Definition

1. Noun:
   • Rice cake: A type of traditional Vietnamese savory rice cake, typically made from rice flour batter, steamed in banana leaves, and often containing a filling of minced pork, wood ear mushrooms, and seasoned with shallots or spring onions.
   • A specific culinary item: Refers to a common, everyday food item in some regions of Northern Vietnam, particularly in areas like Hà Tây (now part of Hanoi). Its name "tẻ" implies it is plain, common, or made from ordinary, non-glutinous rice.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Sáng nay tôi ăn hai chiếc bánh tẻ. (This morning I ate two rice cakes.)
  • Bánh tẻ ở làng tôi có nhân thịt và mộc nhĩ. (The rice cakes in my village have a filling of meat and wood ear mushrooms.)
  • Đây là món bánh tẻ đặc sản của vùng quê Bắc Bộ. (This is a specialty rice cake of the Northern countryside.)

Advanced Usage

• "bánh tẻ nguội": cold rice cake (often refers to rice cakes that have cooled down after steaming, sometimes considered to have a different texture).

  • Bánh tẻ nguội ăn kèm với chả lụa rất ngon. (Cold rice cake eaten with Vietnamese pork sausage is very delicious.)

• "làng nghề làm bánh tẻ": village specializing in making rice cakes.

  • Chúng tôi về thăm làng nghề làm bánh tẻ truyền thống. (We visited the traditional village specializing in making rice cakes.)

Variants and Related Words

• Bánh (noun): A general term for cakes, pastries, or breads in Vietnamese.

  • Bánh chưng: square sticky rice cake.
  • Bánh giò: steamed rice pyramid cake.

• Bánh cuốn (noun): Steamed rice rolls, a related dish made from a similar rice batter but rolled thin.

• Bánh đúc (noun): A type of steamed rice cake, often firmer and served in slices.

Synonyms

• Bánh lá (noun): Literally "leaf cake," a general term for cakes steamed in leaves, which can sometimes refer to .
• Gâteau de pâte de riz (noun): The French translation, meaning "rice paste cake."

Related Phrases

• Gói bánh tẻ: To wrap rice cakes (in banana leaves before steaming).

  • Cả nhà cùng nhau gói bánh tẻ để chuẩn bị cho giỗ. (The whole family wraps rice cakes together to prepare for the death anniversary ceremony.)

• Hấp bánh tẻ: To steam rice cakes.

  • Sau khi gói xong, phải đem bánh tẻ đi hấp chín. (After wrapping, the rice cakes must be steamed until cooked.)

Related Idioms

Note: There are no widely recognized idioms that centrally feature the specific term "bánh tẻ." It is primarily a concrete noun for a food item.

noun

1. Rice cake (filled with browned onion)