Vietnamese Hollow Donut (Bánh Tiêu)

What is Bánh Tiêu

Bánh Tiêu is one of my favorite Vietnamese desserts. It is a hollow donut with a crispy sesame seed crust made from flattened dough that is deep-fried until golden brown. Similar fried desserts can be found in other Southeast Asian and Chinese cuisines.

What sets it apart from traditional western donuts is the airy and soft hollow interior and the fragrant sesame seed crust. In Vietnam, it is often sold as street food and enjoyed as is or filled with sweet sticky rice (Xôi). Bánh Tiêu is not too sweet, making it very easy to scarf down a bunch at once…something I’m not ashamed to admit.

What You Will Need

The ingredients for Bánh Tiêu are simple. Here’s what you will need:

Bleached Wheat Flour — This is also known as all-purpose flour. All-purpose flour has the right amount of protein to develop the gluten needed for the soft interior.

Salt — A must in anything sweet to enhance the flavor of the other ingredients.

Sugar — Our sweetener. I’m using white granulated cane sugar.

Baking Powder — Our leavening agent that will make the dough rise. I’m using double-acting baking powder here. You cannot substitute baking soda for baking powder. Baking soda requires an acid to activate and there is no acid here. Other recipes will call for yeast as well as baking powder, but you will not need yeast in this recipe.

Whole Milk — The liquid to bring the flour together to make a dough. Other Bánh Tiêu recipes use water instead of milk, but milk yields a much softer texture.

White Sesame Seeds — You can use either raw or toasted sesame seeds. It doesn’t matter since the cook time is short. The sesame seeds will not burn if you are using toasted/roasted sesame seeds.

Vegetable Oil — My go-to neutral oil to deep fry the dough. You can also use canola oil, peanut oil, sunflower oil, or corn oil.

Deep Frying

The temperature of the oil is extremely crucial to a successful Bánh Tiêu. I use a thermometer to keep the oil temperature at around 360°F but you may find that you have to adjust the heat accordingly.

You want the oil hot enough that it takes only 3 seconds for the dough to float to the top and start inflating. Because the dough is flattened, it only takes about 1 minute for the dough to cook completely.

If it takes longer than that, the oil temperature is too low. Low oil temperature won’t inflate the dough as it should and it will change the texture of the finished Bánh Tiêu. Plus, it will absorb too much oil. Increase the temperature in this case.

If it’s shorter than 1 minute, the oil temperature is too high. This will burn and darken the outside without cooking all the way through. You will need to decrease the temperature.

When deep frying, make sure you flip the dough every few seconds for even cooking. If you are using chopsticks to flip the donut, be careful not to puncture them. If possible, use two spatulas or two large spoons for flipping instead. If you do accidentally puncture the Bánh Tiêu, it’s not a big deal. It will not look as pretty, but it will continue to inflate.

Enjoy Bánh Tiêu with these Drinks

• Starbucks Hack: Vietnamese Iced Coffee
• Vietnamese Hot Milk Coffee (Ca Phe Sua Nong)
• Vietnamese Egg Coffee (Ca Phe Trung)
• Vietnamese Iced Coffee (Ca Phe Sua Da)
• Thai Iced Tea (Tra Sua Thai)