YummY Vietnam

Banh Khuc or Xoi Khuc, Xoi Cuc is originated from the North of Vietnam. It is made from Cudweed leaves, sticky rice and filled with mung beans and fatty pork. It is usually made in the Cudweed season – February, March of the Lunar calendar.

In Hanoi, Banh Khuc is often sold in the evenings, sellers walk along the streets and announce “Ai banh khuc nong day!” or “ Xoi lac, banh khuc day” and a lot of different ways to announce with a very special tone; this way now becomes the characteristic of Hanoi people. Banh khuc can be considered as one of the specialties at night in Hanoi.

For Hanoi people, Banh Khuc is regarded as a gift. It can be a snack as well as the main meal and help people be full. If the sticky rice has now been modified to served with all kinds of meat, sausages, pates, braised eggs, fried eggs, omelets …, banh khuc still keeps its original taste, is it possible to eat with a little sesame and salt.

In Hanoi, it is not difficult to buy a Banh Khuc; however, if you want to enjoy a delicious Banh Khuc, you have to find some famous Banh Khuc Stores such as: Banh khuc co Lan, Banh khuc Quan …

Although Banh Khuc is popular, the process of making a delicious one is also quite complicated, requiring its secrets. Let’s discover the secret to making Hanoi’s banh khuc right below.

Ingredients for Banh khuc Reicpe: (8 parts)

• 100g peeled mung beans
• 200g chopped pork belly or lean meat
• 200g sticky rice
• 1 bundle of Cudweed leaves or spinach, or tungho vegetables
• 200g glutinous flour
• Salt, dried onions, pepper, seasoning, fish sauce
• Dried shredded pork, fried onion.

Process for making Banh Khuc:

Step 1:

Wash mung beans in water many times, soak in warm water with salt for 1-2 hours.

Add mung beans into a pot, steam it until being cooked then let it cool down.

Wash sticky rice many times, soak in water overnight.

Step 2:

Wash pork belly, drain it, cut it into small pieces. Marinate meat with pepper, dried onion, 1 tsp of fish sauce, ½ tsp of seasoning, mix well, and keep it for 30 minutes.

Heat cooking oil, fry onion and garlic, add the meat and stir fry it, ladle it out a bowl.

Step 3:

After steaming mung beans, pound them in a mortar, mix mung beans with meat in the bowl and shape it into a ball.

You can try meat by putting a little meat mixture in the microwave, cook for about 1 minute, if it is bland, you can add salt, fish sauce; if it is salty, you add a little sugar.

Step 4:

Wash cudweed leaves, drain and boil them, keep liquor and their dregs. (if you want)

Step 5:

Pour glutinous rice flour into a pot, add ½ tsp of salt, add the liquor of boiling the cudweed gradually into the pot.You can add the dregs after step 4, mix well until the mixture becomes a shape.

Depend on different absorbent levels of flour, you can adjust the amount of water.

Step 6:

Using your hands to knead the mixture of glutinous rice flour until it is smooth, flexible, lightly press on non-stick hands.

Use the cling film to keep incubated for about 30 minutes to make the dough rise.

Step 7:

Hands wearing clean plastic gloves, shape the dough into some balls and stretch them.

Step 8:

Place the mung beans ball (prepared in step 3) in the middle of the piece of dough. Round the dough to cover all of the mung beans ball.

Keep going until the filling and the dough is over.

Step 9:

After soaking sticky rice, drain it. Add ½ tsp of salt and mix well.

Step 10:

You place a layer of banana leaves in the bottom of steaming pot, spread cooking oil and a layer of sticky rice (prepared in step 9) on banana leaves.

Step 11:

Arrange the balls filled with meat and mung beans in step 8, remember to keep the gaps between them so that they are not sticky.

Next, spread a layer of glutinous rice on the surface of the balls, put the pot on the cooker, steam for about 40 to 45 minutes, sometimes when you steam, remember to wipe the water standing under the lid.

Step 12:

When finish, take sticky rice and enjoy when it is hot, spread some salted shredded meat and fried onion.