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Vietnamese shrimp crackers, fried and fully puffed, piled in a bamboo basket
CuisineVietnamese
Southeast Asia

Bánh Phồng Tôm: Vietnamese Shrimp Crackers, Steamed, Dried, Then Fried

How to make bánh phồng tôm, Vietnamese shrimp crackers, from a chef's home recipe linked to Cà Mau. Covers choosing cassava flour, steaming thin sheets on cloth, drying until they snap, frying when needed, and serving ideas.

Cooking flow

Cooking steps

STEP 11 / 6

Blend the shrimp

Peeled, deveined raw shrimp being blended with a little water in a food processor
Use only a splash of water at this stage

Peel the raw shrimp until you have 340 g of peeled flesh (about 500–600 g shell-on), and remove the dark veins. Put the shrimp in a blender or food processor with a splash of the boiled water and blend to a paste.

STEP 22 / 6

Mix the batter and rest it

Shrimp paste and the other ingredients being stirred together in a large bowl before a 30-minute rest
Flecks of spring onion and chilli are part of the batter

Put the shrimp paste in a large bowl. Add the cassava flour, all-purpose flour, garlic powder, MSG if using, salt, pepper, sugar, oil, yeast, shrimp roe, spring onion, chilli and egg whites. Add the boiled water a little at a time, stirring until everything is combined and the batter can spread in a thin layer. Let the batter rest for 30 minutes.

STEP 33 / 6

Steam thin sheets on the cloth

Shrimp batter being steamed in a thin layer on a cloth stretched over a boiling pot
Spread the batter into a thin sheet, then cover with the lid

Bring a pot of water to a boil and stretch a thin cloth tightly over it. Ladle on some batter and spread it into a thin layer.

Cover with the lid and steam until cooked. Lift the sheet off with a bamboo knife and lay it on a bamboo rack. Repeat with the remaining batter.

A cooked thin sheet being lifted from the cloth with a bamboo knife
Move each cooked sheet from the cloth to the bamboo rack
STEP 44 / 6

Dry the sheets, then cut them

A dried thin sheet being cut into pieces on a board
Cut pieces about 10 x 15 cm, or the size you prefer

Leave the sheets on the rack to dry. When they are dry, cut them into pieces about 10 x 15 cm, or any size you prefer.

STEP 55 / 6

Dry the pieces until they snap

Cut pieces drying on a rack while one is snapped by hand to test dryness
A clean snap between the fingers means the pieces are dry

Spread the cut pieces on the rack and dry them in the sun or in a food dehydrator. They are ready when a piece snaps cleanly as you bend it between your fingers. If it bends without breaking, keep drying.

STEP 66 / 6

Store airtight and fry as needed

A dried piece puffing as it fries in hot oil
Fry one piece at a time so you can watch it puff

Keep the dried pieces in an airtight container. When you want to eat them, heat the frying oil until very hot and deep-fry as many pieces as you need, one at a time. Try one piece first, watch how it puffs and colors, and adjust from there. Hot oil can spatter and burn, so work carefully.

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Ingredients

Ingredients

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Ingredients

Ingredient Amount Role
Peeled raw shrimp (thịt tôm đã bóc vỏ) 340 g Main flavor. About 500–600 g shell-on shrimp gives this peeled weight
Cassava flour 320 g Main flour in the batter
All-purpose flour 80 g Second flour in the batter. Contains wheat
Garlic powder 10 g Aroma
MSG (optional) 5 g Savory depth
Sea salt 10 g Seasoning
Ground pepper 5 g Aroma
Sugar 65 g Sweetness
Oil 20 g Goes into the batter
Dried yeast 6 g Rests in the batter
Shrimp roe a pinch Color
Chopped spring onion 20 g Aroma and color
Ground chilli 5 g Heat
Boiled water about 1 litre Blends the shrimp and loosens the batter. You may not need it all
Egg whites 3 Part of the batter. Whites only
Oil for deep-frying as needed Frying the dried pieces. Separate from the 20 g above
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Bánh Phồng Tôm: A Thin Shrimp Sheet That Waits for the Oil

What this recipe should keep

Spread the batter thin, steam it on cloth, and dry the pieces until they snap between your fingers. Fry them only when you want to eat them.

A ladle of shrimp batter spreads across a cloth stretched over a boiling pot. Once cooked, the thin sheet is lifted away on a bamboo knife and laid on a bamboo rack to dry. Later, a brittle piece goes into hot oil and swells into a light, airy cracker.

Bánh phồng tôm is a Vietnamese shrimp cracker, and most of the work happens long before the frying. This version follows a home recipe by chef Tô Thiện Thành, published in Việt Nam News with the chef's account of seeing prawn crackers made locally in Cà Mau. The thin cloth and bamboo knife appear there as traditional tools. It is one cook's recipe and one writer's observation, not a rule for every household in Cà Mau.

What has and has not been confirmed

This recipe has not been kitchen-tested by Sekai Gohan. The published recipe gives no yield, steaming time, drying time or temperature, frying temperature or time, or storage period, so none appear here. It also gives no sanitary conditions for home drying, and we cannot vouch for the safety of a particular drying setup.

