DISH RESEARCH · Snack
Banh Nam
Also known as: Bánh nậm
Flat banana-leaf parcels of rice batter with seasoned shrimp and minced pork.
About Banh Nam
Bánh nậm are flat rectangular rice-flour dumplings from Central Vietnam. Helen Le's selected traditional-cake recipe fills banana-leaf parcels with shrimp and minced pork, with annatto chosen for their orange-red colour.
Garlic and shallots flavour the filling, while fish sauce and pepper give it savoury seasoning. Chicken stock seasons the shrimp component, and pork seasoning powder accompanies the minced pork.
Soft rice paste forms a thin layer around the filling inside flattened leaf parcels. The dumplings are served hot and unwrapped, accompanied by the source's sweet fish-sauce mixture.
Allergens in this recipe
Contains: Crustaceans, Fish.
Other allergen details are unconfirmed.
Ingredients vary by restaurant. Confirm your allergens with staff before ordering.
Ingredients in Banh Nam
Helen Le's Central Vietnamese bánh nậm.
- Rice flourBase
- WaterLiquid · Batter, leaves and sauce
- ShrimpFilling
- Minced porkFilling
- Annatto powderSeasoning
- Banana leavesBase · Wrapping
- GarlicAromatic
- ShallotsAromatic
- PepperSeasoningIngredient page not linked
- Fish sauceSeasoning · Filling and dipping sauce
- Chicken stockSeasoning
- Vegetable oilCooking medium
- SaltSeasoning · Batter
- Pork seasoning powderSeasoning · Pork fillingIngredient page not linked
- SugarSweetener · Dipping sauce
Ingredient details & uncertainties
Allergen information is incomplete. Unconfirmed details do not establish that an allergen is absent.
- Rice flour: Recipe-specific ingredient evidence; Allergen details unconfirmed
- Water: Recipe-specific ingredient evidence; Allergen details unconfirmed. Batter, explicit leaf blanching water and dipping-sauce water retained.
- Shrimp: Crustaceans
- Minced pork: Recipe-specific ingredient evidence; Allergen details unconfirmed
- Annatto powder: Recipe-specific ingredient evidence; Allergen details unconfirmed. Broader annatto candidate; annatto selected instead of paprika alternative.
- Banana leaves: Recipe-specific ingredient evidence; Allergen details unconfirmed. Non-edible wrapper retained as explicitly named recipe component.
- Garlic: Recipe-specific ingredient evidence; Allergen details unconfirmed
- Shallots: Recipe-specific ingredient evidence; Allergen details unconfirmed
- Pepper: Recipe-specific ingredient evidence; Allergen details unconfirmed. Source does not specify colour or form.
- Fish sauce: Fish. Fish identity explicit; species and additional product formula unresolved.
- Chicken stock: Recipe-specific ingredient evidence; Allergen details unconfirmed. Broader stock candidate; source uses a small seasoning measure without establishing powder/liquid form or full formula.
- Vegetable oil: Recipe-specific ingredient evidence; Allergen details unconfirmed
- Salt: Recipe-specific ingredient evidence; Allergen details unconfirmed. Method-only batter salt retained.
- Pork seasoning powder: Recipe-specific ingredient evidence; Allergen details unconfirmed. Method-only named pork powder; product formula and exact mapping unresolved.
- Sugar: Recipe-specific ingredient evidence; Allergen details unconfirmed. Source explicitly supplies dipping-sauce formula of fish sauce, sugar and water.
Origins & food traditions
Central Vietnam; source categorized Huế traditional cake.
Cuisines & regions
- Central Vietnamese Cuisine
- Hue cuisineCatalogue link pending review
- Vietnamese CuisineCatalogue link pending review
AI-generated illustration of one possible presentation. Recipes and ingredients vary; the image does not establish allergen content.