Bánh da lợn is the Vietnamese steamed cake made from translucent starch layers and mung bean paste.
Its batter commonly combines tapioca starch, rice flour, coconut milk, sugar, and pandan. A separate mung bean layer adds a yellow contrast and a nutty, mildly sweet filling. The mixture is steamed in successive layers, producing a flexible cake with alternating green and pale or yellow bands.
The cake’s name literally refers to pig skin, a comparison based on its soft, chewy, translucent texture rather than its ingredients. Despite that name, bánh da lợn is a vegetarian-style sweet commonly eaten as a snack or dessert.
Bánh da lợn is often confused with bánh bò because both can be steamed and may contain coconut milk or pandan. Bánh bò gets its airy, honeycomb texture from fermentation, while bánh da lợn is defined by its layered construction and chewy starch-based bite. The number and colors of the layers vary by recipe.