Mai

Aren’t these the cutest? They are also called “bánh trôi nước”. Bánh is the Vietnamese word for most things made with flour, trôi means float, and nước means water. These lovely sweets get their name from the fact that they are cooked in water and float up to the surface when they are ready.

They are made (mostly) from glutinous rice flour, which creates a nice and chewy texture- similar to Japanese mochi. The filling is pure, unrefined cane sugar that comes in large blocks. It is called “đường phên” in Vietnamese and is also incredibly popular in Latin America (we found it in the Latin American section of our local international grocery store as “Panela”). It has a beautiful earthy, caramel-like flavor that is much more complex than what you get with processed sugar.

I would not recommend using other types of sugars. I have seen some recipes suggest palm sugar – “đường thốt nốt” as an alternative. Palm sugar has other great uses, but in my experience, cane sugar is far superior and works much better for this dessert- both in terms of flavor and texture. The cane sugar will soften but not completed melted, providing a nice crunch to contrast with the softness of the dough.

This version of bánh trôi is from the North of Vietnam. In the southern region, there is a similar dessert of the same name (“Chè trôi nước”), but with a mung bean paste filling instead (which the North calls “bánh chay”).

Hồ Xuân Hương – who was considered one of the country’s greatest poets in the late 18th-early 19th century- wrote a beautiful poem titled “Bánh trôi” – which used this dessert as a metaphor for the life of a woman:

Thân em vừa trắng, lại vừa tròn
Bảy nổi ba chìm với nước non
Rắn nát mặc dầu tay kẻ nặn
Mà em vẫn giữ tấm lòng son.

My very rough, non-poetic translation:

My body is pale, as well as round
Floats seven times and sinks thrice with the nation
Tough or soft is in the hand of the shaper
But I still keep my scarlet center.

The poem talks about a beautiful woman who is living through a tumultuous time in her country. Even though her fate is not in her own hands, she never loses her character and who she is.

Bánh trôi • Sugar-filled rice balls

Course: DessertCuisine: VietnameseDifficulty: Easy

Makes

30

bánh trôi

Prep time

30

minutes

Cooking time

20

minutes

Resting Time

30

minutes

Total time

1

hour 

20

minutes

Ingredients

• 200 g 200 glutinous rice flour

• 20 g 20 rice flour

• 1/4 tsp 1/4 fine salt

• 200 g 200 warm water #1

• 20 g 20 warm water #2 (Read step 3 carefully)

• 5 g 5 toasted white sesame seeds

• 75 g 75 pure cane sugar (đường phên) – see notes

Directions

• Make the dough
• Add the two types of rice flours and salt to a large bowl.
• Add the water #1 gradually and mix as you go.
• Add a couple of teaspoons at a time of the water #2, while continuing to mix, until the dough is all one clump and you no longer have loose dry flour. We ended up adding 17g.
  Do not add more than needed- your dough should not be wet.
• Cover a let rest on the counter for at least 30 minutes.
• Prepare the filling & topping
• Cut the sugar into 1cm cubes. You will need one cube for each bánh.
• If your sesame seeds are not already toasted: heat a pan on medium. Add sesame seeds. Toss/stir until golden – about 30 seconds. Remove from heat and set aside.
• Assemble the bánh trôi
• Break off 15g of dough and squeeze it together into a rough ball so no bits will fall off.
• Gently flatten and add a sugar cube in the center.
• Fold the sides inward to close it up and squeeze tight.
• Roll it between your palms to form a smooth ball.
• Repeat for the remaining dough & sugar.
• Cooking bánh trôi
• Bring a large pot of water to boil on high heat.
• Once water is boiling, reduce heat to medium low and add in the balls.
• Stir gently to prevent them from sticking to the bottom or to one another.
• Cook until the balls float up to the surface and stay afloat (about 20-25 minutes).
  You will understand the second line of the poem in the post at this point. The balls will float and sink several times throughout the cooking.
• Remove from pot with a slotted spoon and add to a bowl of cold water with 2-3 ice cubes.
• Let sit for 5 minutes, remove with a slotted spoon and place onto a plate.
• Top each bánh with some toasted sesame seeds and serve!

Notes

• If you can find pure cane sugar already in small cubes, definitely get that to make things easier!

Did you make this recipe?

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