Exploring the Finest 17 Traditional Cakes in Vietnam

Bánh khọt, a folk dish originating from the South, is the next standout in the list of most distinctive traditional Vietnamese cakes. The main ingredients for making bánh khọt are rice flour or cassava flour, poured into molds and fried until crispy. The filling can include various ingredients such as egg yolk, mung beans, shrimp, squid, and more, depending on preferences. Additionally, it is often served with a garlic chili dipping sauce and fresh vegetables. Some even drizzle coconut milk on top to enhance the rich and delightful flavor. Due to its alluring and unique qualities, this cake is highly favored by Vietnamese people, especially those in the Mekong Delta provinces.

Despite its peculiar name, bánh khọt is a familiar and enticing dish, captivating diners with its crispy golden crust and soft, slightly chewy interior. Paired with a sweet and tangy dipping sauce, it creates a tantalizing flavor experience.

Sticky Rice Doughnuts are a beloved traditional Vietnamese treat enjoyed by most Vietnamese people. These cakes are typically made from finely ground glutinous rice, and they may feature sweet fillings like mung beans and coconut threads, or savory options such as pork or vegetarian fillings. Sticky Rice Doughnuts are often crafted during the traditional Lunar New Year (Tet) and on the 10th day of the 3rd lunar month (Hung Kings' Commemoration Day).

Alongside bánh chưng (square sticky rice cake) and bánh giầy (glutinous rice round cake), Sticky Rice Doughnuts symbolize the ancient Vietnamese worldview. With their white color and round shape, these cakes represent the sky in Vietnamese beliefs. Additionally, they convey gratitude towards ancestors and the homeland.

More than just a traditional cake, Sticky Rice Doughnuts are widely embraced in daily life. Starting a morning with two pieces of these white doughnuts and a slice of Vietnamese pork sausage provides a delicious and nutritionally complete breakfast.

Pyramid Cake (Bánh ít) is the final entry in the list of Vietnam's most distinctive folk cakes that Mytour wants to introduce to readers. This is considered one of the popular cakes in Vietnam, present in all three regions: North, Central, and South, each with its own unique characteristics. Typically, the cake is made from main ingredients such as glutinous rice and mung bean flour, molded into a tower shape, wrapped in banana or thorn leaves, with the inside filling being mung beans or well-cooked meat. The cake is then steamed gently. Pyramid Cake is highly favored and used as one of the cakes for memorial ceremonies or Tet holidays.

Pyramid Cake may look small, compact, and rustic, but a good-looking and tasty cake requires skill. A delicious Pyramid Cake has chewy but non-sticky dough. Taking the first bite, you can immediately sense the sweetness of sugar, the aroma of glutinous rice, the richness of coconut, or the nutty flavor of mung beans, along with the fragrant smell of banana leaves. Packaging Pyramid Cakes requires meticulousness, ensuring each corner of the cake is neatly wrapped. Careless wrapping can cause the cake to slouch and lose its aesthetic appeal.

Gai Cake is a traditional sweet cake of Vietnam originating from the Northeast region. Each region has different ways of wrapping the cake and different ingredients, but the main components are still screwpine leaves, green beans, glutinous rice, and the cake-making process is very meticulous. Gai Cake has a square shape, with the black color of screwpine leaves and a sweet, nutty, fragrant, and chewy taste of the filling. It is a special gift of Vietnamese cakes to give to simple and rustic loved ones.

Gai Cake can be enjoyed as a dessert after every main meal or during snack times. Gai Cake from Ninh Giang, Nam Dinh, Tu Tru, and Dai Dong are considered to have the most delicious Gai Cakes, each bringing a distinctive flavor from each province.

Similar to most other traditional cakes, Gai Cake is neatly wrapped in banana leaves and tightly tied with soft strings. After wrapping, the cakes are steamed, and the finished product is a batch of steaming cakes with a shiny black color and a subtle fragrance of rustic banana leaves.

Family Cake is a type of cake that seems very familiar to the people of Quang. The cake is made from glutinous rice flour and sugar, along with fresh ginger, a little toasted white sesame, and banana leaves for wrapping—smooth, soft, and delicate banana leaves. The cake is fragrant and chewy, each bite deliciously sweet, crystallizing the elegance of Quang's culinary essence. The harmonious combination of ingredients creates a delightful aroma, with the subtle blend of ginger and the gentle richness of sesame.

Family Cake is not elaborate in appearance, but simple with thin, fragile leaf molds, and a plain dark brown color. However, it is only when tasted that the unique sweetness and deliciousness emerge, standing out among thousands of other cakes. Family Cake is often made during the Tet holiday, enjoyed with a cup of hot tea in Quang households.

If you have the opportunity to try Family Cake, you will feel its elasticity, stickiness, and a very sweet taste. This is because the cake is mainly made from glutinous rice flour and sugar. Additionally, the ingredients can include sesame, ginger, or red beans, depending on the baker's secret.

Wedding Bliss Cake is a traditional Vietnamese sweet delicacy. Crafted from familiar ingredients such as mung beans, coconut, tapioca starch, water, and toasted sesame seeds, the making of this cake demands the careful touch of the baker. When the cake is ready, connoisseurs can appreciate its perfect balance of crispiness and chewiness from the translucent rice flour, the grainy texture of young coconut strands, the rich creaminess of mung bean filling, the subtle fragrance of pandan leaves, and the refreshing sweetness of white sugar.

Wedding Bliss Cake is often chosen for wedding ceremonies, symbolizing luck and joy. It can be elegantly presented in a red box or crafted with a red exterior to bring good fortune and happiness to the wedding celebration. Despite its seemingly unassuming appearance, Wedding Bliss Cake undergoes a meticulous preparation process, ensuring excellence from ingredient selection to the final presentation.

Glutinous Duo Delight comprises two traditional rice cakes in Northern Vietnam. These cakes are often intertwined, gaining prominence during the Cold Food Festival on the 3rd day of the 3rd lunar month, also known as 'Banh Troi Banh Chay Day.' Made from glutinous rice flour, they offer a delightful combination of chewiness and elasticity, with distinct flavors of the rice flour and sesame blending harmoniously with the sweetness of sugar.

In addition to the traditional white Banh Troi, recent years have witnessed creative variations, featuring multi-colored, uniquely shaped Banh Troi that captivate the whole family, making the process of baking and savoring a delightful family affair.