The birthplace of Vietnamese Clear Tapioca Dumplings (Bánh Bột Lọc) is Huế, the former capital of the imperial Nguyễn dynasty, renowned for its sophisticated dishes. The Bánh Bột Lọc dumplings were traditionally made by skilled artisans who carefully crafted the translucent wrappers from tapioca starch derived from cassava roots.
Ingredients for 4-5 servings:
For the dough:
- 200 gr tapioca starch (the starch cannot be replaced by tapioca flour)
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 125ml boiling water
For the filling:
- 200 gr shrimps, deveined and diced
- 200 gr pork belly, diced
- 3 shallots, minced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- Salt and pepper
- 1 teaspoon paprika powder
- 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons cane sugar
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
For the scallion oil:
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 3-4 spring onions, finely chopped
- A pinch of salt
For the dipping sauce:
- 1½ tablespoons fish sauce
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 2 tablespoons warm water
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 1 clove of garlic, finely chopped
- 1 red chili pepper, finely chopped
Preparation instructions:
- Prepare the filling:
- Season the shrimps with salt and pepper.
- Season the pork with salt, pepper and paprika powder.
- Heat oil in a pan and sauté minced garlic and shallots until fragrant.
- Add the pork and stir well for 1 minute. Then add sugar and continue stirring for 4-5 minutes.
- Add the shrimps and season with fish sauce. Stir well and simmer on medium heat for 2-3 minutes, until the pork and shrimps are nicely caramelised.
- Prepare the scallion oil:
- Heat vegetable oil in a pan over medium-high heat.
- Add the chopped spring onions, stir quickly for 10 seconds and remove from heat.
- Prepare the dipping sauce:
- In a small bowl, combine fish sauce, sugar and warm water. Mix well until the sugar is dissolved.
- Add lime juice, garlic and chili pepper.
- Prepare the dough:
- Place 1/4 of the tapioca starch (50 grams) in a small bowl, and the remaining 150 grams in a large mixing bowl.
- Pour boiling hot water into the small bowl. The starch on the surface will turn quite translucent. Stir well to create a half-cooked paste. Wait 1-2 minutes for the paste to cool down.
- Transfer the paste to the large mixing bowl and combine it with the rest of the tapioca starch. Knead well until a soft yet elastic piece of dough forms. Place the dough in a plastic bag to prevent it from drying out.
- Cook the dumplings:
- Pinch a small piece of the dough, and roll it into a 2.5-3 cm pearl. Use a rolling pin to flatten each pearl into a 7-8 cm wrapper. Sprinkle some tapioca starch on the wrappers to keep from sticking.
- Place a teaspoon of the filling on the wrapper, and fold the wrapper over to form a half-moon dumpling. Pinch the edges together to seal.
- Fill a large saucepan with plenty of water and bring it to a boil. Divide the dumplings in 2-3 batches to avoid overcrowding.
- Gently slide dumplings into the boiling water, one by one. Boil the dumplings for 2-3 minutes until they float to the surface.
- Transfer the cooked dumplings to an oiled plate. Mix them with the scallion oil, prepared earlier, to keep from sticking.
- The dumplings will turn translucent after cooling down (in about 2-3 minutes).
- Serve the dumplings:
- Garnish with chopped cilantro and chili, and add the dipping sauce to the plate. Enjoy!