Ingredients for the Shrimp Batter

Peeled shrimp, cassava flour, all-purpose flour, egg whites and seasonings laid out in separate bowls and dishes
The batter combines shrimp, two flours, egg whites and seasonings

Equipment

  • Blender or food processor
  • Large mixing bowl
  • Pot with a lid
  • Thin, clean cloth to stretch over the pot
  • Ladle
  • Bamboo knife
  • Bamboo rack
  • Cutting board and knife
  • Food dehydrator, if you are not drying in the sun
  • Airtight container
  • Deep pot and slotted utensil for frying

Choosing the Flour, Egg Whites and Shrimp Roe

Cassava flour is the one to check most carefully. Tapioca starch, called bột năng in Vietnamese, is a candidate, but we have not confirmed that it is the same product as the cassava flour used here. Read the label before you buy. Don't swap in potato starch or cornstarch, because that makes a different formula.

Egg whites should not be replaced with whole eggs. Garlic powder should not be converted to fresh garlic, as no equivalent has been established. Weigh the sea salt rather than converting it by volume, since salt grains vary in size.

Shrimp roe is there for color. If you can't find it, leave it out and expect a paler color.

Allergens

This recipe contains shrimp, egg and wheat. Check labels on the flours and seasonings for cross-contact information.

When Something Goes Wrong

The only doneness test the recipe gives is the snap at the end of drying, so some of these are judgment calls for your own kitchen rather than confirmed fixes.

What you notice What it may mean What to do
A dried piece bends instead of snapping It isn't dry enough yet Keep drying and test again
Fried pieces have uneven texture or puff unevenly Drying may have been incomplete or uneven Test the remaining pieces for a clean snap before frying more
You aren't sure about the batter's thickness No fixed consistency or water split is available Add water gradually, then steam one thin layer to see how it behaves before continuing
The sheet isn't cooked when you check it No set steaming time is available Cover again and keep steaming until cooked
The crackers look paler than expected Shrimp roe may have been left out, as it adds color Enjoy them as they are, or add the pinch next time
Fried pieces curl into irregular shapes Cut rectangles may not stay neat as they puff No fix needed. A home batch doesn't have to look like round commercial crackers

Serving and Storing

Fried shrimp crackers in a bamboo basket on a table, with a separate bowl of Vietnamese salad
Crackers served with a separate salad, one way to eat them

The food blog CKK | Mê nấu thích ăn suggests eating these crackers with Vietnamese salads (gỏi). That gives you one serving idea, not a nationwide custom, and it doesn't call for any particular salad or dressing here.

For storage, the chef's guidance is simple: keep the dried pieces in an airtight container and fry them when needed. No storage period is given, and neither is any guidance on keeping fried crackers.

Variations

These are changes to the main recipe, so expect the result to differ.

  • No MSG: The chef's recipe explicitly allows you to leave it out.
  • Less heat: Leave out the ground chilli. This is our adaptation, and it also removes the chilli's color.
  • No shrimp roe: This is also our adaptation. Since the roe is there for color, expect a paler result.
  • Food dehydrator instead of sun: The recipe allows either one. Follow your appliance's instructions and use the same snap test.
  • With gỏi: Serve the fried crackers alongside a salad, as CKK suggests.

One Cracker, Several Methods

Recipes for bánh phồng tôm don't all follow the same path. Alongside the thin sheets steamed on cloth used here, there are home methods that steam a firmer dough in a log and slice it.

CKK's recipe shows another route. It lists tapioca starch, wheat flour and corn starch with shrimp, egg and seasonings. It precooks the shrimp, cooks the batter in a pan, cuts it while soft and dries it in the sun. Because the ingredients and method differ so much from the Cà Mau-linked recipe, the two should not be blended, and this article uses only the latter.

A very different kind of evidence comes from Ho Chi Minh City. A 1985 local technical standard, 53-TCV 65–85, defined the product it covered as made from food flour, shrimp and seasonings. It described round commercial crackers 1.5–2.0 mm thick that expand evenly when fried, and it set packaging and dry-storage requirements. This is a product standard, not a home recipe or a record of the cracker's origin, so its measurements don't apply to these hand-cut pieces.

We couldn't confirm the name's literal meaning or the cracker's history, so we won't offer a story about either. To keep exploring the country's cooking, visit our Vietnam page.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I fry the batter or the steamed sheet right away?

No. Steam the batter into sheets, dry them, cut them and dry the pieces until they snap. Fry only the fully dried pieces, when you're ready to eat them.

Which flour should I use?

The recipe says "cassava flour," and we have kept that term. Tapioca starch (bột năng) may be the right match, but we haven't confirmed that it is the same product, so check the label. Don't assume potato starch or cornstarch will work.

How should I divide the water, and how hot should it be?

The recipe calls for about 1 litre of boiled water and splashes of water when blending the shrimp. It doesn't explain how to divide the water, what temperature it should be when added, or how thick the batter should become. That's why the method adds it gradually and notes that you may not need it all.

What temperature and time should I use for drying?

Chef Tô Thiện Thành's recipe doesn't specify either one. It offers only the snap test. CKK suggests a 60–70°C dryer as an alternative for its own recipe, but that belongs to a different batter and shouldn't be treated as a setting for this one.

How hot should the frying oil be?

The chef's recipe says only that the oil should be boiling hot, with no temperature or frying time. Frying a single test piece first lets you watch how it puffs and colors.

How many crackers does this make?

The recipe gives no yield, and this version hasn't been kitchen-tested, so we can't give a number of crackers or servings.

How long do the dried pieces keep?

The chef's recipe says to keep them airtight but gives no time limit. The 1985 dry-storage requirements apply to a commercial product, and CKK's freezer suggestions come from a personal food blog, so neither sets a storage period for this home recipe.

Are these always eaten with salad in Vietnam?

We can't say that. CKK suggests serving them with gỏi, but one food blog's suggestion doesn't establish a nationwide habit.

Sources