Millet is thought to have originated in Ethiopia, North Africa. The millets are a group of higlhly variable small-seeded grasses, widely grown around the world as cereal crops or grains for both human food and fodder. In Vietnam, we have this sweet treat “ Bánh đa Kê” from Millet.
Bánh đa Kê vendor
Selling by the vendor on bicycles along the crowded streets in Hanoi, Bánh đa Kê was a simple & cheap dessert on a summer day. Millet is cooked into thick paste, then with a piece of crunchy crackers (this you will see at any bia hoi – draught beer place in Hanoi), the seller will spread a thick layer of millet on, another layer of ground mung bean, and top with a thin layer of sugar.
It depends on people’s taste, some like less mung bean and more sugar. The seller then will make a crack in between and fold the crackers and put it on each other like a sandwich. Millet may not smell but the smell of mung bean and the crackers may will invite you for a bite now.
Bánh đa Kê
The taste of crunchy crackers, with the sweetness of sugar and mung bean somewhat makes a perfect yet strange taste. If you ever pass by a lady with a basket on a bicycle and a small cardboard at the back “ Bánh đa kê” then that is what I am talking about.
A small “Bánh đa kê” cost 5,000vnd (~25 cent USD).
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