Instant Pot Bánh Tét Recipe – Vietnamese Lunar New Year Sticky Rice Cake – FOOD is Four Letter Word (2024)

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Instant Pot Bánh Tét Recipe - Vietnamese Lunar New Year Sticky Rice Cake Ingredients Method ↓ Supplies to make this recipe ↓ You may also like Instant Pot Vietnamese Braised Pork Belly Recipe – Thịt Kho Instant Pot Turnip Cake Recipe – Bánh Củ Cải / Lo Bak Go Bánh Khọt Recipe – Vietnamese Crispy Savory Shrimp Pancakes Instant Pot Beef Pho Recipe (Phở Bò Tái Chín) Pandan Waffles Recipe (Bánh Kẹp Lá Dứa) Vietnamese Chewy Pandan Honeycomb Cake Recipe – Bánh Bò Nướng Lá Dứa Instant Pot Snow Skin Mooncakes with Coconut Mung Bean Filling Recipe – Bánh Dẻo Trung Thu Instant Pot Vietnamese Coffee Flan Recipe (Bánh Flan Cà Phê) Bánh Xèo Recipe (Vietnamese Crispy Savory Crepes) Leave a comment Shop Unique + Cool Kitchen Gadgets Newest Recipes References

January 30, 2019Van

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Prep time: 24 hours

Cook time: 2 hours

Serves: 4 Bánh Tết

Tết (Lunar New Year) is coming up and my kids look forward to eating bánh tét every year. Bánh Tét, which is mostly eaten in central and southern Vietnam, is a cylindrical sticky rice cake filled with mung bean, pork belly and wrapped in banana leaves. I grew up eating this my whole life, but only tried making them recently thanks to RunAwayRice’s recipe (link here). This is a recipe that seems daunting, but watch her tutorial videos – she breaks down the steps and organizes the recipe so it’s very easy to make at home.

Bánh Tét origin folk story:

As an elderly king approached his death, he summoned his three sons to his deathbed. It was time to choose a successor to the throne. The king told his three boys that whoever could provide the most delicious meal for him would be king. The sons immediately went to their wives to plan this grand feast for their father.

The eldest son spared no expense and hired the most celebrated chefs in the land.
The middle son had his wife prepare a personalized meal complete with the kings favorite flavors.

The youngest son presented a simple meal to the king—a plate of bánh tét.

The king became angry seeing this simple meal in light of the other grandiose plates his other boys had prepared for him. He demanded an explanation.
The youngest prince and his wife begged for the kings forgiveness; explaining that bánh tét was all they could afford. An explanation soon followed by the princess to calm the kings anger.
“Instead of presenting you with a tasty but meaningless meal sir, I decided to fill your plate with meaning—a dish that best symbolizes the beauty of our land, Vietnam.”

The king was perplexed, but listened acutely as the princess continued
“The rice represents the staple of all Vietnamese meals—these simple grains give our people energy to work. The green wrapper represents the beauty of our famed rice paddies that populate our countryside. The mung bean symbolizes the sun that gives us life. And finally, the pork belly is symbolic of the great people in the three regions of your kingdom. All of this tied together by string—symbolizing the king who holds this promised land together.”

The king was speechless, deeply impressed by the princess’ thoughtful interpretation. He thought about her story as he ate the bánh tét. As he made his final decision, it was the youngest prince who would make the throne.
“A kingdoms power isn’t measured in gold and treasure, but the prosperity of it’s people. Thank you for showing me this princess.”

And the rest is history

My favorite way to eat bánh tét, sliced then pan fried until they are crispy

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Instant Pot Bánh Tét Recipe - Vietnamese Lunar New Year Sticky Rice Cake

January 30, 2019Van

Prep time: 24 hours
Cook time: 2 hours

Serves: 4 Bánh Tết

www.foodisafourletterword.com

Ingredients

¾ Pound Pork Belly, cut into four 1 inch x 4 inch strips
½ Teaspoon Ground Black Pepper
½ Teaspoon Sugar
2 Tablespoons Chopped Shallots
2 ½ Teaspoons Salt, divided
½ Tablespoon Fish Sauce
3 Cups Mashed Mung Beans
12 Frozen Banana Leaves, cut into 11 inch x 11 inch squares
6 Cups Long Grain Sweet/Sticky Rice
4 Cooking Twine / Butcher's String, 16-inches long
4 Cooking Twine / Butcher's String, 9-feet long

Method

1)
Reference RunAwayRice’s Original Recipe and watch her two tutorial videos below:
Recipe: http://runawayrice.com/main-dishes/sticky-rice-mung-bean-cakes-banh-tet/
2)
Instant Pot Cooking Instructions:
If you have an 8Qt, it’s possible to cook all 4 Bánh Tét at once, if you have a 6Qt, you might have to cook them in two batches. Lay them horizontally into the pot to get them to fit.
Wrap Bánh Tét with foil, then cook for 2 Hours High Pressure and let it do a full natural pressure release (this will take 1+ hours). Be sure to completely submerge them in the water, I had to fill above the max line to cover them.
Refrigerate overnight before cutting and pan frying. Enjoy!

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