Banh Ran

Fried sesame balls of glutinous rice belong to a wider East and Southeast Asian family descended from the Chinese jian dui, and Vietnam has both a Northern and a Southern form. In the North the sweet ball is called banh ran and is distinguished by a perfume of jasmine flower essence, by a dough of glutinous-rice flour alone, and by the sought-after hollow construction in which the crisp shell separates cleanly from the filling. The Southern cousin, banh cam, omits the jasmine, often blends in plain rice flour or potato, keeps the filling fused to the shell, and may finish the ball in a sugar glaze. The savoury banh ran man, with a pork and glass-noodle filling, is a Northern variant unto itself.

Hot from the oil, the shell shatters with a thin crackle, scattering toasted sesame; inside, the glutinous dough is chewy and stretchy, the gap of the hollow ball giving way before the soft mung paste. The sweet version is gentle and floral with jasmine, never cloying. The savoury banh ran man bites differently — the same crisp-chewy shell around a juicy, peppery pork-and-noodle centre, sharpened by its sour-sweet dipping sauce. Both are best eaten warm, while the contrast of crisp shell and soft middle holds.

The hollow rattle is the craft. A glutinous-rice dough, sometimes leavened with a little cooked mashed potato or a raising agent and rested, is shaped around the filling, rolled in sesame, and fried slowly in oil that starts warm rather than hot. As the dough cooks, steam expands inside and the gluten-free starch network sets around the gas, pushing the shell outward until it parts from the filling — fry too fast and the surface seizes before the ball can puff. Constant turning gives an even sphere; a final spell in hotter oil crisps and colours the sesame crust. Squeezing the soaked glass noodles dry keeps the savoury filling from steaming the shell soft from within.