Vietnamese Bánh Ít Ram - The Viral Chewy and Crispy Mochi Dumpling
A mind-blowing contrast between a soft, chewy, squishy mochi-like dumpling with savory shrimp and pork filling perched directly on top of a shatteringly crispy fried rice cake.
Ingredients
Shrimp Sprinkles Topping
- 8-10 Shrimp
- 1 tsp Annatto Oil
Main Dough
- 300 g Glutinous rice flour
- 3 g Salt
- 150 ml Boiling water
- 100-120 ml Warm water
Crispy Dough
- 100 g Glutinous rice flour
- 10 g Rice flour
- 10 g Potato starch
- 1 g Baking powder
- 1 g Salt
- 30 g Sugar
- 50 ml Boiling water
- 50 ml Warm water
Filling
- 200g= g Pork belly cut into small cubes
- 10-12 Shrimp
- 1 tbsp Annatto oil
- 1 tbsp Shallots minced
- 1 tbsp Garlic minced
- 1/5 tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Sugar
- 1/2 tsp Chicken bouillon
- 1/2 tsp Pepper
Fish Sauce Dipping Sauce
- 150 ml Water
- 45 g Sugar
- 40 g Fish sauce
- 20 g Vinegar
- 20 g Shredded carrots
- 1 clove Garlic minced
- 1 Chili minced
Scallion oil
- 25 g Scallion
- 1/8 tsp Salt
- 50 ml Oil
Instructions
- Cook the Filling & Roasted Prawns: Sear the diced pork shoulder with 1 tbsp minced shallots and 1 tbsp minced garlic until golden. Add 10 prawns, 1 tbsp annatto oil, 1/5 tsp salt, 1 tsp sugar, 1/2 tsp chicken powder, and 1/2 tsp pepper. Cook until caramelized; set aside to cool.Cook 80g prawns with 1 garlic clove and 1 tsp annatto oil. Pulse in a food processor to a coarse crumb, then dry-roast in a pan until fluffy and completely dry to create the roasted prawns (tôm cháy).
- Prepare the Sauce & Spring Onion Oil:The Sauce: Combine 150ml water, 45g sugar, 40g fish sauce, and 20g vinegar. Stir until sugar dissolves, then add 20g shredded carrot, 1 minced garlic clove, and minced chili to taste.Spring Onion Oil: Combine 25g chopped spring onion and 1/8 tsp salt in a heatproof bowl. Heat 50ml vegetable oil until shimmering, then pour over the green onions.
- Prepare the Doughs:Main Dough: Combine 300g glutinous flour and 3g salt. Slowly add 150ml boiling water, then stream in 100ml–120ml warm water. Knead into a smooth, Play-Doh-like dough.Crispy Dough: Combine 100g glutinous flour, 10g rice flour, 10g potato starch, 1g baking powder, 1g salt, and 30g sugar. Stream in 50ml boiling water and 50ml warm water. Knead into a smooth dough.
- Assemble and Steam Dumplings: Flatten a small piece of the main dough, fill with the pork and prawn filling, and seal into a smooth ball. Place on a parchment-lined steamer basket and steam over high heat for 6 to 7 minutes until slightly translucent. Let cool on the paper.
- Fry the Crackers: Roll the crispy dough into golf-ball sizes, flatten into discs, and dock both sides with a fork. Fry in hot oil for 2 to 3 minutes per side until golden and crisp. Drain on a rack.
Notes
- Trust Your Gut on the Dough: Glutinous rice flour hydration varies wildly depending on air humidity and flour freshness. If the recipe ratio feels goopy, don't panic—add small dustings of flour until it feels like soft Play-Doh.
- Parchment is Mandatory: Never steam sticky glutinous rice dumplings directly on metal or bamboo steamer slats. They will stick and tear apart. Always line your steamer with perforated parchment paper.
- Is It Worth It? Truthfully, making both doughs and toppings from scratch is a labor of love! It's a fun culinary test to satisfy your FOMO, but if you have a local Central-style Vietnamese restaurant nearby, grabbing them ready-made will save you a ton of kitchen stress.