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Prep 1 hourhr
Cook 7 hourshrs
Total 16 hourshrs
Celebrate Tết or Lunar New Year with this authentic banh chung recipe. These Vietnamese sticky rice cakes are wrapped with banana leaves and filled with savory yellow mung beans and pork belly.
Chúc mừng năm mới! Happy Lunar New Year! For my family, there is no tết without banh chung, red envelopes, and a little fun gambling. Every year, I look forward to eating these beautiful Vietnamese sticky rice cakes that are filled with savory mung beans and marinated pork belly. I usually eat them every day for about a week with a side of cha lua (Vietnamese cold cuts) and pickled vegetables.
This post is a comprehensive guide that shows you, step by step, how to prepare the ingredients, assemble the rice cakes, and simmer them until glossy, sticky, and savory perfection.
Banh chưng (pronounced baan chuhng) is one of the most traditional recipes in Vietnamese cuisine. They are usually available year-round, but during Tet (Lunar New Year), they are seen at every family gathering. These sticky rice cakes represent the earth. In ancient times, people believed the earth was square, and they created this dish to reflect that shape.
This Vietnamese sticky rice cake is wrapped in layers of fresh banana leaves, which gives the rice its green-tinted color. When you take a bite of the sticky rice, you are greeted by mashed seasoned mung beans and umami-rich pork belly. This dish is also served with other Tet favorites such as bitter melon soup (canh kho qua) and thit kho tau (Vietnamese braised pork belly.
Ingredients
You can find all of the ingredients for this banh chung recipe at your local grocery store. Full measurements and links to the ingredients I used are listed in the recipe card below.
Sticky Rice: or sweet rice or glutinous rice. Sticky rice must be soaked for at least 8 hours, preferably overnight, to cook evenly.
Pork Belly: the pork belly fat and juices seep into the mung bean and sticky rice, giving it a delicious, moist texture and flavor.
Peeled Split Mung beans: You will need peeled split mung beans for this dish, and they should be soaked overnight as well.
Salt and Pepper: season the rice, mung beans, and pork belly.
Sugar: balances out all the salty components of the dish by giving it a subtle sweetness.
Chicken Bouillon Powder: flavors the mung beans and pork belly, giving them a delicious savory taste.
Fish Sauce: seasons the pork belly with delicious umami flavor.
Shallots: used to marinate the pork belly and season the mung beans.
How To Make
Here are the step-by-step instructions for how to make this banh chung recipe.
Day Before
Create a cardboard mold, taping the edges to prevent moisture from seeping in. I made mine about 4×4 inches wide and 2 inches high.
Expert tip: If using cardboard, completely wrap the carboard in tape to prevent it from getting soggy.
Wash the sticky rice until the water turns clear. Then soak the rice in salted water overnight.
Important: Sticky rice MUST be soaked overnight to fully hydrate it.
Slice the pork belly into about 1/4 inch thick slices. Marinate the pork in the refrigerator overnight with salt, sugar, chicken powder, pepper, fish sauce, and shallots.
Expert tip: Marinating the pork belly instead of leaving it plain maximizes the flavor.
Wash the mung beans until the water turns clear. Then soak the mung beans with 1/4 teaspoon of salt and enough water to cover the rice in the refrigerator overnight.
The mung beans need to soak prior to cooking them for this recipe.
Day Of
Prepare the Rice and Mung Beans
Strain the water from the rice. Set aside.
Strain the mung beans. In a medium pot, fill halfway with water, add 1 1/4 teaspoons of salt, and the mung beans. Heat on high until it boils. When the water boils, turn the heat down to a simmer. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes. Then strain and mash the mung beans.
In a large skillet or wok, heat 3-4 tablespoons of vegetable oil on high heat. Add the shallots and saute for 2 minutes on high and then reduce the heat to low and continue cooking until caramelized and tender, about 10-15 minutes.
In a medium mixing bowl, mix the salt, sugar, pepper, chicken powder, caramelized shallots, and mashed mung beans. Set aside.
How to assemble (image-guided)
Line the mold with 4-6 strips of banana leaves (~4x 12 inches), layering them in alternating directions like a cross. Make sure to leave 2 inches of banana leaf above the mold so it can be sealed later. Then, using 4 thinner strips (~2×10 inches), line the inside of the mold to seal the corners.
Alternate lining the cardboard mold with large strips then line the inside corners with smaller strips.
Add an even layer of sticky rice.
Create the base layer with about a half-inch of sticky rice.
Layer an even layer of mung beans. Make sure to leave some space around the edges for the rice. Layer the pork belly on top of the mung bean layer. Then layer another layer of mung beans.
On the sticky rice layer mung bean, pork belly, then mung bean in the center of the mold.
Fill in the edges and the top with sticky rice.
Enclose the filling with more sticky rice.
Using alternating strips of banana leaves, fold the leaves over tightly. Seal with tape, then tightly wrap with a string like a present. Make sure to wrap the string along the edges as well to keep it all together. Watch video here.
Cook
On the left is an uncooked one, and on the right is an expanded, fully cooked one.
In a large pot, if possible, place a small wire rack at the bottom, then line the rack with 3-4 layers of banana leaves, covering the entire rack. Add the rice cakes and fill the pot with enough water to cover. Cover with a lid and bring it to a boil over high heat. Once it boils, turn the heat down to medium-low and simmer for about 7 hours. If the water level drops significantly, add boiling water to cover them.
Take the banh chung out of the pot and let them cool on a wire rack for 30 minutes. Then serve with chả lụa (Vietnamese cold cuts) and pickled vegetables.
