Making Vietnamese Rice Paper

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I took this video in Cu Chi, Vietnam. The rat-tat-tats in the background were made by tourists trying out rifles & machine guns at the nearby range. Well, looks like I won't be making any rice sheets myself! Like, where would I find the space to stick all my freshly made sheets? I found another rather similar video on Youtube ... click here.

Method (according to guide & video)
Mix roughly equal parts rice flour & water with a pinch of salt, and leave to rest for 30 mins. Then, use a large ladle to stir batter & spread a small amount into a thin round on a flat pan (or cloth stretched tight) over boiling water. Cover and steam for about 20 seconds. Lift out using a large cloth-covered roll or stick and deposit onto a large bamboo mat. When full, take bamboo mat out under the sun to dry the sheets out.

A packet of 15 sheets of Vietnamese Rice Paper (100gm) with recipe for Deep Fried Springrolls (click to enlarge pic for recipe). Available in supermarkets for less than $1.

I found a recipe for making thicker rice sheets (might be suitable for guotiao or kway chap or chee cheong fun) at this website: click here. So far, the nicest, silkiest, smoothest guotiao I ever had was the fishball kway teow tng in Penang. The difference is in the water ... and perhaps additives ... incidentally, home-made guotiao are unlikely to be "springy" like the commercial ones, as those usually contain BORAX. Don't eat too much char kway teow ... besides coronary risks from oil & lard, borax is banned as a food substance in some countries as it is really bad for the kidneys. Common uses of borax: cleaning, laundry, roach killer!!