The folk saying is: "First is Dong Khang communal house/second is Dinh Bang, the glory of Dinh Diem communal house". Dinh Diem is famous for its hot hot pot stews, flexible, slightly chewy skin and fragrant wood ear and bean fillings. When coming to Dinh Bang, visitors can taste the cake that is only sold in pairs here: banh phu the.
Regarding the reason for only selling banh phu the in pairs, Kinh Bac people have many legends associated with the legend of this cake. According to legend, once King Ly Anh Tong went out to fight, his wife loved her husband so she went into the kitchen to prepare delicious cakes to offer. The king found the dish delicious and touched the couple's affection, so he named this cake "phu The". Since then, banh phu the has always been present in the wedding, becoming a symbol of love and family happiness.
At first glance, the banh phu thhe has a pure yellow color like jelly - the color that is like the sunlight of the autumn when the rice fields are starting to ripen.
Talking to Ms. Ngo Thi Song Mai (66 years old, Bac Ninh), I learned that banh phu the is made from yellow sticky rice. The autumn sunlight spreading across the vast fields, along with the fragrant aroma of sticky rice, must have been cleverly wrapped in the fields by the Bang family since ancient times, sent into this cake.
Another thing is that the crust of the banh phu thet uses yellow sticky rice, but it must be the starch collected from the white, round, and thick rice that has been soaked, ground, and filtered. Then continue to dry or dry, and can only be used for more than ten days to make cakes.
About 10kg of rice will yield more than 3kg of starch, said Mr. Do Thanh Tai (36 years old, Bac Ninh) - the owner of a traditional rice paper making facility.
Another special ingredient in the crust of banh phu the is green papaya and the broth. Green papaya is pounded into strands, soaked in lime water to keep it crispy, then rinse and rinse with water.
With the reserved water, Dao Xa village - Quan Ho village of Bac Ninh origin also uses it to create color for stele cakes. With different textures and methods, when making the finished product, also from the water reserved, the banh phu the and banh co gai have different color shades.
The starch is added with green papaya fiber, fruit juice and sugar, until the ingredients are flexible and chewy, the yellow color is beautiful, then left for about half an hour to be wrapped in a rice paper. Compared to the skin, the filling of the sticky rice cake seems more familiar (including green beans, lotus seeds, coconut fiber), but it must be a street food.
"Green beans are used to make small, fragrant and fragrant fillings. The beans will be thoroughly soaked, peeled, steamed and then smoothed. Then add the sugar, grated coconut fiber, lotus seeds, mix well and let cool" - Mr. Tai said. For his family, the shell and filling are made in a ratio of 3 flour:1 times, or depending on the customer's needs.
Mrs. Mai washed the banana leaves and said: "The banh tet is a traditional cake of the village, and there are still many people making it in the village. This cake must not only be meticulous in the ingredients, but also take care of each stage.
Banh thhe uses dong leaves and banana leaves to wrap the cake, in which banana leaves are directly attached to the cake, so they must be soaked, washed, and cleaned thoroughly to ensure the cake is not damaged.
When the skin and filling are done, the baker will divide the skin, flatten it, add the filling and wrap it around, and put it shortly on the tray to wrap. Before placing the cake in the banana leaves, Mr. Tai spread a thin layer of pork fat so that the cake does not stick, as well as create a aroma for the cake.
The cake is square-packed with a layer of banana leaves inside, the layer of dong leaves (the stems have been removed) outside, put in a steamer and water-separated for 40 - 60 minutes, then taken out to cool.
According to Mr. Tai, the stages of making banh thhe today have applied additional machines such as leaf washing machines, steamers... to increase productivity, ensuring quality to consumers. The amount of sugar in the cake has also been reduced to meet customer demand.
"However, there are still stages that need to be handcrafted, as well as the ingredients kept the same as when the ancients made them to ensure the complete traditional flavor," he said.
Banh phu the makes diners remember not for its highness but for its simple, very familiar flavor. "A delicious piece of cake that lasts a long time", right from the moment the cake is in hand, diners are impressed by the square piece of cake, with pink rope and green leaves on the outside. Red, green, two colors reminiscent of green green rice, ripe pink and bright red - a pair of gifts that go together also symbolize solidarity in love.
cleverly peel each layer, an existing yellow color like a loan shell under the slightly yellow leaf, giving off the occasional aroma of rice. bit a piece, the cake is just sticky, soft and slightly rough, very light of green papaya. Combined with the rich, sweet fillings of beans, lotus and grated coconut.
Since ancient times, sophisticated ways to do so, the fiancee has still become an indispensable gift in the questions. On the happy day, the village was bustling, the sound of the firecrackers bustling throughout the space to celebrate the joy of couples, the couple pairs of sandwiches tied tightly in the pink string is a symbol of the love of iron and faithful lipstick. Soft - fleshy, flexible - fragrant, sweet spouse flavor makes diners lingering.
