Pia cake is a unique product of Soc Trang. Enjoying a few cakes with a sip of ginger tea, sharing a couple of stories will warm the hearts of tourists. And it is a pity for anyone who comes here to miss the opportunity to taste these small but long-lasting cakes.

By Thomas Vietnam at vemekong.com | All Best Foods & Restaurants in Soc Trang

1. Better to Know as a Food Lover

Find them: Soc Trang city.

Best time: Dusk-Dawn

Don’t miss: Pia cake

Local’s pick: Tan Hue Vien Pia Cake Market

Tourist’s pick: Hai Son Pia Cake…

Blog: https://vemekong.com/pia-cake-soc-trang-food/

Facts: The thing is, the cake can not be eaten a lot at once, but gradually, you won’t get bored.  In the Mid-Autumn Festival, the people of Soc Trang, during the moon worshiping ceremony, never lack pia cake, the “soul” of the people of the land that blends the cultural identities of Kinh, Chinese, and Khmer.

2. What is Pia cake?

Coming to Soc Trang, you not only can enjoy the beautiful scenery of ancient pagodas or participate in joyful and colorful festivals with the identity of the three ethnic groups Kinh, Hoa and Khmer, visitors also enjoy delicious cakes of this place. The most special thing to mention is the Pia cake, the sweet taste and pure aroma of durian fruit, a specialty of the Soc Trang, Mekong Delta, Vietnam.

According to local people, from the 17th century, Pia cake appeared here. It is a type of cake brought by Han Chinese immigrants to Vietnam. However, over time, pia cake has been modified and changed according to Vietnamese taste and has become a specialty of the Mekong Delta region.

3. Better to know about Pia cake

It can be said that to have standard pia cakes, one has to go through a lot of meticulous steps from making dough to baking. Pia cake has 2 parts, the filling and the shell. The filling is made from taro, green beans, and eggs. Treated green beans, peeled taro, washed all, put in a steamed pot and then pureed. Then continue to stir-fry with sugar, durian in the right proportion. Let the mixture cool, one by one wrap the filling around each duck yolk. In addition, if you want to increase the rich flavor, you can add pork to the filling.

The orange-yellow cakes have a small, round, and medium-sized shape that is very convenient, and can be held and eaten at the same time. Not too friable, soft, with a moderate plasticity so that when put in the mouth, it does not melt immediately. But the most interesting is the pure sweetness of durian flavor that any artificial flavoring cannot replace.

The thing is, the cake can’t be eaten a lot at once, but once you taste it, you won’t be bored. In the Mid-Autumn Festival, the people of Soc Trang, during the moon worshiping ceremony, never lack pia cake, the “soul” of the people of the land that blends the cultural identities of Kinh, Chinese, and Khmer.

4. How to Make Pia cake (Banh Pia)

Ingredients for durian pia cake

400g all-purpose flour

250g peeled green beans

300g white granulated sugar

200g durian meat

100g tapioca flour

300g pork fat

15g malt

1 egg yolk

12 salted egg yolks

4g baking powder

Seasoning: Cooking oil, red food color, alcohol

Utensils: Pot, oven, cup, spoon, chopsticks, brass, pan, stencil, bowl, blender, toothpick, ..

How to choose delicious durian

To choose a delicious durian, you should choose durians that have a strong aroma, a mossy green or yellow skin, and round and large thorns.

When you hold the durian fruit, shake it gently or use a durian opener to tap the fruit body.

You should also pay attention to the durians that have fresh stems, are greenish in color and have firmness, the waist is enlarged and the abs are clearly visible.

How to make durian pia cake

Step 1. Make the dough for the pie crust

You put 300g of flour and 2g of baking powder in a small bowl and mix well.

You use a knife to cut 200g of pork fat and put it in a pan over medium heat to get the fat.  You win until the fat shrinks back to a golden color, then turn off the heat and then remove the fat.

Then, you knead the flour and baking powder to form a mountain, cut a hole in the middle of the powder mountain top and add 40g of white granulated sugar, 120ml of filtered water, 50ml of cooking oil and 50ml of just won fat with a ratio of 1:1.  between oil and fat.

Next, use your hands to knead the dough so that they blend together until a flexible dough is formed.  You let the dough rest for 30 minutes and then divide the dough into 12 equal parts.

Step 2. Make the dough for the pita

You put 100g of flour, 100g of tapioca flour and 2g of baking powder in a bowl and then use your hands to mix the flour.

Next, you add 20g of white granulated sugar, 35ml of water fat, 100ml of filtered water and 45ml of cooking oil into the dry flour mixture just mixed and then use your hands to mix the mixture for 5 minutes until the dough is smooth, flexible and smooth.

You let the dough rest for 30 minutes.  Then you also divide the dough into 12 equal parts.

Step 3. Make the pie filling

Processing pork fat:

You use 100g lard washed and then cut into pomegranate seeds then boiled fat.

