One of the most traditional special foods for New Years (Tet) of Vietnamese is Banh Chung or sticky rice cake. Banh Chung is made of sticky rice, pork meat and green bean, every ingredient is wrapper inside a special leaf which calls Dong. Making the BanhChung requires care and precision in every step. The rice and green bean has to be soaked in water for a day to make it stickier. The pork meat is usually soaked with pepper for several hours. Squaring off and tying the cakes with bamboo strings require skillful hands to make it a perfect square.
Banh Chung is a must among other foods to be placed on the ancestors’ altars during Tet holiday. In the old time, one or two days before Tet, every family prepares and cooks the BanhChung around the warm fire. It is also the time for parents to tell their children folklore stories. Nowadays, families which live in villages still maitain making BanhChung beforeNew Years but the people in the city does not. They don't have time and prefer to go to the shop to buy it.
This is how my parents make a "banh chung" - a traditional Vietnamese Rice Cake in Chinese New Year Festival, called Tet holiday in Vietnam
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