Vietnamese Banh Tet Recipe - Sticky Rice Cake

The Night Before: Preparing the IngredientsSoak the rice in coconut juice for 1/2 hour. Then, cover it with three inches of water and let it sit overnight. Place the mung beans in a bowl and rinse under cold water until the water is clear. Drain the beans, then add enough cold water to cover the mung beans by 1 inch. Let soak overnight. Cut the pork belly into 3-inches long, 2-inches wide, and 1/2-inch thick pieces, ensuring that each piece has fat and skin. Add the fish sauce, sea salt, pepper, and pork belly to a bowl and mix well. Let the filling marinate overnight. Soak the tropical leaves, placing them in a large roasting pan and adding water to cover. Put a plate as a weight on top of the leaves to keep them submerged. The Morning Of: Preparing the IngredientsDrain the rice in a colander and return it to the bowl. Gradually mix in the salt, sprinkling it over the rice and using your hands to distribute it well. Drain the mung beans. Using a steamer and a parchment paper as liner, lay the mung beans in the steamer tray and spread it out evenly. Place the tray onto the steamer and cover. Steam for 8 minutes or until the mung beans are tender. Let it cool. Once cool, add the cooled beans into a food processor until it as a whipped consistency. Drain the bamboo leaves, rinse, and set aside. Rinse and pat the tropical leaves dry and cut them into sheets of 5" x 12". Set aside. Assembling the Banh Tet with IngredientsTo make each banh tet cake, put a 12" x 18" inch sheet of heavy duty aluminum foil on your work surface, with the shortest side closest to you. Scoop up 1 cup of the prepared rice and distribute the rice evenly. Next, scoop up the mung beans and add it as a layer. Lastly, add the pork belly on top. Now, roll the banh tet together and tie it with a string. Repeat these steps for the remaining 3 cakes. Boiling Banh TetFill a 12-quart stockpot half full with water. Place the cakes in the pot by stacking or standing them up. Add enough water to cover the cakes. Hint: To keep the cakes from floating, place a heavy ceramic plate on top to gently weigh it down. To maintain a gentle boil, keep a separate kettle of boiling water on the stove to replenish the stockpot as needed. After about 3 hours into cooking, the cakes should no longer float. At this point, remove the ceramic plate. After the seven hours of boiling, use tongs to transfer the cooked cakes to a pot of cold water. Once they are fully cooled, you should be ready to eat and store for 2-3 days.