Vietnamese dessert scenes provide a delightful contrast to the lush jungles, rivers, and tropical beaches of the region. Large areas of golden dunes, a windy atmosphere, and seemingly endless open spaces provide a peaceful scene that is almost surreal, creating a setting that is totally out of this world from the pace and chaos of the cities, with the serene atmosphere of the dessert a delight for travelers to uncover as they explore these natural surroundings. Trying Vietnamese desserts is not only a pleasure for your taste buds but also a simple, authentic way to connect with Vietnam during your travels.
Sweet Cakes
Honeycomb Cake
Honeycomb cake is one of Vietnam’s most famous sweet treats. It is famous for its unique sponge-like texture that is reminiscent of a honeycomb. The ingredients include rice flour, tapioca starch, sugar, coconut milk, and yeast or baking powder.
The mixture is then fermented before baking to produce its characteristic sponge-like interior. The sweetness is moderate but is balanced by the richness of coconut cream and a touch of caramel from the golden top crust. When you take a bite of honeycomb cake, you would be surprised by its soft and springy texture that is reminiscent of a sponge cake. It is best served fresh and warm and is perfect with tea or coffee.
Sesame Balls (Donuts)
Sesame balls consist of glutinous rice pastry balls that are deep-fried and coated with white sesame seeds, creating a snack that’s especially popular in street food stalls across Vietnam, even in markets near the windswept Vietnamese dessert regions. They are known for their crunchy exterior and chewy texture inside, made from a simple dough of glutinous rice flour, a hint of sugar, and water. The dough is shaped into round balls, rolled generously in sesame seeds, then fried until golden brown and crisp.
The taste is a wonderful combination of the fragrance of sesame seeds and the sweetness that is comforting to the palate. They are best served hot or warm and would be ideal as a quick snack or a sweet treat after a meal.
Banana Cake
Vietnamese banana cake is a sweet dessert that is rich, creamy, and fragrant, with a texture that is tender and melts in your mouth. Unlike banana bread, which is a typical dessert in Western countries, the Vietnamese version is sweeter and has a stronger fragrance. To make the cake, ripe bananas are used, which are mashed or cut up and incorporated into the mixture. These add natural sweetness to the cake.
The mixture is then steamed or baked, and the result is a sweet dessert that is best served warm. To add to the culinary delight of the banana cake, a cup of Vietnamese coffee or tea is the perfect accompaniment.
Pig Skin Cake
Pig skin cake is a steamed layered cake that is well-known for its green and yellow striped appearance, usually made with a combination of tapioca and rice flour with the juice of pandan leaves to give the green color, as well as mung bean paste to give the cake the yellow color.
The cake does not contain any pork, as the name might imply, but the texture of the cake is smooth and slightly chewy, much like the texture of pig skin, hence the name. The cake has a mild sweet taste with the fragrance of pandan leaves and the creamy taste of mung bean paste, making a delightful combination of sweet and savory flavors.
Baked Banana Cake
Baked banana cake is a very rich and aromatic Vietnamese sweet treat. It is made from bananas, condensed milk, eggs, sugar, butter, bread, or flour, thereby giving it a bread pudding-like texture. Bananas, when mature enough, are mashed together with these ingredients, put into the oven, and then baked until the surface turns golden brown.
Baked banana cake has the bananas’ tropical taste, which complements its custard-like flavor. The best way to enjoy banana cake is warm, straight out of the oven. As banana cake benefits from being served hot, this feature increases its temptation since it smells so good when fresh from the oven.
Mung Bean Cake
Mung bean cake is a classic Vietnamese sweet known for its smooth, fine texture and naturally gentle sweetness, often sold in local bakeries and small roadside stalls, even in towns near the Vietnamese dessert where simple traditional treats remain part of everyday life. It is made from peeled mung beans that are steamed until soft, then mashed and blended with sugar and sometimes coconut milk to create a creamy, fragrant paste. Some versions are wrapped in a thin layer of wheat flour or tapioca starch, while others are molded into dense, compact blocks that hold their shape well.
The taste is rich with a light sweetness and earthy, creamy undertones, which let the natural taste of the mung beans come through. Brew a cup of tea, and serve with the Mung Bean Cake – a classic dessert to be served on festive and special days, or as a sweet indulgence on an otherwise ordinary day!
