Bánh Ướt Heo Quay (Hue Steamed Rice Sheets with Roast Pork)

Silky steamed rice sheets served with crisp-skinned roast pork, pickled bean sprouts, chives and herbs, dipped in a sweet or salty sauce. A well-loved Hue meal with famous roadside origins.

Bánh ướt are thin, freshly steamed sheets of rice batter, soft and slightly stretchy, that form the base of several Hue dishes. In this version they are paired with heo quay, roast pork belly with crackling skin, and served with a plate of lettuce, herbs, chives, cucumber and lightly pickled bean sprouts and carrot. You wrap a piece of pork and greens in a rice sheet, or eat it in pieces, dipping into the sauce that each restaurant treats as its signature; many offer a choice of a sweeter or saltier fish sauce blend, and fried shallots are a popular addition. The appeal is the contrast between the mild, silky rice sheet and the rich, crunchy pork. The dish is closely linked to long-running family restaurants on the highway south of the city, where it is eaten as a filling breakfast or lunch, and is also easy to find in central Hue. It is a close relative of bánh ướt thịt nướng, the grilled-pork version from Kim Long, and a good choice if you prefer roast meat to grilled.