Steamed rice rolls, Banh cuon Thanh Tri
Banh cuon are Vietnam's steamed rice rolls: a thin rice-flour batter is steamed for seconds into a silky sheet, then rolled around minced pork and wood-ear mushroom and cut into bite-sized pieces. This banh cuon recipe makes about 16 rolls, served warm with fresh herbs, crisp fried shallots, cucumber, slices of cha lua pork sausage and a bowl of nuoc cham for dipping. One serving is about 373 g, four rolls with all the trimmings.
Banh cuon is a breakfast speciality of Hanoi, and the Thanh Tri district of the city is famous for it: vendors there have steamed the delicate rice sheets over cloth-covered pots for generations, rolling them in seconds while customers wait on small stools. The dish is defined by its technique rather than its filling — the batter must be thin enough to turn translucent in under a minute, and the filling is deliberately simple, just pork and wood-ear mushroom, so the silkiness of the sheet is the star. It is eaten in the morning, warm, with nuoc cham, herbs and cha lua, and a good vendor is judged by how thin and unbroken the sheets are.
Pairs well with: Nuoc cham for dipping, fresh herbs, cucumber and slices of cha lua, with hot tea.
Provenance
Vietnam
Hanoi Breakfast Classic
East & South Asia
Time Dedication
1h 5m
40m prep • 25m cook
Batch Yield
4 Servings
476 kcal per serving
1 serving ≈ 373 g
Technical Skill
Advanced
Hard (Steamed Sheets)
Meal Timing & Digestive Fit
Breakfast
Prime Morning Fit
Lunch
Inappropriate
Dinner
Inappropriate
Snack & Tea
Inappropriate
Hanoi Breakfast Classic
Photo: Valentin Orange, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
The Heritage Formulary
Estimated cost: Low — about $2–3 per serving at home (USD)
Made the Hanoi way: a rested rice-flour and tapioca batter steamed into translucent sheets, rolled around pork and wood-ear mushroom, and served warm with nuoc cham, herbs and cha lua.
Execution Methodology & Culinary Technique
Prep Stage: Batter, Filling & Nuoc Cham
40 Mins • Whisking, Soaking & Resting
Whisk the rice flour, tapioca starch, water, salt and half the oil into a thin batter and rest it for 30 minutes. Meanwhile soak the wood-ear mushrooms, cook the pork filling with onion, fish sauce, pepper and sugar, and mix the nuoc cham from fish sauce, sugar, lime juice, garlic, chili and water. Slice the cucumber and cha lua and pick the herbs.
Maestro Tip: Resting the batter is not optional — it lets the flours hydrate so the sheets steam silky instead of gritty.
30 Mins Room temperature
Whisk the rice flour, tapioca starch, water, salt and 5 ml of the oil together until completely smooth, with no lumps. Cover and rest for 30 minutes, then whisk again — the batter should pour like single cream and coat the back of a spoon in a thin film.
If the batter feels thick after resting, whisk in water a tablespoon at a time.
Done when: A smooth, thin batter with no lumps and no skin on top.
8 Mins Medium-high heat, about 180°C (350°F)
Heat the remaining oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Fry the onion for 2 minutes until soft, then add the ground pork and break it up with a spoon. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring, until the pork is browned and no pink remains, then stir in the chopped wood-ear mushrooms, fish sauce, pepper and sugar and cook 1 minute more. Tip into a bowl.
Break the pork into small crumbs — large lumps tear the delicate sheets.
Done when: Pork browned through with no pink, the thickest crumb at 71°C (160°F).
3 Mins Room temperature
Stir the fish sauce, sugar and water together until the sugar dissolves, then add the lime juice, minced garlic and sliced chili. Taste and adjust: it should be sweet, sour and salty at once, light enough to sip. Set aside in a small bowl for each eater.
Add the lime juice last so its fresh sourness stays bright.
Done when: A clear, pale-gold sauce that tastes balanced, not harsh.
5 Mins Boiling water, 100°C (212°F)
Bring a wide pot of water to a rolling boil and fit a steamer tray, a flat plate, or a piece of cloth stretched over the pot. Brush the steaming surface lightly with oil. Keep a lightly oiled plate beside you for the finished sheets, and have the filling bowl within reach.
A wide, flat steaming surface is what makes thin, even sheets — a small pot makes thick, uneven ones.
Done when: Steady steam rising and a lightly oiled surface ready to go.
15 Mins Boiling water, 100°C (212°F)
Ladle about 60 ml of batter onto the steaming surface and tilt it so it spreads into a thin, even circle. Cover and steam for 40 to 60 seconds until the sheet turns translucent and bubbles slightly. Lift the sheet onto the oiled plate, spoon a line of filling across one edge, and roll it up gently. Repeat until the batter is used up, about 16 rolls.
Work fast while each sheet is hot — cold sheets stiffen and crack when rolled.
Done when: Translucent, silky sheets rolled around the filling without tearing.
