Tranh Khuc Village has a long-standing craft of making Banh chung

In many homes all members of the family are involved in making Banh chung at their residence. Quantity varies from one household to another, averaging hundreds of cakes a day, but up to 1,500 cakes at Tet. In recent years, Banh chung made by Tranh Khuc villagers have been exported to many countries, including Russia, Australia and Thailand, mainly to meet the needs of overseas Vietnamese.

 

The Banh chung produced here is renowned for its distinctive flavour. Village elders are most experienced at making these special cakes and generation after generation they hand down their expertise, keeping the craft alive in Tranh Khuc Village.

 

Making Banh chung for Tet

Each step in making Banh chung involves a professional touch. The Dong leaves used to wrap the cakes must be large, green and untorn. After the leave ribs and petioles are removed they are washed and left to dry. The glutinous rice must be large-size grains which are washed and drained. The green beans must be of top quality. They are husked, cooked and pounded into paste. The pork must be fresh and not too lean. It is parboiled to eliminate any odour and then cut into large pieces and marinated with spices and pepper to make it soft and delicious. To make a cake, four or five layers of Dong leaves are used as the wrap of the dumpling, with the green blade of the outside leave turned outward. The dumpling is made of a layer of glutinous rice, a layer of green bean topped by pork and then another layer of green bean topped by another layer of glutinous rice. The dumpling must be wrapped tightly to maintain a uniform shape. The cakes are placed into a big pot and boiled for eight to eleven hours.

 

The trademark of Banh chung made in Tranh Khuc Village has been registered to the Hanoi Industry and Trade Department and the National Office of Intellectual Property of Vietnam under the Ministry of Science and Technology. With its typical flavour and good quality Banh chung of Tranh Khuc Village have been exported to many countries.

Wraping all the dumpling into a square cake

Besides making the traditional Banh chung, Tranh Khuc villagers can alter the ingredients to suit the tastes of offshore customers. For example, people in Australia like to have egg added to the recipes while US customers insist on having chicken added, or the Taiwanese like to have Chinese sausage included in the Banh chung.

According to Nguyen Van Thanh, Chief of Van Uyen Hamlet, Tranh Khuc Village produces Banh chung all year round but the busiest time is around Tet (New Year Festival). The trademark of Banh chung made in Tranh Khuc has become the pride of the villagers.