Banh Da Lon (Vietnamese Steamed Cakes)

Step 1

Cook the beans: Drain the mung beans and transfer them to a small saucepan. Add the water and bring to a simmer over low-medium heat. Let simmer for 10-15 minutes, covered, until the beans are completely soft. Note: feel free to add a bit more water if no water remains and the beans are still firm.

Step 2

Combine: Drain and transfer the cooked beans to a high-speed blender. Add the coconut milk, water, sugar, tapioca starch, rice flour, and vanilla extract. Blend for 10-15 seconds or until smooth. Transfer the batter to a bowl and set aside.

Step 3

Prepare the pandan juice: Roughly chop the pandan leaves and add them to a blender. Add the water and blend on high-speed for about 30 seconds.

Step 4

Strain the juice using a fine-mesh sieve and discard the pulp, only keeping the liquid. Note: the juice will smell very grassy. It is normal, the flavor will change after cooking.Transfer the juice to a large mixing bowl.

Step 5

Combine: To the mixing bowl, add the coconut milk, sugar, tapioca starch, rice flour, and pandan extract if using. Whisk until fully combined. Set aside.

Step 6

Prepare your setup: Fill a saucepan with 2-3 cups of water and place a bamboo steamer on top. Bring the water to a boil. Lightly grease a 3x6-inch pan (you will have enough batter for two pans) with oil and place it in the steamer for 2 minutes.

Step 7

Steam the first layer: Pour one layer of the green batter into the pan and steam for 3 minutes. I went with 3 tablespoons of the batter to get thin layers. Adjust depending on the size of your pan.

Step 8

Steam the second layer: Pour the same amount of the yellow layer over the green layer. Steam for 4 minutes.

Step 9

Repeat. Repeat the process until you have about 7 layers (you can do more). For each layer, increase the steaming time by one minute.

Step 10

Finally, after steaming the last layer, let the whole cake steam for an extra 7 minutes.

Step 11

Let cool: Remove the pan from the steamer and let the cake cool completely before removing it from the pan.

Step 12

Slice: Using a sharp knife with the blade wrapped in plastic wrap (to prevent sticking), cut each loaf into 5 rectangles. Enjoy as a snack!