Today I made my annual batch of banh chung (baan choong), a traditional must-have for the Vietnamese Lunar New Year celebration. I made five of them instead of my usual foursome since I over bought the pork that goes into the cakes. In the above photo, the ancient looking packages are of the foil-wrapped cakes freshly fetched from their 7-hour boiling. Inside, there are bamboo leaves and banana leaves that surround sticky rice, buttery mung beans, and rich pork seasoned by fish sauce, salt and pepper. With only a handful of ingredients, they come together deliciously. (For background information of banh chung and its cylindrical sister banh tet, see this post.)
Even though you can buy banh chung at Vietnamese and Chinese markets, the cakes are at their absolute best when made at home and eaten warm. I got my banh chung recipe from my mother, who got it from a friend, Mr. Lung. In the 1970s, Mr. Lung had written a lengthy article on banh chung and included detailed recipe instructions for the cakes. When Mr. Lung escaped from Vietnam, he brought the article with him and shared it with my mother and other friends so that they can recreate these savory cakes abroad.
Because a number of people have expressed interest in making their own banh chung this year, I decided to post these images on how to wrap banh chung. (They’re also available in a downloadable PDF document too.) These images are a companion to the banh chung recipe in my cookbook, Into the Vietnamese Kitchen. See the “World of Banh” chapter, pages 261-264. I hope these images encourage and guide you toward successful banh chung making!
How to wrap banh chung with a wooden mold
More on Tet:
Cultural information
- 2010 Tet Food, Festivals and Fun: General information for this year
- The Year of the Tiger: Tiger birth years, traits, and famous tigers/tigresses
- Simple Ways to Celebrate Tet:
Easy, no-sweat things to do for Tet, such as a downloadable Tet couplet
for your door, pointers on how to wish people “Happy New Year” in
Vietnamese, Cantonese and Mandarin, and how to attract good luck for
the New Year (xong dat) - How to find a Tet Festival: Tips for locating these events, which hare typically advertised only in the Vietnamese community!
- Traditional Tet Flowers and Blossoms:
My father used to cut blooming branches from trees he found in the
neighborhood. You can clip like him, or buy, like me. This post tells
you what to look for.
Food
- Special Foods for Tet Celebrations: What is typically eaten during this holiday? Great for menu planning.
- Banh Chung and Banh Tet: What are they and how do you eat these sticky rice cakes
- Chicken and Bamboo Shoot Noodle Soup Recipe (Bun Mang Ga)
- Banh Chung Tet Sticky Rice Cake Recipe
- Candied Lotus Seeds Recipe
Kris says
Wow, I've been meaning to learn how to make this!! I remember my mom always made the long round ones. This is great!! Thank you!
BTW - The pdf link is asking for password and authentication...
Erin says
Wow. Maybe some day I'll be able to make these. I just have to tell you that I wanted to try something easy yet traditional for Tet this year. I tried the Candied Coconut Ribbons from your cookbook. Oh. My. Goodness. Yum! I'm pretty sure I ate about 3/4 of a coconut by myself! My son (the Vietnamese one!) liked to suck the sugar off, then throw the coconut away! Goofy kid! Thanks for the great cookbook and recipes within! We are hooked! Next up... shrimp kho. Wish me luck!
andrea says
Next year, definitely next year. Thank you for the tutorial!
Andrea Nguyen says
Kris -- that may have been a hiccup with the password. Try again. It should not be password protected.
Erin - Lordy, I love the coconut ribbons. One of my all time favs and they are so good when made at home!
Tuty says
Gong Xi Fa Chai, Andrea.
BTW, if I didn't know any better... your sheet pan has the same "patina" as mine :-)) They've gone through lots of cooking duties.
Thien-Kim says
Looks great! Luckily I just learned about a local Viet grocery store. When we arrived Saturday, they just got a hot shipment of bang tet in!
lissa says
Thanks for the pics Andrea, I will try it next year. My last year banh chung turned out so shapeless, cause I didn't have a mold.
I have a question, is it safe to use aluminum foil? Because we cook banh chung in it for several hours, I've heard that it can release some chemical stuffs that's not so good for your health. My mom also uses aluminum foil though.
ask a doctor says
Great tutorial, very helpful indeed.. Thanks..
m3 real karte says
Hello
These foil-wrapped cakes look so nice..Its good information about banh chung.I always like to try different things.Its interesting to know article of Mr. Lung.Thank you for this information.
Avuonfood says
Hi Andrea - your wrapping looks great! Quick question - why do you use the foil? My Dad made banh chung for the first time this year (http://avuonfood.com/2010/02/06/the-year-of-the-tiger-and-my-dad-the-cook/) and he also used a mold. He made a metal one first, but soon realized a wooden one would be stronger. But he boiled the banh chung with the banana leaf wrap, nothing more. Very curious! Thanks. aVUonFood.com (Nina)
Joel says
Hi Andrea, curiously my Dad has his ancestral home in Zhaoqing in China's western parts of Guangdong province. Coincidentially it is a Lunar New Year custom in Zhaoqing to eat guozhengzong (裹蒸糭), which is a type of zongzi or joong in Cantonese (糭子), (photo http://pic.pimg.tw/kaocathy/1182172214.jpg and http://www.gdsight.com/meishixiaochi/zhaoqing/01guozhengzong/%E8%A3%B9%E8%92%B8%E7%B2%BD01.jpg )
I understand this custom is unique only to western Guangdong in the Cantonese-speaking parts of China, and some people claim links with Jiaxing in Zhejiang province (in Eastern China) - they also have a custom of eating zongzi during Lunar New Year. No other places in Guangdong observes this custom, and in fact we have never observed this custom even when I was a young boy in Hong Kong.
It is quite funny, because I think banh chung looks and sounds a lot like zongzi, and the custom of eating them during Lunar New Year.
Diane says
Where do you get the wooden molds? Do you have to make them?
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Trang Pham says
Dear Chi:
Where can cac em buy a wooden mold? Thank you for sharing these tips.
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