Asian Cake Making - Culinary Arts - Hai Phong College of Tourism

Cakes are offerings to grandparents and ancestors that Vietnamese people have shown for thousands of years. From common cakes used in side meals, breakfast such as dumplings, rice rolls, water fern cakes, vegetarian floating cakes... to elaborate and complicated cakes used in holidays, New Year, weddings, parties... such as banh chung, banh com, banh xu xe, banh nuong, banh deo, banh dau mung... all show the richness and unique colors of each region, area, and ethnicity...

Through the historical process, in the development of culture and society. The processing of dishes in general as well as cakes in particular has been increasingly developed and supplemented, gradually becoming a certain custom, forming typical cakes for each region, each area, each ethnicity.

In general, Asian cakes are made using manual methods, so the process of making these cakes is highly technical. In particular, the raw materials used to make these cakes are mainly of natural origin, and the raw materials are regional, creating specialty cakes of each region, area, and ethnic group.

For example: Hanoi has West Lake shrimp cakes, Hue has banh beo, banh bot loc, the South has banh xeo....

So cakes play an important role in life and society as follows:

Maybe you are interested!

- Is an important ingredient in every meal: breakfast, main meals such as dumplings, banh beo, banh chung...

- Holds an important position in the dessert group: cakes

- Plays the role of a ceremonial dish (symbolic) in solemn ritual parties or traditional feasts such as banh day, banh chung, banh troi chay, banh nuong, banh deo, etc.

- Widely used and convenient for meals that require compact mobility: fast meals, industrial meals, picnic meals....

- Used as a gift to express affection in communication.

Our nation has a history of thousands of years. Through a long historical period, Vietnamese culture is increasingly rich, constantly creative and cultivated. Among them, we cannot fail to mention the national dishes, especially the traditional and unique cakes of our country.

Chung cake, day cake

Just by hearing the name, we can guess part of the legend, about the origin of this cake. Legend has it that mother Au Co made this cake and gave it to her children when they went to the mountains and seas.

This is the first cake invented and taught by the mother of the nation, so it is highly respected and appreciated by everyone, therefore it is called Banh To. This type of cake is made from sticky rice flour, very simple, not wrapped tightly and has no filling, it symbolizes the sky, the cake is made in a round shape.

Along with it and the typical symbol of the traditional Tet holiday is banh chung and banh chung made from sticky rice, with meat, green beans and spices, the cake symbolizes the land, and the nation.

Tapioca dumplings

Banh bot loc is a traditional cake originating from the provinces of the Central region. The cake is made from cassava flour or tapioca flour. The shape of the cake can be semicircular or trapezoidal, the size is about two short finger joints.

There are two types of Banh Bot Loc, sweet and salty. The cake is transparent so you can see the filling inside. The cake is chewy, fragrant, and has a rich shrimp flavor. It is served with a sweet, sour, and spicy dipping sauce and a little coriander to make it more appealing.

Banh bot loc has 2 types of fillings: salty and sweet. The cake is transparent so you can see the filling inside. The cake has a chewy, fragrant, shrimp-flavored taste, served with dipping sauce and coriander, which is really appealing. Banh bot loc also shows the industriousness of Vietnamese women in the past. That's why our people pass on the folk song:

"If you are skillful, the cake will be clear and clean."

If you are clumsy, make rice cakes for your beloved husband.

Moon Cake

Speaking of moon cakes, surely none of us do not know the traditional cake during this Mid-Autumn Festival.

Banh chung is a combination of the essence of Chinese culinary culture with the traditional values of the Vietnamese people. The cake crust is made from roasted sticky rice flour, soaked with concentrated white sugar water, mixed with grapefruit flower oil, made from a delicious flour. Banh chung has many fillings such as green beans, lotus seeds, or many mixed things called ngu nhan, thap cam, but all are sweet fillings.

Mooncakes have now become a traditional national cake that is indispensable during the Mid-Autumn Festival. Every Mid-Autumn Festival, people eagerly search for delicious mooncakes for their families. What could be happier than gathering with family and enjoying these delicious mooncakes?

2. Classification of Asian cakes

2.1. Based on the nature of the taste

* Salty cake

Salty cakes are cakes that are mainly salty when eaten. The filling of this type of cake is made from ingredients such as meat, eggs, fat, milk, shrimp, vegetables, tubers and spices such as fish sauce, salt, pepper, shiitake mushrooms, onions and garlic... making the cake have a delicious, rich and attractive flavor.

For example: banh goi, banh bao, banh beo, banh cuon, banh bot loc with shrimp and meat, banh gio...

* Cake

Sweet cakes are cakes that are mainly sweet when eaten. This type of cake is often beautiful, attractive, and has a longer shelf life than savory cakes.

For example: sticky rice cake, sticky rice cake, baked cake, green rice cake, green bean cake, etc.

2.2. Based on usage value

* Regular cake

Regular cakes include cakes with simple textures and processing techniques, and commonly available, inexpensive ingredients such as rice, corn, potatoes, cassava, etc. These types of cakes are commonly used in breakfast meals or in main meals instead of rice.

For example: bread, dumplings, banh chung, banh cuon, banh khuc... these types of cakes have simple, uncomplicated forms.

* Specialty cakes

Specialty cakes include cakes with special ingredients or processing techniques of each locality, region, etc.

For example: cream puffs, green rice cakes, lotus seed cakes, steamed buns...

2.3. Based on the method of baking the cake

* The method of cooking with water is used for cakes such as: banh chung, banh troi, banh chay...

* Steam cooking method is used for cakes such as: dumplings, rice rolls, xu xe cakes, gai cakes, gio cakes...

* Fat cooking method is used for cakes such as: donuts, fried dough sticks, shrimp cakes...

* Oven cooking method for cakes such as: baked cakes...

2.4. Based on the ingredients used to make the cake crust

* Group of cakes made from sticky rice.

* Group of cakes made from rice.

3. Equipment and tools for making Asian cakes

* Processing table

Most of the kneading, mixing, shaping, rolling, and cutting of dough are done on the table, so the size and material of the table must be specified according to the correct specifications to ensure labor safety, productivity, quality, and food hygiene and safety. The baking table must be sturdy, durable, and stable, the table top is usually made of stone or stainless steel. Depending on the area of the kitchen, people design different sizes. Usually, the table is 85 - 90cm high, 100 - 120cm wide, and 200 - 300cm long.

* Dough container or proofing cabinet

The dough container or proofing cabinet used for this unit must be made of aluminum or stainless steel.

Mill

The best flour mill is made of stone and used to grind different types of cakes such as: vegetarian sticky rice balls...

* Roller

t (for fermenting dough). Types

barrel or wooden

Wet flour is used to make starch for making

fish transformation

Rollers usually come in three sizes: large, medium, and small, and are made of good wood.

- Small type: used to roll out the dough that has been cut into small pieces before shaping the cake. This type of roller is usually 18 - 20 cm long and 2.5 - 3 cm in diameter.

- Medium size: used to roll soft, spongy dough with not too large dough mass. This type of roller usually has a length of 32 - 35 cm (excluding 2 handles), diameter of 4 - 4.5 cm.

- Large type: used to roll large dough blocks that need to be rolled thin. This type of roller is usually 32 - 35 cm long (excluding the 2 handles), and 9 - 10 cm in diameter.

* Dough cutter

Asian Cake Making - Culinary Arts - Hai Phong College of Tourism - 2

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