Hanoi village with age-old tradition of moon cake making

In previous years, the village had more than 70 moon cake making bakeries. Now only 30 of them continue to practice the craft.

Nguyen Thua Dinh, a local villager, says his family has made moon cakes for roughly 50 years, and the craft has been passed down three generations.

Dinh’s bakery has around 20 employees with the cake making process put under the microscope to ensure the quality of the products.

All of the ingredients needed to make moon cakes in his bakery are processed by hand.

A traditional moon cake is filled with sliced lemon leaves, kumquat, salted egg yolk, sausage, roast chicken, melon seeds, and almonds. All of the ingredients must be carefully selected and then mixed and cooked harmoniously together.

The making of moon cakes involves many steps, including processing the ingredients, making the crust, and mixing the stuffing.

In modern society, a large number of consumers prefer traditional flavoured moon cakes made out of natural ingredients.

Salted egg yolk is among those ingredients that are the favorite of consumers.

After the filling is added, each flattened circle is pressed in the mold in order to form the moon cake shape.

Before putting them in the oven, the cakes are then covered with a thin layer of fresh egg yolk in order to create a unique aroma and its natural yellow colour.

The ingredients are then weighed before bakers press the filling into the middle of each circle and roll it into a ball.

How delicious the cake is largely depends on the selection and processing of ingredients, reveals a local villager.

There are two types of moon cake, including banh nuong, known as brown baked cake,

and banh deo, also known as snow skin sticky cake.

Moon cakes are an indispensable part of Vietnamese people’s celebration of the Mid-Autumn Festival, which is held annually on the 15th day of the eighth lunar month.

media

Hanoi village with age-old tradition of moon cake making

Others

Vietnamese at home, abroad celebrate Hung Kings' Commemoration Day in solemnity

Da Nang’s remarkable changes 50 years after liberation

Art exhibition Plastic Dinoland, a profound message of environmental protection

Activities respond to Earth Hour 2025

Bauhinia flowers blanket Son La as spring arrives in Vietnam’s northwest