Pia Cake
Pia cake, also called durian mooncake in some places, consists of a flaky pastry crust that is rich and multi-laminated. It comes with a creamy filling that at times consists of durian, mung bean, salted egg yolk, or taro. This type of pastry gets its dough by laminating it, just like puff pastry. The texture of this particular pastry is therefore light and crisp. It comes at a time when other pastries are too rich. Durian comes with a rich aroma and sweetness, while others offer moderate flavors.
However, the combination of pastry and filling makes this a luxurious dessert indeed, both indulgent and unforgettable. Perfect for sharing, this Pia cake would go great with some hot tea, especially for the more adventurous dessert lover out there.
Creme Caramel
Crème caramel, also called Bánh Flan or Caramen, is a popular Vietnamese dessert that combines the flavors of both France and Vietnam. It is prepared using simple ingredients such as eggs, milk, sugar, and condensed milk, which are whisked together to create a smooth custard texture. The dessert also features a caramel sauce prepared from melted sugar, which is cooked until it turns golden brown and then added to the custard mixture and steamed until set.
This dessert is extremely smooth, jiggly, and has a melt-in-your-mouth texture. It has a creamy, sweet flavor with a hint of bitterness from the caramel sauce on top. It is best served chilled and can be accompanied by crushed ice, coffee, and coconut milk for a richer Vietnamese dessert.
Che Vietnamese Dessert (Sweet Soup)
Red Bean Sweet Soup
Red Bean Sweet Soup is a famous sweet dessert from Vietnam that appears to be simple yet very comforting at the same time. This dish consists of red adzuki beans cooked with rock sugar over a slow fire until they are softened and very sweet, sometimes with a hint of pandan for a delicate aroma. There are also times when they add a cup of coconut milk just before serving to add richness and creaminess to this comfort dessert with very soft and sweet red bean paste that is not too sweet but just enough to end a very heavy meal.
You can enjoy it warm on cool days, or chill it with some ice to help you escape the tropical weather. It can be served with a drizzle of coconut cream, some sesame seeds, or a scoop of ice cream.
Three-Colored Sweet Dessert
Three-Colored Sweet Dessert is one of the standout sweet soups that is very visually appealing, with a beautiful arrangement of green pandan jelly, yellow mung bean paste, and red beans, topped with ice and sweet coconut milk. Each one is prepared separately: pandan jelly is made from pandan juice and tapioca flour, while mung bean paste is cooked until creamy and sweet, and red beans are simmered in water until they are cooked through. Combining them together inside a glass or bowl creates a rainbow effect.
The dessert has a delightful mixture of textures: chewy jellies, bean paste, and tender, warm beans, which is offset by the coolness of the ice and milkiness of the milk. The dessert is best had on hot days. Apart from this, it is both refreshing and satisfying, allowing one to choose the degree of sweetness.
Lotus Seed Sweet Soup
Lotus Seed Sweet Soup is a refined dessert that can be recognized due to the mild taste and soothing vibe it carries within itself. The base of the dish begins with lotus seeds that are peeled and cooked until soft, then sweetened with sugar. Some versions of the dish include pandan leaves while cooking the lotus seeds for added fragrance.
The final product, therefore, becomes a light, sweet broth, silky smooth, with tender lotus seeds that have a hint of nuts. It looks more elegant when compared to richer desserts, providing a soothing, serene end to a meal, as well as a peaceful indulgence on a quiet afternoon. It can be savored hot, particularly as the hot temperatures bring out the aroma, or cold with ice, providing a soothing treat on hot days.
Vietnamese Fruit Cocktail
Vietnamese Fruit Cocktail is a vibrant sweet soup, with a colorful mixture of tropical fruits that may include jackfruit, longan, lychee, and mango, but sometimes includes banana or coconut jelly. To prepare these fruits, they are mixed in a sweet liquid made from coconut milk, sugar, and sometimes pandan leaves for added fragrance. The fruit pieces will stay fresh and juicy, providing a refreshing contrast with the creamy coconut base.
The flavor is a delightful balance of the natural sweetness of fruits and the richness of coconut flavors, along with several textures within every spoonful. Served cold, this sweet soup is a cool, fruity dessert-perfect on hot days and ideal for those who love tropical flavors with lighter desserts.
White Cloud Dessert
White Cloud Dessert is a soft and milky sweet soup made with tender taro cubes, chewy rice flour jelly, sugar, and rich coconut milk. The taro is boiled until fork-tender, then gently simmered with sugar to create a naturally sweet, starchy base before coconut milk is added for a creamy texture and subtle nutty flavor. This comforting dessert is commonly found at street stalls and local eateries across Vietnam, even in small towns near the Vietnamese dessert, where a cool bowl of sweet soup offers welcome relief from the heat.
