Banana Sticky Rice Cakes Food

VIETNAMESE BANH TET RECIPE - STICKY RICE CAKE

Steps:

• 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.

VIETNAMESE RICE CAKES IN BANANA LEAVES

Steps:

• 1. Place the sticky rice in a large bowl and cover it with 3 inches of water. Stir in the food coloring, if using, and let the rice soak overnight. (Once soaked, the rice will double to about 4 cups.) In a separate bowl, soak the mung beans for at least 4 hours. Drain both just before using and set aside in separate bowls. Add the salt to the rice and stir to blend.
• 2. Combine the shallots, fish sauce, black pepper and pork pieces and let marinate for 30 minutes.
• 3. Heat the oil in a frying pan over moderate heat. Add the pork pieces and all the marinade and stir just until the meat is brown around the edges, about 3 to 4 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and set aside.
• 4. Using a steamer basket, steam the mung beans until they are soft, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.
• 5. To make the packet, neatly lay down the wrappers in this order: 1 sheet of plastic wrap (leave the other for use later), the aluminum foil, 2 sheets banana leaves (one perpendicular to the other). Place one cup of the rice in the center of the banana leaf, spreading it to cover a 5-inch square. Place half of the mung beans on top, then add the pork pieces. Cover with the remaining mung beans and place 1 cup of rice on top. Bring the narrow sides of the wrappers together. Fold the gathered edges over twice, then flatten against the packet. (You now have two open ends.) Fold one end over and hold the packet upright. Add half of the remaining rice, tapping it and pushing it down so the packet will be an even square. Fold the end over and repeat on the other side.
• 6. Place the packet with the folded sides down in the center of the remaining plastic sheet. Wrap tightly so that water will not seep into the packet during cooking.
• 7. Tightly tie the packet with two parallel strings in both directions (as in a tic-tac-toe pattern).
• 8. Fill a large stockpot with water. Add the packet and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer. Place a colander or something heavy on top of the packet to keep it submerged in the water. Cook uncovered until done, about 6 hours, adding more water if necessary. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool for 1 hour.
• 9. To serve, cut the packet (without unwrapping) into 1/2-inch slices. Remove the wrapping and arrange the slices on a serving plate. Serve warm or at room temperature. If wrapped in plastic and refrigerated, the cake will keep for 1 week.

STICKY BANANA RICE

Steps:

• Boil the rice according to the directions on the box or bag.
• Stir in the cream of coconut, bananas, and shredded coconut.

THAI GRILLED SWEET STICKY RICE WITH BANANA FILLING

Steps:

• Fill the steamer pot with water as full as you can without the bottom of the basket touching the water and set the pot over high heat. Drain the rice, being careful not to break the grains. When the water boils, place the rice in the bamboo basket and rest the basket in the top of the pot. Steam the rice over rapidly boiling water, stopping when it has barely turned glossy and is still dry (it will be cooked again), about 20 minutes. Remove from the heat.
• While the rice is still hot, combine the coconut cream, coconut milk, coconut oil, sugar, and salt in a 2-quart saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the hot sticky rice, making sure every grain is separate and coated with the coconut syrup. The mixture will appear soupy at this point, but don't panic. Cover the pan tightly and leave the rice undisturbed at room temperature for 1 hour.
• Meanwhile, wipe the banana leaves clean with a damp cloth, then cut into 12 pieces, each 12 by 10 inches, with the 10-inch side parallel to the leaf grain. Have ready 24 toothpicks.
• After an hour, the rice will have absorbed the hot coconut syrup, cooled, and become firmer. At this point, it should be fully cooked but not soft, and tender enough to eat. Use a butter knife to divide it, directly in the saucepan, into quarters. Then divide each quarter into three equal wedges. Lay a piece of banana leaf, dull side up and with a long side facing you, on a work surface. Place a portion of the sticky rice in the center of the leaf. Use your fingers to form the rice into a flat, oblong bed parallel with the grain of the leaf. The bed should be about the length of a banana half and twice its width. Press a banana half firmly into the center of the rice bed. Using your fingers, gently fold the overhangs of the sticky rice over the banana half and manipulate it so it covers the banana entirely. With the banana leaf positioned in such a way that its grain is perpendicular to your body, lift up the left edge of the leaf and fold it along the grain over the filled sticky rice, tucking it in tightly. Continue to roll from left to right, forming a compact packet. Secure each end with a toothpick, positioned as close to the rice as possible. Trim off the overhangs, leaving only about 1 inch on each end. Repeat with the remaining banana leaves, sticky rice, and banana halves.
• To grill the packets, light natural wood charcoal and allow it to burn until you have low coals under a heavy layer of ash. Grill the packets directly over the coals, flipping them every 5 minutes, until the leaves are thoroughly charred and the packets are heated through. This should take 35 to 45 minutes. Alternatively, place an oven rack in the lowest position in the oven and preheat the broiler (if your broiler is adjustable, set it at low). Arrange the banana packets on a large sheet pan, place the pan on the oven rack, and broil the packets, flipping them every 5 minutes, until the leaves are charred and the packets are heated through, about 40 minutes (fewer, if your broiler automatically sets at high). Leave the packets to cool for about 15 minutes before serving.
• Leftover packets can be frozen, then thawed overnight in the refrigerator and baked in a preheated 350°F oven until softened and heated through, 30 minutes.