Banh Khoai Mon Le Pho (Fried Taro Mung Bean Cakes), Sweetened with Monk Fruit

Method

1. Rinse the mung beans and soak them for about 4 to 5 hours or overnight to soften.
2. Drain the beans, steam them for 20 to 25 minutes until cooked, then mash them smooth.
3. Set a pan over low heat with the mashed beans, 3 tablespoons kOBE Monk Fruit Blend, 50ml coconut milk and a pinch of salt, and stir until the mixture holds together and leaves the hands clean. Roll the filling into balls of about 10 to 15g.
4. Peel the taro, cut it into small pieces, steam it for 20 to 25 minutes and mash it while hot.
5. Mix the mashed taro with 100g glutinous rice flour, 50g tapioca starch, 2 to 3 tablespoons kOBE Monk Fruit Blend and a pinch of salt, add 50ml unsweetened oat milk a little at a time, then knead until the dough is smooth and no longer sticky.
6. Divide the dough into pieces of about 20g, flatten each one, set a ball of mung bean filling in the middle, then seal it and roll it round.
7. Heat the oil over medium, lower the cakes in and deep fry, turning them, until golden and crisp.
8. Lift them out onto paper towels to drain.

Tips

• Choose taro with plenty of purple veining that feels firm, since that is what gives a nutty, fragrant cake.
• The shell has to seal the filling completely so it does not burst in the oil.
• Mash the taro while hot for a smooth dough.
• Add the oat milk a little at a time, since pouring it in at once leaves the dough slack and needing more flour.
• Fry over medium heat and turn to brown all sides, as a high flame burns the shell before the filling is hot.
• Cook the mung bean filling until it holds together without sticking to your hands before rolling, since wet filling splits the shell in the oil.