Next, you take out the boiled fat in a basket to drain and mix it with 60g of white granulated sugar.

Then, you bring the mixture to a sunny place to let the fat clear.

Processing salted eggs:

Buy salted egg yolks, rinse them under running water and soak them in white wine for about 15 minutes.

Then, you take out the eggs and steam them.

Processing green beans:

When you buy green beans, you put them in water to soak until soft, then take them out to drain.

Then, you put the green beans in the pot with 1 liter of filtered water and cook until the beans are soft.  During the cooking process, you should regularly skim off the foam to clean the beans.

After the beans are cooked, take them out and put them in a blender and blend until the beans are fine and smooth.

Green bean slugs:

You put a non-stick pan on the stove on high heat so that the pan is evenly heated.  Then, you adjust the heat to medium and then put the pureed green beans into the pan with 180g of sugar and stir-fry.

During the process of slug beans, you should add cooking oil to the pan several times.  You slug until the beans are plastic and thick, then you continue to add 200g of pureed durian and 100g of fat and sugar to stir-fry.

After you see that the mixture is clear, flexible and does not stick to the pan, add 15g of malt and mix well and turn off the heat.

You let the mixture cool and then divide into 12 equal parts, each part you wrap 1 salted egg yolk a few round balls.

Note: Slug mung beans at very low heat to avoid oil separation.

Step 4. How to roll and wrap the pia

You put 1 ball of dough in step 1 on a clean surface and then roll it thin, then you continue to put 1 ball of dough in step 2 inside and then wrap it up and round it.

Continue, roll the dough into a long rhombus with a thickness of about 0.3cm and then roll it tightly by hand.

Next, roll the dough into a thin circle, just large enough to cover the filling and leave a little extra.

Note: You should roll so that the middle of the dough is thick and the outer edges are thinner to make it easier to wrap the cake.

Continue, you put the cake in the middle of the dough, wrap it with your hands to cover the filling and gently squeeze around to create an even sphere.

You should pack the cake crust close to the cake, so that the filling is not exposed.

Use your hands to grasp the remaining dough and leave the dough to make the base of the cake.

After molding the cake, place the cake on a baking tray lined with non-stick baking paper and then use your hand to slightly flatten the cake but make sure the surface of the cake is still flat

Step 5. Decorate the cake

You use 2-3 cotton pads and then put them on a clean plate.

Then, you dissolve 3-4 drops of red food color with a little water and pour it on a cotton pad.

Next, use your hand to gently press the print on the cotton and then print it on the cake.

Step 6. Bake the pizza

Before baking, turn the cake upside down so that it doesn’t swell up when baking.

You adjust the oven to 200 degrees C. Then, you put the cake tray into the oven for 15-20 minutes until you see the crust is slightly opaque and begins to swell, then you take the cake out.

Next, you use a toothpick to poke a few holes on the cake so that the cake has air holes.  Then, you use 1 egg yolk to beat with a little water to form a mixture, you let the brush penetrate the mixture and then sweep it over the cake.

Continue, you put the cake tray in the oven at 180 degrees Celsius and bake for another 15 minutes until the cake is cooked and evenly golden.

Note: When you bake the cake for the second time, do not turn the cake upside down.

Step 7. Finished product

The pia cakes that have just been taken out of the bakery have a faint aroma of durian along with the cakes are just round, the crust is not peeled and the colors are eye-catching.  The cake is just cooked evenly, has a spongy texture and has a sweet taste.

5. Pro tips

Here are our tips for easing your mind (and stomach) around food-handling environments that you may not be used to.

Make sure the food is freshly cooked. If you’re eating hot street food, it’s always safest (not to mention more delicious) to eat food you can see being cooked to order.

Look for lines and busy stalls. Busy street food stalls are an indicator of popularity, and their high turnover rate means the food is never sitting out for hours and developing dreaded bacteria. Yes, long lines can be discouraging when you’re hungry after a full day of exploring, but it’s not worth the risk of grabbing precooked food from the empty spot next door.

Eat when the locals are eating. The last and most important element here is when to eat. You’re likely already on a weird eating schedule while you’re traveling, but it’s important to try and adjust to the eating times of where you are. A bowl of pho might be lunch for Americans, but it’s breakfast for the Vietnamese. This ensures that you’re eating freshly cooked food and that you can find the best and most popular places to eat.

If you can’t drink the water, then you can’t eat the salad. Most people get so hung up on not drinking the water or skipping ice in drinks that they don’t think about all of the other ways in which water is used in food service. Fruits and vegetables tend to be washed with tap water in most places, rather than the filtered water that locals drink—or sometimes it’s not washed at all. If you’re really craving some produce, try fruits you can peel or cooked veggies.

