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Traditional Vietnamese steamed cake that is soft, chewy, and bouncy filled with sweet mung bean paste filling. They are also known as Vietnamese husband and wife cake. They are dairy-free and suitable for vegan and vegetarian.
I knew about this Vietnamese tapioca and mung bean cake after I came to the U.S. I was still at college at a time and my sister and I would visit the Asian grocery store owned by a Vietnamese every weekend. We would get some groceries and usually some Vietnamese snacks like Banh Bao, Banh Mi, Vietnamese Spring Roll (Goi Cuon), this banh xu xe/banh phu the, and few others.
Banh is a Vietnamese term for cake,bread, pastries, noodles, crepes, etc in general. What comes after the Banh will tell you more about the food. Such as these: banh mi (Vietnamese baguette), banh canh cua (Crab and shrimp tapioca noodles), banh xeo (Vietnamese sizzling crepes), banh beo (Vietnamese steamed rice cake). You get the idea! Banh xu xe/banh phu the cake are also known as husband and wife cake and usually seen at a traditional Vietnamese wedding. They are symbols of eternal marriage. The stickiness nature of the cake represents how the couples will stick together through the end
How to easily make banh xu xe/banh phu the from scratch
1. The sweet mung bean paste recipe is here 2. Bring water in the steamer to a boil. Prepare 18 small muffin cups or 9 standard muffin cups or ramekins. Grease with some oil 
3. Mix tapioca starch, mung bean starch, sugar, water, shredded coconut and oil in a saucepan. If you are only doing one color, add the food coloring here. Stir to combine it well. 
4. Put this on the stove and cook over medium-low heat If you are only doing one color, you can add the food coloring here 
5. Cook until it gradually forms a sticky paste consistency 
6. Scoop about 1 Tbsp of the paste into the cup. Use a rubber spatula to help you to flatten and spread the dough. 
7. Place one mung bean paste ball in the middle. 
8. Scoop another 1 Tbsp of the paste to cover. Again, use a spatula to help you cover so the filling is enclosed inside 
9. Wrap the lid of your steamer with a cloth to prevent water condensations from dripping onto the cake during steaming 
10. Place the muffin cups inside the steamer and steam over high heat for 10-12 minutes for small ones or 15 minutes or longer for large ones. The cake will turn translucent. That’s an indication that the cake is cooked through 
11. Let the cake cool down in the cups. Then use a rubber spatula to help you unmould. Sprinkle with some toasted sesame seeds. I use cling wrap to wrap the cake 
How to store
They can be kept at room temperature for 2-3 days. After that, put them in the fridge or freezer. Simply reheat by removing the cling wrap, and heat until they are warm again before serving. You can use a microwave or a food steamer to do so 
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The recipe is adapted from here.