Khanom Bueang, ขนมเบื้อง, also known as Thai crepes, is an ancient Thai snack from the Ayutthaya period.
It is a popular form of street food in Thailand. They are small crepes that resemble tacos.
The main ingredients are: rice flour, mung bean flour, egg yolk, lime juice, and palm sugar, naturally gluten-free.
The batter is spread on the hot plate with a flat spreader called Kra-ja. When the crepe is starting to set, a generous portion of white meringue-like cream is spread. This is made from egg whites and sugar to create a texture almost similar to marshmallow.
Khanom bueang are usually first garnished, or filled, with meringue, followed by sweet or savory toppings, like grated coconut, foi thong (extruded duck egg yolks cooked in syrup), or chopped scallions. But there are various types *.
During our trip to Bangkok in November 2024, we tried them with a coconut and foi thong filling (recipe follows) and an orange filling.
The intense orange filling is a mix of grated coconut cooked with chopped shrimp or ground dried shrimp and colored with orange food coloring (in the past, the orange color came from the rich orange butter in the heads of freshwater shrimp).
Khanom is the Thai word for “snack”.
- Difficulty: Medium
- Cost: Cheap
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 4 People
- Cooking methods: Stove
- Cuisine: Thai
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups rice flour
- 1/2 cup mung bean flour
- 1 egg
- 3/4 cup palm sugar
- 1 lime
- 3 eggs
- 1 1/2 cups palm sugar
- 1 cup grated coconut (shredded)
- 1 leaf pandan
Tools
- 1 pan
Steps
Mix rice flour with mung bean flour (toasted and then ground mung beans), sugar, and egg.
Slowly pour lime juice little by little, alternating with kneading the dough until the flour mixture becomes a single consistency (about 10 minutes) and the sugar dissolves completely.Preheat a nonstick pan over low heat, then use a Kra-ja to scoop the batter and spread it into thin sheets (desired size) on the stove and wait for the batter to cook (it will turn white).
For the meringue-like cream: beat the egg whites with palm sugar (75 g) at maximum speed until you get a fluffy and firm mixture for about 10-15 minutes.
Spread the cream on the batter.
The cream will start to cook and puff up.
For the foi thong: heat the sugar (75 g) over high heat in a cup of water until it boils and let it simmer for 7 minutes, add the tied pandan leaf, and pour the egg yolk into the sugared water.
Form about 30 circles, let cook for 1-2 minutes, to create a long, sweet golden string (traditionally made with a funnel-shaped instrument).
Pour over the batter.Add the coconut.
Once the batter starts to become crispy, use a spatula to lift the batter and fold it into a semicircle.
FAQ (Questions and Answers)
What is the history of Khanom Bueang?
One of the stories appears in the “Dhammapada“, the most famous text of Theravada Buddhism, says that Khanom Bueang came from India and Brahmanism during the Sukhothai period and was then brought to Thailand.
The text speaks of the millionaire Kosiya, a stingy person who loved to eat rice cakes. He had his wife make the dessert on the seventh floor of the castle to avoid sharing it with anyone.
It has also been suggested that the modern version of khanom bueang can be traced back to the influence of Marie Guimar, the half-Japanese, half-Portuguese wife of a Greek minister (Constantine Phaulkon) at the Siamese royal court in the 17th century.
Marie worked her way up to become head of the royal kitchen and introduced the use of eggs in desserts and other sweets in Thailand.What are the different types of Khanom Bueang?
Banh xèoThere are many types of Khanom Bueang.
• As a traditional Thai sweet. The main ingredients are rice flour and coconut milk. Season only with salt. Nowadays it is no longer prepared.
• Royal Thai Khanom Bueng, generally has 2 sides: shrimp topping and sweet topping. The shrimp topping uses large river shrimp, finely chopped, mixed with pepper and coriander, pounded with shrimp fat, then sautéed with sugar, fish sauce, or salt to taste.
Nowadays, there is usually coconut garnish. The color is red and the sweet side is a mix of candied melon, foi thong, and thinly sliced dried persimmons.
Currently, there are only Foi Thong and Cream. However, at Suan Sunandha Palace, ground pork mixed with garlic, pepper, pounded coriander roots, and chili was used.
– Thai Khanom Bueng: it is thin and crispy and has a variety of fillings like sweet filling (grated coconut, sugar, and egg yolk) and savory filling (dried shrimp, grated coconut. and chopped scallions)
The word Yuan means “Vietnamese” and refers to the Vietnamese crepes that inspired the Thai version.
• The Vietnamese sweets Banh xèo (banh kuay), which were given to Vietnamese prisoners during the reign of King Rama III and taken by force during the Siam-Vietnam War.
This sweet is made by mixing flour and eggs to make it thick.
Similar to a pancake made with rice flour, water, and turmeric powder or coconut milk.
In the southern region, it is instead filled with lard, shrimp, and bean sprouts and then fried in a pan.
Pour the batter onto the oiled pan in a round disc.What is foi thong?
Anyone familiar with Portuguese desserts will notice how foi thong is similar to a Portuguese sweet called fios de ovos, meaning “egg threads”.
The only differences are that foi thong features longer threads and pandan instead of vanilla.
Foi means “thread” and Thong means “gold”.
Thais believe that Thong (gold) brings good luck and Foi Thong is a popular dessert at weddings and ceremonies.
The golden egg yolk is poured into sugared water to create a long, sweet golden string.