Trust your gut. If you’re unsure about the food or the way that it’s being prepared, then keep moving. Eating street food all over the world doesn’t make you an expert. Every stall and every country are different, and sometimes the rules can be harder to follow. When something doesn’t look, smell, or feel right, don’t eat it! Trust your judgment. Chances are that there’s another spot close by that’s making something more delicious.

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Can Tho: Co Ut’s Cong cake, Ut Dzach Fine Rice Vermicelli, Thanh Van Grilled Pork Sausage, Crab Noodle Soup At Floating Market, Scorched Rice with Caramelized Fish Sauce, 7-Toi’s Duck Meat Pancake, Banh Mi Thuy, Banana Blossom Salad, Fried Spring Rolls, Fresh Spring Rolls, Fetal duck egg (balut), Honeycomb Cake, Mini Sticky Rice Cake, Cassava Silkworm Cake, Grilled Banana Wrapped in Sticky Rice, Khmer-style Bun Goi Da Soup, Egg Coffee, Con Son Grilled Snakehead Fish, Bun Mam – Fermented Fish Noodle Soup, Lau Mam – Fermented Fish Hotpot, Grilled Snails with Pepper, Magenta Sticky Rice Cake, Duck cooked with Fermented Tofu, Rice Noodle Pizza, Vegetarian Noodle Soup, Snails Stuffed With Pork…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Chau Doc: Chau Doc Fish Noodle Soup, Sugar Palm Fruit, Basa Fish Hot Pot, Mam (Fermented fish), Phu Huong Beef Noodle Soup, Broken Rice with Pork Chop, Long Xuyen Broken Rice, Nui Cam Pancake, O Thum’s Chicken Grilled with Lime Leaves, Stir-fried Shrimp with Sesbania Flower, Sweet & Sour Soup with Siamese Mud Carp Soup & Sesbania Flower, Caramelized & Braised Catfish, Grilled Rice-field Rat with Salt and Chili…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Soc Trang: Pia Cake, Cong Cake (Banh Cong), Bun Nuoc Leo Soc Trang’s Noodle Soup, Soc Trang’s Bun Goi Da Soup, Duck Noodle Soup with black Pepper, Curry Noodle Soup, Grilled Beef on Tile, Khmer-style Tube Cake, Khmer-style Mung Bean Cake (Banh In), Dried Radish (Xa Bau), Stir-Fried Noodles with Seafood (Mi Sua), Soc Trang’s Green Rice Flakes…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Ben Tre: Phu Le Rice Wine, Ben Tre’s Coconut Candy, Flat Banana, Coconut Rice, Snail Pancake, Sea Snail with Coconut Milk, Coconut Worm, Young Coconut Salad with Shrimp & Pork, Son Doc Puff Rice Paper…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Cai Be: Puffed Rice Cake…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Vinh Long: Elephant Ear Fish (fried giant gourami)…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in My Tho: Fried Sticky Rice, Snakehead Fish Rice Porridge, Hu Tieu My Tho (Noodle Soup), Coconut Banana Cake…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Tra Vinh: Macapuno Coconut, Bun Nuoc Leo Tra Vinh’s Noodle Soup, Tra Cuon’s Sticky Rice Cake…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Sadec: Sa Dec Noodle Soup, Sadec Crab Hotpot, Lai Vung Spring Rolls, Sa Giang Shrimp Puff Pastry, Lai Vung Tangerine…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Bac Lieu: Spicy Beef Noodle Soup, Bac Lieu’s Three-striped Crab, White Radish Pies, Bac Lieu Thick Noodles & Creamy Coconut Milk, Bon Bon Pickles…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Ca Mau: Banh tam ga cay (Silkworm rice cake with curried chicken), Grilled Vop clams with salt and pepper, Grilled Mudskipper Fish, Stone Crab Roast With Salt, Young Bee Salad, Nam Can’s Crab, U Minh Forest’s Honey, U Minh’s Fermented Fish Hotpot…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Hau Giang: Cau Duc Pineapple, Cai Tac’s Pork Organs Porridge, Hau Giang’s Bronze Featherback Fish Cake…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Ha Tien: Herring Fish Salad, Spider crab cake soup, Ken Noodle soup, Xoi Xiem (Siamese sticky rice), Steamed Noodle soup, Ha Tien Oyster porridge…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Rach Gia: Stir Noodle Soup, Kien Giang Fish Noodle Soup…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Con Dao: Bang nut jam, Vu Nang Snail, Roasted Pork Bread (Banh Mi), Coconut Ice Cream…

Must-Eat Foods & Restaurants in Phu Quoc: Phu Quoc Sim Wine, Phu Quoc Pepper, Phu Quoc fish sauce…

Hopefully, the above tips will help you to come up with a great plan for your adventure in Mekong River Delta, Vietnam. Have a safe trip!

“Sleep less, travel more, respect more” – Thomas Vietnam – Local travel expert.

Thank you