Chinese people in Ho Chi Minh City are busy wrapping banh ba trang, customers have to order a month in advance.

Many Chinese families in Ho Chi Minh City are busy wrapping banh ba trang (rice cakes) for the Doan Ngo festival. Visitors who come to the place have to sadly return home because they did not order in advance and the cakes are sold out.

In the days leading up to the Duanwu Festival, the atmosphere in the Chinese alleys on Gia Phu Street (District 6, Ho Chi Minh City) is busier than ever. From early morning to late at night, the whole family gathers around the pot of boiling water, their hands quickly wrapping each banh ba trang with its signature flavor. This year, the number of customers ordering banh ba trang has skyrocketed, many people who came all the way had to sadly return home because… the banh ba trang had run out before Tet.

Banh ba trang is an indispensable dish during the Doan Ngo festival (the 5th day of the 5th lunar month). "Ba" (some places transcribe it as "ba") is meat, and "trang" is sticky rice cake. Banh ba trang is wrapped in bamboo leaves, inside is sticky rice, pork belly, dried shrimp, salted eggs, lotus seeds, shiitake mushrooms... marinated with a rich flavor, with the aroma of five-spice powder.

The family of Ms. Ly Bao Linh (52 years old, in District 6) has had a tradition of wrapping banh ba trang for the Doan Ngo festival for decades. At present, she has stopped taking orders from customers because she cannot make enough, and has to post a notice "out of cakes" in front of the alley to let customers know. "We start taking orders from the 1st of the 4th lunar month and will continue for a whole month. If customers want to try it, they can come back and place an order on June 7-8, after the Doan Ngo festival."

PHOTO: DUONG LAN

Some people are wrapping the cakes, some are preparing the filling, some are boiling the cakes... everyone is busy, the atmosphere is bustling throughout the alley. "There are still 3 days left until the Doan Ngo festival, but my family has wrapped more than 9,000 cakes and that number is constantly increasing because the whole family continues to make them. After posting the notice to receive orders on social networks, people continuously called to place orders," Ms. Linh expressed.

PHOTO: DUONG LAN

Chinese people in Ho Chi Minh City wrap "banh ba trang" (Vietnamese traditional rice cake) on the occasion of Doan Ngo festival.

Each banh ba trang is wrapped in 5-6 bamboo leaves, with many types of fillings inside. The one-egg-salted-egg cake costs 90,000 VND, the two-egg-salted-egg cake costs 100,000 VND.

PHOTO: DUONG LAN

The filling is divided into portions and placed in a bowl.

PHOTO: DUONG LAN

Everyone wrapped the cakes without stopping, everyone focused on wrapping to deliver the cakes to the customers on time.

PHOTO: DUONG LAN

Ms. Nga (67 years old) shared: "I am originally from Fujian (China), I have known how to wrap banh ba trang since I was a girl. The special thing about this cake is that it is wrapped in bamboo leaves, it cannot be replaced with any other type of leaves. My back gets tired from sitting for a long time, but there is only one occasion each year for the Duanwu Festival, so I try to make it. The cake must be wrapped tightly by hand, almost every Chinese person knows how to wrap this cake."

PHOTO: DUONG LAN

The cake is cooked in a large pot for about 8 hours, these days the cake is cooked continuously.

PHOTO: DUONG LAN

After boiling, the cakes are taken out and hung up in bunches, each bunch has 10 cakes. This year, the number of customers ordering cakes is higher than last year, so everyone is busy wrapping and delivering them to customers.

PHOTO: DUONG LAN

The atmosphere is bustling, some people stir-fry the filling, some watch the cake, some prepare leaves to wrap...

PHOTO: DUONG LAN

The cakes are wrapped in a pyramid shape and hung on iron frames after being boiled.

PHOTO: DUONG LAN

Many families announced that they have run out of cakes for the Duanwu Festival. Customers who want to eat can come back and order on June 7-8.

PHOTO: DUONG LAN

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/nguoi-hoa-o-tphcm-hoi-ha-goi-banh-ba-trang-khach-phai-dat-truoc-ca-thang-185250529165826579.htm