Thai crispy crepes (khanom buang)
Khanom buang is a Thai street snack made of paper-thin shells cooked on a griddle until crisp, then spread with a sweet egg-white cream and sprinkled with caramelized coconut. They're small and charming, folded in half like a little taco, and they shatter with every bite, sweet and rich with the flavor of palm sugar.
- Difficulty
- Hard
- Prep
- 40 min
- Cook
- 45 min
- Rising or chilling
- 30 min
- Total time
- 1 hr 55 min
- Method
- Pan-cooked or waffle iron
Ingredients
For the crepe batter
For the egg-white cream
For the palm sugar coconut
Instructions
Step 1
Put 100 g rice flour, 30 g mung bean flour, 60 g finely grated palm sugar and a pinch of salt in a bowl, add 18 g egg yolks, then slowly pour in 80 g slaked lime water while whisking. The slaked lime water keeps the shells crisp for a long time so they don't go soft when you add the cream. The batter is ready when it is thick, like soft toothpaste, with no grains of sugar left.
Step 2
Cover the bowl and let the batter rest for about thirty minutes at room temperature. Resting lets the rice flour absorb the liquid evenly, so the shells come out smooth without pinholes. The batter is ready when it feels silkier and slightly thicker when stirred.
Step 3
Put 80 g freshly grated coconut, 40 g palm sugar and a pinch of salt in a small pan and stir over low heat for about ten minutes. Cooking it over low heat lets the sugar soak into every shred of coconut without burning. The coconut is ready when it turns a deep caramel brown, is dry and separate, and smells of caramel.
Step 4
Set a bowl holding 64 g egg whites, 80 g granulated sugar and 3 g lime juice over a pan of barely simmering water on low heat, stir until the sugar dissolves, then take it off the heat and beat with a mixer for about eight minutes. Warming the egg whites makes the cream firm and smooth and keeps it from weeping as it sits. The cream is ready when it is glossy, very thick, and the peak on the lifted beaters stands straight up.
Step 5
Heat a nonstick pan over low heat, add a small spoonful of batter, and quickly swirl it with the back of the spoon into a thin circle about 7 cm across. The thinner the batter, the crisper the shell and the less likely it is to crumble. The shell is ready when the edges start to lift from the pan and the underside is pale golden.
Step 6
While the shell is still in the pan, quickly spread on a layer of egg-white cream, sprinkle with a pinch of the caramelized coconut, then fold it in half with a thin spatula and lift it out. The shell is only flexible enough to fold while hot; once cool, it will snap. Each one is ready when it is neatly folded into a half-moon, the shell is crisp and firm, and the cream doesn't ooze out.
Step 7
Arrange the folded crepes on a tray in a single layer and enjoy them within the first few hours. The egg-white cream gradually softens the shells, so they're best right after you make them. You'll know they're still at their best when they give a clear crunch as you bite in.
Equipment
- Nonstick skillet
- Hand mixer
- Small saucepan
- Kitchen scale
- Mixing bowl
- Spatula
- Sieve
Tips
- For a savory version, swap the caramelized coconut for dried shrimp stir-fried with grated coconut, scallions and pepper, like the street carts in Bangkok.
- Use a small, heavy-bottomed pan so the heat spreads evenly and the shells turn golden all at once without scorched spots.
- Keep the heat on low the whole time you cook the shells; if the pan is too hot, the batter will set before you can swirl it thin.
Storage
Unfilled shells can be cooled completely and kept in an airtight container for two days. The egg-white cream and caramelized coconut keep separately in the fridge for two days; when you're ready to eat, just spread the cream on the shells and sprinkle with coconut.
Common problems and how to fix them
- The shells are thick and soft instead of crisp.
- The batter was too thin or spread too thickly. Add a little more rice flour to thicken the batter and swirl the spoon very quickly to spread it thin.
- The egg-white cream weeps after a while.
- The sugar didn't fully dissolve while warming or the cream wasn't beaten long enough. Stir over the water until the sugar has completely dissolved, then beat until the cream holds stiff peaks.
This recipe is based on the common ratios for this bake and is written entirely in our own words.
