Recipe: Vietnamese Crepes

Vietnamese Crepes
posted by Sue L
(My husband loves these. They look like they have eggs in them, but they don't. Makes for a great light supper or brunch item.)
5 servings

1/2 lb boneless pork loin
20 medium shrimp
10 fresh cilantro stems
10 fresh basil sprigs
10 fresh mint sprigs
2 cups rice flour
1/2 cup self-rising flour
2 1/2 cups water
1 cup coconut milk
1/2 teaspoon curry powder
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 green onion, chopped
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
3 cups bean sprouts
5 tablespoons oil
nuoc mam (1 batch;)
red leaf lettuce

Place pork loin in a saucepan; cover with water and bring to a boil over medium heat; simmer until cooked through, about 20 minutes. Allow pork to cool, then julienne into strips. Shell and devein shrimp; slice each one in half lengthwise. Rinse herbs and drain; set aside. In a mixing bowl, prepare batter by mixing rice flour, self-rising flour, water, coconut milk, curry powder, sugar, salt, and green onion until smooth. Divide pork, shrimp, onion, and bean sprouts into 5 separate little piles for easy access during cooking. Heat 1 tbsp oil in non-stick frying pan until hot; cook pork shrimp and onion until it starts to sizzle; add 1/2 cup of batter and swirl to cover pan and get batter underneath. Place one pile of bean sprouts towards the center of the crepe, then cover the pan tightly. Turn the heat down to medium and cook for 2-3 minutes, then uncover and loosen edges of crepe and fold over with a spatula to form an omelette. Transfer the crepe to a serving platter. Repeat process with rest of batter. Do not cover the cooked crepes or stack them (they will lose their crispness- they should remain light and airy). To serve, place one crepe on a plate with some lettuce leaves, herbs also with a small bowl of nuoc mam. The person cuts a portion of crepe, wraps it in a leaf of lettuce with some herbs, and dips it in the sauce.

Nuoc Mam Gung
posted by Liz2
(I enclose a recipe for Nuoc Mam Gung, a Thai sauce which can be used for dipping or as a kind of salad dressing (in small amounts; it's HOT!). At home we often have it with prawns grilled with garlic and chilis and a salad made from lettuce, finely sliced onion and coriander (cilantro in the States?).)

1 piece ginger, peeled (5 cm piece)
2 tablespoons caster sugar
2 birds eye chilis
2 cloves garlic
1/2 lime, peeled and sectioned
2 tablespoons nam pla (fish sauce, available from oriental supermarkets)

Put the lot in a food processor and whizz until liquid. Taste, and add more lime/Nam Pla if you think it needs it.