''Bánh đúc'' is a Vietnamese ''

bánh In Vietnamese, the term ''bánh'' ( or , Chữ Nôm: 餅) translates loosely as "cake" or "bread", but refers to a wide variety of prepared foods that can easily be eaten by hands or chopsticks. With the addition of qualifying adjectives, '' ...

'' (cake). There are two main types of bánh đúc, the white Northern Vietnamese cake and the green Southern version.

Northern Vietnamese version

In northern Vietnam, ''bánh đúc'' is a cake made from either non-glutinous

rice flour Rice flour (also rice powder) is a form of flour made from finely milled rice. It is distinct from rice starch, which is usually produced by steeping rice in lye. Rice flour is a common substitute for wheat flour. It is also used as a thickening ...

corn flour Cornflour may refer to: * Cornflour (in the UK), corn starch, from the endosperm of the kernel of the corn (maize) grain * Corn flour (in the US and elsewhere), very finely ground cornmeal, ground from dried maize See also * Flour * Starch * G ...

. It is white in color and has a soft texture and mild flavour. It is typically garnished with savory ingredients such as ground pork, ''tôm chấy'' (grilled ground shrimp), fried onions, sesame seeds, salt, peanuts, lime juice, and

soy sauce Soy sauce (also called simply soy in American English and soya sauce in British English) is a liquid condiment of Chinese origin, traditionally made from a fermented paste of soybeans, roasted grain, brine, and ''Aspergillus oryzae'' or '' As ...

fish sauce Fish sauce is a liquid condiment made from fish or krill that have been coated in salt and fermented for up to two years. It is used as a staple seasoning in East Asian cuisine and Southeast Asian cuisine, particularly Myanmar, Cambodia, Lao ...

. Although it may be eaten on its own, it may also be served hot, accompanied by steamed meat or

mushroom A mushroom or toadstool is the fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting body of a fungus, typically produced above ground, on soil, or on its food source. ''Toadstool'' generally denotes one poisonous to humans. The standard for the name "mushroom" is ...

s. ''Bánh đúc'' is available at small stalls and is eaten throughout the day.

Southern Vietnamese version

In southern Vietnam, ''bánh đúc'' is a dessert made from non-glutinous rice flour. It takes the form of gelatinous blocks that are often colored green by the addition of ''

Pandanus amaryllifolius ''Pandanus amaryllifolius'' is a tropical plant in the ''Pandanus'' (screwpine) genus, which is commonly known as pandan (; ). It has fragrant leaves which are used widely for flavouring in the cuisines of Southeast Asia and South Asia. Occurre ...

'' leaf extract. It is cooked by boiling the ingredients and allowing them to cool, solidifying into a jelly-like sheet that is then cut into blocks.

Varieties

*Bánh đúc bột gạo - made from (non-glutinous) rice flour *Bánh đúc bột năn dòn trong *Bánh đúc gân đá cẫm thạch - veined coloration resembles

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite. Marble is typically not foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the term ''marble'' refers to metamorphose ...

*Bánh đúc gạo - made from (non-glutinous) rice *Bánh đúc khoai môn - made with

taro Taro () (''Colocasia esculenta)'' is a root vegetable. It is the most widely cultivated species of several plants in the family Araceae that are used as vegetables for their corms, leaves, and petioles. Taro corms are a food staple in Afri ...

*Bánh đúc mặn - made with salt *Bánh đúc miền trung - made in the central region of Vietnam *Bánh đúc ngô - made from maize *Bánh đúc nộm - ''bánh đúc'' salad *Bánh đúc nóng - hot ''bánh đúc'' *Bánh đúc nước dừa - made with coconut milk *Bánh đúc nước cốt dừa - made with coconut juice *Bánh đúc sốt - steaming hot ''bánh đúc'' *Bánh đúc xanh - literally "green ''bánh đúc''"; made with ''Pandanus amaryllifolius'' leaf extract

Sayings

The Vietnamese people have a saying: The literal meaning is: "bones are never found in ''bánh đúc'', just like a stepmother never loves her husband's own children." This

couplet A couplet is a pair of successive lines of metre in poetry. A couplet usually consists of two successive lines that rhyme and have the same metre. A couplet may be formal (closed) or run-on (open). In a formal (or closed) couplet, each of the ...

is used to describe something very unlikely to happen.

Northern Vietnamese version

Southern Vietnamese version

Varieties

Sayings

See also

External links