VIETNAMESE RICE

PA P E R B U Y I N G T I P S
June 7, 2009 By Andrea Nguyen

Let me just start off by being honest:

Buying rice paper confounds me.
Whenever I have to purchase rice paper
(bánh tráng) I find myself standing in the
Chinese or Vietnamese market staring at
the various brands. There are things that
I look for in the labeling and there are
brands that I prefer. However, there are
usually so many different brands and
several kinds that it’s hard to choose.
Plus, hyper-competitive entrepreneurial
manufacturers constantly tweak their
products to attract customers so there
seems to be something new to consider
and try every time I shop for rice paper.
Because I’m curious by nature, I tend to
buy several kinds and test drive them.

Last week Laura C. asked me about how

to buy rice paper for rice paper rolls that
she fills with seared ahi tuna. (Sounds
delish, no?) When I inventoried my
cupboard and refrigerator, I discovered
that I had 12 (!!) kinds of rice paper in
various shapes, sizes, and composition. I
purchased most of them in the U.S. but
also have some that I brought back from
Vietnam. There are many partially opened
packages and each one brings back a
cooking memory – mostly good and
some disasters. So I’m taking time out to
write about one of the most important
ingredients in the Vietnamese kitchen.

M Y L AT E S T V I D E O S

How to Make VIETNAME…

Since my mom and I eat lots of goi cuon

(unfried rice paper rolls that are often
translated as salad or summer rolls) cha
gio (fried rice paper rolls often referred to
as Vietnamese spring rolls), and meals
during which we make hand rolls with rice
paper, we are always sharing tips on what
brand of rice paper is good. Some of you
may need guidance as well or have
advice to share.

What is rice paper?

It is not the stuff

used for arts and
crafts. That kind
of rice paper used
for painting, etc. is
made from plant
fibers such as mulberry and hemp. Rice
paper used for Vietnamese food is
traditionally made from just rice, water,
and salt. They are one of the unique
aspects of Vietnamese cooking and
dining, and food wrapped up in sheaths
of translucent rice paper is utterly
charming. Aside from looking pretty and
holding a bunch of goodies together,
they contribute chewy texture and a
slight tang to whatever they encase.

Basically, rice paper is a thin steamed

rice crepe (or sheet, as some people call
them) that has been dried. Traditionally,
rice paper gets dried on bamboo mats or
stretchers of sorts, which explains why
they have a woven, rattanlike pattern.
Rice paper is a great way to store rice for
a long time and it is convenient too. Right
before using, it is rehydrated and
softened in warm or hot water.
Vietnamese rice paper is a cooked
ingredient and once rehydrated, it can be
eaten as is or fried. It is not for baking so
don't think it can be used like phyllo
pastry!

Can you make rice paper at home?

No. Vietnamese people buy rice paper
just as French people buy baguettes. It’s
a specialty ingredient made by artisanal
producers by hand or manufactured in
modern factories by machines. Most
people now use factory-made rice paper.

How do you say rice paper in

Vietnamese?
Download the Vietnamese pronunciation
for bánh tráng

Where do you buy Vietnamese rice

paper?
The best selection will be at a
Vietnamese market or Chinese market.
Many health food store and specialty
markets now carry rice paper so do
check there in the Asian food aisle. If you
have no access to Vietnamese rice paper,
consider buying them online.

What to look for when buying

Vietnamese rice paper?

Choose a comfortable size. The

most widely available size at Asian
markets is the 8 ½-inch circle (about
the size of a regular flour tortilla). It’s
the easiest to manipulate, and all the
recipes in this book use that size.
Extra skilled cooks use the smaller
circles and triangles for making tiny,
thumb-size rolls. Large ones – the
size of platters are meant to produce
fat, long rolls that can be cut up into
individual portions. Square rice
papers can be used to create
straight edge, neat open ended rolls
that are unfried; they may also be
used like an eggroll skin to produce
closed end rolls for deep frying.

