Making banh chung and banh tet is bustling during Tet season

It can be said that banh chung and banh tet are dishes and flavors that everyone wants to enjoy no matter where they go. as a symbol of reunion, fullness. In the joyful , warm atmosphere of Tet holidays, on the dining table of every Vietnamese family, there is an indispensable plate of square green banh chung or a plate of full round banh tet . With that profound meaning, the traditional profession of making banh chung and banh tet is increasingly developing, bringing a prosperous life to many families attached to this profession , especially during the time of Tet.

Having been involved in making banh tet for more than 10 years, every year at this time, the banh tet oven of Mr. Doan Anh Quang and Mrs. Bui Thi Nhu Ngoc in Phuoc Tien village, Tan Phuoc commune, La Gi town is busier and more bustling than usual. To "please" customers, Mr. Quang has wrapped banh tet in many different sizes, it is known that the smallest one costs 10,000 VND, and the largest one is 70,000 VND.

Quickly spreading the sticky rice and mung bean filling to wrap the cake, Mr. Quang excitedly said: “Normally, my family makes about 100 banh tet loaves to wholesale and retail at the market, but during Tet, it has to be up to 300 loaves, sometimes up to 500 loaves. Thanks to that, our family earns a decent income to enjoy a more prosperous and fulfilling Tet holiday.”

When it comes to banh chung and banh tet, everyone knows that the ingredients for making the cakes include sticky rice, green beans, pork, and the leaves used to wrap the cakes are dong or banana leaves. However, to make the cakes delicious, the ingredients must be carefully selected. Sticky rice must be golden sticky rice with plump, even and large grains, green beans must be type 1, and pork must be fresh and delicious with both lean and fat.

According to Mr. Quang, after choosing the ingredients, the preparation stage is also quite elaborate. Glutinous rice must be washed thoroughly, cleaned and soaked overnight to let the rice expand. Green beans must also be cleaned but soaked for less time than sticky rice and then drained. Pork must be selected from delicious meat and cut into long pieces and marinated with salt and pepper.

In addition to the above preparation steps, washing the leaves is also considered an equally important step, determining the quality as well as the eye-catching color of the cake when it is baked. Dong leaves and banana leaves must be washed thoroughly with water. When washing, use a soft cloth to wipe both sides of the leaves to remove all dirt, then use another soft cloth to dry the water so that when boiled, the cake will not become sour and moldy. Washing the leaves before wrapping the cake cannot be rushed, but requires the person washing to be very careful and meticulous.

Mr. Quang and Ms. Ngoc are busy making delicious banh tet to serve customers during the Tet holiday.

For generations, banh chung and banh tet, which carry the rich flavor of spring, have never been absent from the altar of grandparents and ancestors. Lighting a stick of incense and offering a plate of banh chung and banh tet on the altar of grandparents and ancestors is to show the respect of descendants to the deceased.

“Fatty meat, pickled onions, red parallel sentences - pole, firecrackers, green Chung cake”. Rarely is there a type of cake that, when made, still retains the original flavor of heaven and earth, blending harmoniously with the culinary sophistication of the nation’s traditional Tet holiday like Chung cake and Tet cake. In the joyful, exciting atmosphere of the coming spring, on the dinner table of every Vietnamese family, if there is no rich flavor of Chung cake and Tet cake, it is considered to be missing a complete part for the start of a new year.

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