4 Mins Serve warm
Cut each roll into 3 or 4 bite-sized pieces and arrange on plates. Scatter the fried shallots and herbs over the top, add the cucumber and cha lua slices beside them, and serve immediately with a small bowl of nuoc cham for each person to dip or pour over.
Cut with a lightly oiled knife so the soft rolls do not stick to the blade.
Done when: Warm, glossy rolls with crisp shallots, fresh herbs and a bowl of dipping sauce.
Finishing Touches & Plating
Eat banh cuon the moment it is plated, while the rolls are still warm and silky. Dip each piece in nuoc cham or pour the sauce over the plate, and take a bite of cucumber and herbs with every mouthful — the crunch and the sour sauce are what keep the soft rolls from feeling heavy.
Nutritional Physiology & Benefits
Energy
476
kcal / serving
Protein
17g
Complete AA
Carbs
66g
Complex
Fats
15g
Healthy
| Energy | 476 kcal |
| Protein | 17 g |
| Carbohydrates | 66 g |
| Fat | 15 g |
| Fibre | 3.0 g |
| Sugar | 6.0 g |
| Sodium | 941 mg |
| Energy | 127.7 kcal |
| Protein | 4.5 g |
| Carbohydrates | 17.8 g |
| Fat | 4.1 g |
| Fibre | 0.8 g |
| Sugar | 1.6 g |
| Sodium | 253 mg |
Nutrition values are estimated — calculated from USDA FoodData Central values for the listed ingredients.
Vitamins & minerals: The pork supplies B vitamins, iron and zinc, the wood-ear mushrooms add iron, the herbs add vitamin C and vitamin K, and the cucumber adds vitamin K and potassium.
Protein That Keeps You Full
One serving carries about 16.6 g of protein from the pork and cha lua, which is what makes these delicate rolls a proper breakfast rather than a snack.
Gentle, Steamed and Light
Steaming instead of frying keeps the fat low for a pork dish, and the rice-flour sheets are naturally gluten-free, so the plate feels light even though it is filling.
Iron from Pork and Mushroom
The pork and wood-ear mushrooms both contribute iron, and the vitamin C in the lime juice and herbs helps the body absorb it from the meal.
Food Pairings
To optimize nutrient absorption and elevate the sensory depth, pair with these authentic accompaniments:
Sauces
Nuoc Cham
The sweet-sour-salty dipping sauce is not optional — it is what seasons the mild rice sheets, and without it the rolls taste plain.
Vegetables
Fresh Herbs and Cucumber
Mint, cilantro and cucumber add crunch, coolness and a fresh green note that cuts through the rich pork filling, which is why every plate of banh cuon comes with them.
Sides
Cha Lua
Slices of smooth Vietnamese pork sausage add a second pork texture — firm and springy against the soft rolls — and it is the traditional partner on the plate.
Drinks
Hot Tea
Unsweetened hot tea is the usual breakfast drink with banh cuon because it cleanses the palate between the rich, savoury mouthfuls.
Complete menu
Serve banh cuon with a pot of hot tea and a plate of fresh fruit, and keep the morning light — the rolls are filling enough on their own.
Digestive Guardrails
To prevent digestive distress, sluggishness, or palate clash, avoid pairing the dish with these elements:
Pouring All the Nuoc Cham Over at Once
The dipping sauce is salty at about 1,630 mg sodium in the batch, so drowning the rolls makes the plate far saltier than dipping piece by piece. This is general food information, not medical advice.
Eating Rolls Left Out for Hours
Steamed rice sheets kept at room temperature for more than 2 hours can grow bacteria that reheating does not fully remove, so eat them fresh or refrigerate promptly. This is general food information, not medical advice.
General information only, not medical advice — consult a doctor for personal dietary decisions.
Who Should Eat It
Health Conditions — Adjust or Avoid
If you have a medical condition, consult your doctor before changing your diet.
Storage & Use
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Comfort & Sustained Energy
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WARNING: This dish is made from raw duck blood and eating it is NOT recommended. Raw blood can carry Streptococcus suis (which causes meningitis and sepsis — people in Vietnam have died after eating pig-blood tiet canh), avian influenza from duck blood, salmonella and other dangerous germs. Vietnam's Ministry of Health advises against eating tiet canh, and no preparation method — not even blood from a fresh or trusted source — makes raw blood fully safe. This page describes the traditional Hanoi preparation, tiết canh vịt, for cultural knowledge only. One serving is about 241 g: a small bowl of fresh duck blood mixed with fish sauce, poured over finely chopped cooked duck meat and left to set into a soft, trembling jelly, then finished with crushed roasted peanuts, fresh herbs, lime and chili, and served cold.
Cultural Discovery
A traditional northern Vietnamese snack of raw duck blood set into a soft jelly with cooked duck meat, herbs and peanuts — described here for cultural knowledge, with a serious safety warning.