Expert Tips
Plan ahead. This recipe takes a bit of time, so it is important that you plan ahead. Remember to soak the rice and mung beans and marinate the pork the night before. This ensures the rice and mung beans are cooked evenly when boiled.
You can make a square mold out of cardboard and tape. The molds are necessary to shape the banana leaves and stuff the filling inside.
Make sure to saute the shallots slowly. When you saute the shallots, make sure you coat them with enough oil to prevent burning. Sautéing low and slow will yield beautifully caramelized and full-flavored shallots.
Fill the pot with boiling water if needed. When you cook the Vietnamese sticky rice cakes, the water level may drop, so be sure to add boiling water every 1-2 hours as needed to keep them covered.
When cooking, flip the cakes occasionally. You may need to flip the cakes periodically once they float to the surface to ensure even cooking.
Storage Instructions
You can store any leftover banh chung, wrapped in banana leaves and covered with plastic wrap, in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Freeze: Alternatively, wrap it in aluminum foil and store it in the freezer for up to 3 months. You will need to thaw them in the refrigerator before reheating.
Reheat: The sticky rice will harden in the refrigerator. You can reheat in the microwave inside the banana leaves. Or, you can place it back in a pot and add enough water to cover it by about 1-2 inches. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes, flipping halfway.
Pairing Suggestions
You can serve banh chung, or Vietnamese sticky rice cake, on its own for lunch or dinner with cha lua or pickled vegetables, or with the following pairing suggestions.
What is the difference between banh chung vs. banh tet?
The biggest difference is the shape of the sticky rice cake. Banh tet is cylindrical, whereas this one is square. The central and southern regions of Vietnam typically eat the cylindrical version, and the Northern region eats the square version. Both cakes contain sticky rice, mung beans, and pork belly and are wrapped in banana leaves.
How do you serve this dish?
Typically, these Vietnamese sticky rice cakes are enjoyed with chả lụa and pickled vegetables. You can eat it steamed or pan-fried.
How to chien (pan fry)?
To pan-fry or chien, you will need to reheat the sticky rice cake so that it is soft. Then heat 1-2 tablespoons of oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet and press it into the skillet with the potato masher. Keep pressing until it is an even layer. Pan-fry it on one side until it is golden brown, then flip it with a spatula and cook it on the other side until golden brown.
Serve the rice cakes, pan-fried for a crispy alternative.
Celebrate Tết or Lunar New Year in style with this recipe! These Vietnamese sticky rice cakes are wrapped with banana leaves and filled with savory yellow mung beans and umami flavored fatty pork belly.
2packs of banana leaves1 for assembly and 1 for the pot
4x4x2 inch molds
Tape
String
Instructions
Day Before
Make a square cardboard mold. You can make them different sizes depending on your preference. I made mine about 4×4 inches wide and 2 inches high.
Soak sticky rice. Wash the sticky rice until the water turns clear. Soak the rice in salted water overnight.
Marinate the pork belly. Slice the pork belly into about 1/4 inch thick slices. Marinate the pork with salt, sugar, chicken powder, pepper, fish sauce, and shallots in the refrigerator overnight.
Soak the mung beans. Wash the mung beans until the water turns clear. Soak the mung beans with 1/4 teaspoon of salt and enough water to cover the rice in the refrigerator overnight.
Day Of
Strain the rice. Strain the water from the rice. Set aside.
Boil the mung beans. Strain the mung beans. In a medium pot, fill halfway with water, add 1 1/4 teaspoons of salt, and the soaked mung beans. Heat on high until it boils. When the water boils, turn the heat down to a simmer. Cover the pot and simmer for 15 minutes or until softened. Then strain the water and mash the mung beans.
Sauté the shallots. In a large skillet or wok, heat 3-4 tablespoons of vegetable oil on high heat. Add the shallots and saute for 2 minutes on high and then reduce the heat to low and continue cooking until caramelized and tender, about 10 minutes.
Mix. In a medium mixing bowl, mix the sugar, pepper, chicken powder, caramelized shallots, and mashed mung beans. Set aside.
Assembly
Line the mold with banana leaves. Line the mold with at least 4-6 strips of banana leaves (~4x 12 inches), layering them in alternative directions like a cross. Make sure to leave 2 inches of banana leaf above the mold so it can be sealed later. Then, using 4 thinner strips (~2×10 inches), line the inside of the mold to seal the corners.
Add the rice. Add an even layer of sticky rice, about 1/2 of an inch.
Layer the mung beans and meat. Layer an even 1/4 inch layer of mung beans. Make sure to leave 1/4 inch of space around the edges for the rice. Layer the pork belly on top of the mung bean layer. Lastly, layer another even 1/4 inch layer of mung beans.
Fill with rice. Fill in the edges and the top 1/2 inch with sticky rice.
Fold the leaves over and wrap. Using alternating strips, fold the leaves over tightly. Seal with tape, then tightly wrap with a string like a present. Make sure to wrap the string along the edges as well to keep it all together. See video.
Cook
In a large pot, if possible, place a small wire rack at the bottom, then line the rack with 3-4 layers of banana leaves, covering the entire rack. Add the sticky rice cakes, and then fill the pot with enough water to cover. Cover the pot with a lid and bring it to a boil on high heat. Once it boils, turn the heat down to medium-low and simmer for about 7 hours. If the water level is too low, add more boiling water to cover.
Serve after 30 minutes. Take them out of the pot and let them cool on a wire rack for 30 minutes. Then serve with chả lụa (Vietnamese cold cuts) and pickled vegetables. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
Please see the ExpertTips section above for more detailed, helpful notes.
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