo (Vietnamese/Chinese turnip cake) or taro cake or plain steamed rice flour cake if you wish, cut into 1-inch by 2-inch rectangles
3 eggs, beaten
3 scallions, sliced
My Ultimate Stir-Fry Sauce or your choice of Chinese black sauces or soy sauce
Mmm. That heavenly turnip cake.
Cut into 1-inch by 2-inch rectangles. Drizzle a bit of oil and pan-fry on medium heat until golden brown and crispy.
Flip.
Add 3 sliced scallions.
Then add in 3 beaten eggs. I've seen this served as an omelet, so if you prefer that, then keep it whole.
Otherwise, flip to make sure the eggs are cooked on the opposite side.
It's OK if it gets messy. Add my ultimate stir-fry sauce or your choice of black sauces.
Break up the egg a bit and stir-fry so the turnip cake absorbs the sauce.
Plate and enjoy while crispy.
Who else made banh bot chien?