Select a type of rice paper -- all

rice, tapioca and rice, or all
tapioca rice paper? Rice paper
nowadays is much easier to work
with than the ones of the past, which
were thick, made of just rice, water,
and salt, and required super hot
water to soften. That’s changed in
the recent past as producers have
blended in some tapioca starch to
make the papers more pliable and
thinner. I like these modern
renditions as they soften easier.
When shopping for rice paper, look
for ones made with rice or a
combination of rice and tapioca
starch. The more rice that’s in the
papers, the more opaque and thicker
they are. Papers made with rice and
tapioca starch are on the translucent
side and seem loftier in their
packaging; these thinner ones
conveniently soften in warm or
lukewarm water, whereas the thicker
ones need hotter water.

Avoid the super thin, see-through,

all-tapioca starch papers. They
lack the tang of rice, go limp in a
flash, and tear easily; they’re often
labeled bánh tráng dẻo (soft and
pliable rice paper) or bánh tráng
mỏng (thin rice paper). In English,
they're oten labeled tapioca sheets.
These rice paper are for skilled
cooks who know how to manipulate
them well. Some people like all-
tapiocal starch papers because rolls
made from them stay soft for hours.
I don't like their flavor and they're
notoriously difficult to tame.

Be skeptical of ingredient listings.

Despite what the ingredients listing
may say, Vietnamese rice paper
does not contain wheat flour; it’s a
translation problem. Rice paper
should have rice and/or tapioca
starch, water, and salt.

Trust the Red Rose brand of rice

paper. The reliable Red Rose brand
is borrowed by many producers as a
symbol of quality. The impostors are
often quite good so don’t shy away
from them.

Three Ladies brand is my preferred

brand. I’ve been using the Three
Ladies Brand for years, and it’s been
good to me. When I teach cooking
classes, that is the brand I use
because it's easy for beginners to
use and experienced cooks like it
too. Plus, there are no impostors --
at this time, anyway. The small size
(think corn tortilla) rice papers from
Three Ladies are hard to find but
really great for small rolls. See the
photo at the top for the logo and
regular and small sizes.

Buy what the store carries when

shopping at a regular market. I like
to assume that rice paper sold at
mainstream and specialty markets,
such as Whole Foods Market, have
been screened for shoppers. You’re
likely to get a quality product at such
places.

Pay more when in doubt. Select the

higher priced rice paper and buy
several kinds to try them out.
They’re not expensive. Asian
ingredient manufacturers are very
competitive and a 25 cents
difference matters in quality.

How to store rice paper?

Keep it in the cupboard and once the
package is opened, store it in a zip-top
plastic bag in the cupboard where they
will last for several years.

Foods that can be wrapped in rice

paper:

Grilled Shrimp on Sugarcane (chao

tom)

Vietnamese Restaurant-style Grilled

Lemongrass Pork (thit heo nuong xa)

Korean-Vietnamese Grilled Pork Belly

(add a few carbs for an extra layer of
flavor!)

Check the Recipe Index listing of all

recipes on this site for more ideas

Next up: Step-by-step how to wrap rice

paper rolls, some unusual types of rice
paper, and artisanal rice paper making.

Feel free to add tips (do you have a

brand you like? why?, insights and/or
questions below!

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COMMENTS

thuy June 08, 2009 at 1:17 am

As wierd as it sounds... I try to avoid

rice paper made in Vietnam. Not only
is it a political statement, it is an
environmental statement for me. I
can't get myself to drink the water
there, how can I eat banh trang made
from Vietnamese water? When I can
see it is made with bottled water, I
would consider buying banh trang
made in VN.
Over the years, I have managed to
stay with one brand and it is the OK
one. I like the elephant one too but
the shelves never stay stocked with
them. What is important to me is that
it doesn't rip when I am rolling items
in it. I love the rose brand, but it isn't
consistent with the rip factor.
We don't get the 3 ladies banh trang
here in Florida (well I haven't seen
them.) But their banh pho is pretty
good.

Amy June 08, 2009 at 8:47 am

Thank you so much for this

information! I bought rice paper not
too long ago. : )

Diana June 08, 2009 at 9:39 am

Great post! I just bought myself some

rice paper a week ago and was
surprised to see so many of them
were made from tapioca. Fortunately
they had the kind I knew from Hawaii,
so I just grabbed those. It's so fun to
work with!

Pat June 08, 2009 at 10:37 am

i've always been confused by the

variety of brands of rice paper, not to
mention, noodles and their different
sizes and shapes! i'm no rice paper
expert but i've tried the rose brand