Banh Da Lon is a traditional Vietnamese steamed cake with a distinct visual pattern of alternating thin layers.
The name Banh Da Lon comes from three Vietnamese words, which are bánh meaning cake, da meaning skin, and lợn referring to pork. Together, they literally mean pig skin cake.
The name purely reflects its layered physical appearance, which resembles the skin and fat layers of roasted pork. Banh Da Lon itself uses no animal-derived ingredients whatsoever.
The cake has a glossy, smooth surface that bounces back when pressed. Its green layers appear slightly translucent, much like sheets of jelly.
The Right Flours for a Chewy Texture
The characteristic bounce and flexibility of Banh Da Lon come primarily from tapioca starch. Tapioca starch gives the batter high elasticity under steam while producing a glossy, translucent finish once cooked.
A small amount of rice flour is mixed alongside the tapioca starch. Rice flour provides structural stability that keeps the cake firm so it does not collapse when removed from the mold.
The recipe uses granulated sugar and coconut milk to balance flavor and moisture. Sugar binds the liquid starch to keep the layers tender without hardening as they cool. Thin coconut milk keeps the batter light, while rich coconut cream adds a deep, savory richness.
The first batter is given a fresh green color using real pandan leaf juice. Pure pandan juice imparts a fragrant herbal aroma when stirred into the mixture of tapioca starch, thin coconut milk, and sugar.
The alternating layer is made yellow using peeled split mung beans. Skinless mung beans ensure a clean yellow hue and a subtle, nutty sweetness.
The beans are boiled until tender, then blended with thick coconut cream, sugar, and a touch of tapioca starch into a thick, smooth, and savory paste.
The two batters must go into the steamer in stages so the colors stay clean and separate.
How to Make the Layers
The steaming process begins by placing a lightly oiled pan inside a hot steamer. Coating the pan with a thin layer of coconut oil prevents the batter from sticking to the mold walls.
The stove is set to medium heat throughout the steaming process. The steady steam flow cooks the batter evenly without creating unwanted air bubbles on the surface.
The green pandan batter is poured in first to form the base. The initial layer takes about five minutes to steam until the surface sets and firms up.
Once the green layer is set, the yellow mung bean batter is gently poured on top. Steaming in intervals keeps the green and yellow layers distinctly separate without bleeding into one another.
The alternating pouring process is repeated until the mold is full. A final green layer is poured on top as the lid, and the entire cake is steamed for another fifteen minutes to cook through completely to the center.
The cake must be left to cool completely so its texture can firm up and hold its shape.
Slicing Without Sticking
The pan should rest at room temperature until all residual heat is gone. As the temperature drops, the cake naturally firms up on its own. The layers become sturdy enough to pull away cleanly from the mold walls.
Once completely cool, the cake is unmolded by gently flipping the pan onto a flat cutting board. The resulting texture is supple, bouncy, and slick to the touch.
Because the cake is naturally soft and tacky, the knife should be wrapped in plastic cling film or lightly greased with oil.
The plastic layer allows the blade to glide smoothly through the cake, producing clean, square slices that display alternating stripes of green and yellow.
