Tet Nguyen Dan

Spices for Tet Nguyen Dan

Tet is the main family holiday of the year in Vietnam. Banh chung (in the north) or banh tet (in the south) are sticky rice cakes wrapped in leaves and boiled for hours, with mung bean and pork flavoured with black pepper. Thit kho tau, pork and eggs braised in coconut water and fish sauce, takes star anise and cinnamon in some versions, and the xoi gac, a red sticky rice coloured with gac fruit, is cooked with a little salt and sugar. Pho spices, with star anise, cinnamon, cloves and charred ginger, are used throughout the year but peak at the new year.

The spices

CinnamonSaigon cassia perfumes broths.Black pepperSeasons the filling of banh chung.