The mung bean cake evokes a somber note in memories.

The process of making mung bean cake is simple, but the meticulous part lies in the dough preparation. The rice used must be round-grained, cooked until very firm to produce a chewy and delicious cake. The rice, mung beans, and soybeans are soaked overnight to soften them, while the peanuts are roasted until golden brown. Only then will the cake be fragrant and have a beautiful color. All ingredients are then ground into flour and processed into cakes.

The cooked mung beans are placed on a tray lined with banana leaves and left overnight to firm up the cake.

To make delicious rice cakes, heat a pan on the stove, add peanut oil, sauté the onions until fragrant, then add the flour, season to taste, and begin stirring. Stir the flour gently and evenly with chopsticks in a clockwise direction for about 20 minutes. When the flour forms clumps, start shaping the cakes. The more clumps the flour forms, the faster you must shape them; otherwise, the cakes will be lumpy, not smooth, and hard. Stir continuously for about 2 hours until the flour is cooked and fragrant, then spread the cakes thinly on a tray lined with banana leaves, about 3 cm thick, and let them sit overnight to firm up.

Taking a bite of peanut brittle brings back memories of the old days. Along the banks of the Con River, in the small village of Thanh Duc, the fertile alluvial soil is covered with peanuts. In the old days, every household grew peanuts to press oil, to use in making peanut salt to eat with rice, and to make many delicious dishes, including peanut brittle. Originally, this dish only contained rice and peanuts, but over time, people added mung beans and soybeans for a richer, creamier flavor.

Cut the cake into bite-sized diamond shapes, top with fried shallots, minced meat, and fried onions, then enjoy.

"In the old days, there weren't any sweets like there are now. On the 5th day of the lunar month, or on the anniversary of a death, every family would cook a pan of mung bean paste to offer as a sacrifice before eating it. It has long become a tradition in Dong Xuan. Making this cake is also very hard work; it takes an hour to cook the dough, and those who don't know how to cook it will end up with blisters on their hands," shared Ms. Huynh Thi Lan (from Dong Xuan District).

Stir continuously for about 2 hours, until a fragrant aroma fills the air, indicating the cake is done.

To fully enjoy the flavor of the cake, fried chives are a must. Finely minced pork is stir-fried with onions and chives until fragrant. Tofu is cut into bite-sized, diamond-shaped pieces, topped with a little chives and spicy fish sauce, then enjoyed. The rich, creamy taste of the tofu and the soft, chewy cake evoke memories. The old days of baking cakes by the wood-fired stove and grinding flour with a stone mortar... all evoke a deep longing.

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