The name White Cloud is inspired by the floating texture of the soup in the bowl. It is light in texture but rich in taste. White Cloud is a great dessert for people who like sweet and comforting flavors with a smooth texture.
Pomelo Sweet Soup
Pomelo Sweet Soup is another Vietnamese dessert that has a totally refreshing taste of citrus zest blended with sweet soup delight, made with pomelo peel that has been soaked, blanched, and then simmered with mung beans, sugar, and coconut milk, with all the ingredients blended together.
At times, tapioca pearls or crushed ice may be added for better texture and additional cold refreshment. The fragments of pomelo offer a bitter contrast and aromatic taste that cuts through the sweetness, making every spoonful of this cold dessert refreshing and highly complex. Not only that, the creamy coconut base has a lovely counterpoint with the light citrus flavors, making this dessert exotic and yet somehow familiar. Cold and refreshing, Pomelo Sweet Soup can be very delightful on hot days as an aromatic end to any meal.
Mixed Fruit Dessert
Mixed Fruit Dessert is a sweet and refreshing Vietnamese dessert soup that offers a variety of tropical fruits and chewy toppings all in one bowl. The ingredients are fresh and include jackfruit, longan, lychee, mango, watermelon, and sometimes banana or avocado, as well as jelly, tapioca, or grass jelly for added texture. The fruits are cut into bite-sized pieces, layered with crushed ice, and topped with sweet and creamy coconut milk or light sugar syrup.
It is a sweet and creamy flavor with a fruity taste, with a variety of textures that are crunchy, chewy, and smooth with every spoonful. This dessert is best enjoyed when chilled, making it an ideal treat for a hot day, as well as a refreshing snack after a meal.
Ice Cream and Yogurt
Purple Sticky Rice Yogurt
The purple sticky rice yogurt is a tasty combination of tangy yogurt and sweet, nutty rice. It contains steamed purple sticky rice, which has been mixed with cold Vietnamese yogurt, a thick and tangy yogurt that has a richer taste compared to yogurt consumed in Western countries. The purple rice has been sweetened with sugar and some coconut milk, giving it a silky texture. When combined, this dessert has a great combination of textures, with the chewy rice being balanced with cold, silky yogurt.
The taste of this dessert is refreshing and soothing, with an earthy taste of rice that complements the yogurt nicely. It should be consumed cold on a hot day, especially with a scoop of crushed ice or some sweet coconut syrup on top.
Sticky Rice Ice Cream
The idea of making sticky rice ice cream is an interesting one that incorporates familiar Vietnamese foods in a new way. It’s made using coconut milk, which is often sweetened, mixed with sticky rice that’s been mashed or blended with cooked rice kernels. The mixture is then converted into an ice cream.
Some recipes also include pandan or coconut cream for extra flavor. The sticky rice is also mixed into the ice cream. This provides an interesting texture that’s both chewy and cold. The ice cream tastes like coconut milk, which is sweet, and the inclusion of sticky rice provides a surprise. It’s an interesting dessert that’s perfect on a hot afternoon.
Avocado Ice Cream
Avocado ice cream is a rich, smooth dessert that is very popular throughout Vietnam, particularly from street vendors or on the beach. Avocados are combined with sweetened condensed milk, coconut milk, and sometimes a little bit of sugar or vanilla before being churned or frozen to make a creamy, smooth, and indulgent ice cream.
The avocado ice cream is sweet with a hint of buttery avocado that melts in your mouth, making for a delightful combination of sweet and savory. Avocados are naturally rich, so ice cream does not require the addition of heavy cream to make it rich. Avocado ice cream is best served cold on a warm day, although it may be served with coconut flakes or fruit for an additional tropical twist.
Final Thoughts
The Vietnamese dessert is a surprising aspect of the country that travelers never get to see. From the sandy dunes to the sunset, the scenic views of the coastline, thesse dessert is a quiet retreat away from the crowds of tourists. Whether you are a fan of sunrise or sandboarding, the Vietnamese dessert is a unique experience for travelers. It is a place where nature is unspoiled, vast, and unparalleled. Let Seni World introduce you to the hidden gems of the dessert of Vietnam.
Related articles
