Sweet mung bean paste encased in a soft yeasted dough that stays soft for days and days after being baked. The cake can be baked in the oven or cooked on the stove top.
What is soft mung bean cake?
This type of soft-skin mung bean cake is very popular in China. At a glance, the soft mung bean cake is similar to the flaky tau sar piah, but this soft mung bean cake, as its name implies, has a soft skin that is made with a dough that is yeasted, uses a small amount of sugar and a small amount of oil. Sweet mung bean paste or red bean paste is commonly used as a filling for this soft cake.
It’s a yeasted dough.
Soft mung bean cake is like a hybrid between bread and cake. It’s not considered a pastry because it doesn’t use a whole lot of fat to create that flaky layers. The soft dough has a small amount of yeast and also has baking powder as a leavening agent.
Why we love this soft mung bean cake
1. Very easy dough to work with
You do not need a machine or rigorous kneading with this dough. It comes together easily. It’s really fuss-free
2. The dough is soft and stays soft
I’m very impressed by how soft the dough is after baking. I kept them at room temperature for 3 days and they stay soft
3. They are tasty little snack
They are made with a small amount of oil and sugar, yet they are enough to satisfy that craving for something a little sweet.
Soft Mung Bean Cake (软皮绿豆饼)
Ingredients
For sweet mung bean filling:
- 200 g mung bean
- 50 g sugar
- 30 g condensed milk
- 30 g butter
- ⅛ tsp salt
For the soft dough:
- 190 g all-purpose flour
- 2 g instant yeast
- 2 g baking powder
- ⅛ tsp salt
- 30 g sugar
- 20 g oil
- 80 g water or more as needed
Instructions
Prepare the filling:
- Rinse the mung beans in several washes of water and drain off water
- Soak mung beans in hot water for 1 hour or in room temperature water for 4 hours. Drain off the soaking water. Discard the water after that and transfer to a dish and pour in water and put inside the steamer and steam over high heat for 20 minutes or longer until the beans can be easily mashed with a fork
- Place the warm cooked mung beans, sugar, butter, condensed milk, and salt in a food processor or a blender and process into a smooth paste. You can also use a handmixer to mix them all together. Portion into 25 grams balls. Keep them covered while you prepare the dough
Prepare the dough:
- Combine flour, yeast, salt, sugar and baking powder in a mixing bowl. Add oil and water and knead into a dough. It may not be smooth yet. Cover and let it rest for 20 minutes
- After 20 minutes, give the dough some kneading again and you will notice that the dough is now smooth and soft
Shape and fill:
- Divide the dough into 16 equal portions. I actually weigh the dough, about 20 grams each portion. Round it up into a ball. Keep them covered
- Work with one dough at a time. Use your thumb to make an indentation in the middle and then put one filling in and mold the dough around the filling to enclose it. Pinch the seam to seal it. Round it into a dough ball
- Place them on the baking sheet and flatten each dough slightly with your palm. Cover with a clean cloth and let them rest while you preheat the oven or the pan
- If you plan to bake in the oven, preheat the oven to 375 F (190 C) for conventional oven, 350 F (180 C) for convection oven
- If you plan to cook them on the pan, preheat a large non-stick pan over medium-low heat
To bake in the oven:
- Place the baking tray in the middle rack and bake for 8 minutes and then take the tray out and flip over and bake again for another 10 minutes or until nicely golden brown
To cook on the stove:
- Arrange the cake on the pre-heated pan without any oil. You may need to cook in batches. Cover with a lid and cook for about 5 minutes or until the bottom side is golden brown and then flip over, add few drops of water on the pan to create some steam, cover with a lid again and cook for another 5 minutes or until they are golden brown
Cool down:
- Let them cool down on a cooling rack before storing. The soft mung bean cakes have "crispier" crust right when you just finished cooking them. The skin will be soft the next day (hence the name soft mung bean cakes)
How to store:
- Once they have cooled down completely, put them in an air-tight container for 2-3 days at room temperature
- For longer storage, put them on a baking tray lined with parchment and flash freeze them for 1 hour. Transfer to a freezer bag and they won't stick to each other anymore. Push all the air out from the bag and freeze for up to one month. Simply thaw at room temperature before eating
Recommended products:
Nutrition
How to make soft mung bean cake
1. Rinse the mung beans in several washes of water and drain off the water. Soak mung beans in hot water for 1 hour or in room temperature water for 4 hours. Drain off the soaking water. Discard the water after that and transfer to a dish, pour in water and put inside the steamer and steam over high heat for 20 minutes or longer until the beans can be easily mashed with a fork
2. Place the warm cooked mung beans, sugar, butter, condensed milk, and salt in a food processor or a blender and process into a smooth paste. You can also use a hand mixer to mix them all together. 
3. Portion into 25 grams balls. Keep them covered while you prepare the dough
4. Combine flour, yeast, salt, sugar and baking powder in a mixing bowl. 
5. Add oil and water and knead into a dough. It may not be smooth yet. Cover and let it rest for 20 minutes
6. After 20 minutes, give the dough some kneading again and you will notice that the dough is now smooth and soft
7. Divide the dough into 16 equal portions. I actually weigh the dough, about 20 grams each portion. Round it up into a ball. Keep them covered
8. Work with one dough at a time. Use your thumb to make an indentation in the middle and then put one filling in and mold the dough around the filling to enclose it. Pinch the seam to seal it. Round it into a dough ball
9. Place them on the baking sheet and flatten each dough slightly with your palm. Cover with a clean cloth and let them rest while you preheat the oven or the pan (if cooking on the stove)
10. If you plan to bake in the oven, preheat the oven to 375 F (190 C) for conventional oven, 350 F (180 C) for convection oven. If you plan to cook them on the pan, preheat a large non-stick pan over medium-low heat
11. To bake in the oven: Place the baking tray in the middle rack and bake for 8 minutes and then take the tray out and flip over and bake again for another 10 minutes or until nicely golden brown
12. To cook on the stove: Arrange the cake on the pre-heated pan without any oil. You may need to cook in batches. Cover with a lid and cook for about 5 minutes or until the bottom side is golden brown and then flip over, add few drops of water on the pan to create some steam, cover with a lid again and cook for another 5 minutes or until they are golden brown
13. Let them cool down on a cooling rack before storing. The soft mung bean cakes have “crispier” crust right when you just finished cooking them. The skin will be soft the next day (hence the name soft mung bean cakes)
To bake in the oven or to cook on the stove
The left soft mung bean cakes were cooked on the stove and the right were baked in the oven. The one baked in the oven are actually nicer in texture IMHO. It’s softer and airier versus the one baked on the stove. The color of the ones baked in the oven are also more even. But they are both nice!
Did you make this soft mung bean cake recipe?
I love it when you guys snap a photo and tag it to show me what you’ve made. Simply tag me @WhatToCookToday #WhatToCookToday on Instagram and I’ll be sure to stop by and take a peek for real!
2 comments
These were fun, easy to make and tasty to eat. Right out of the oven, they are very similar to a sweet baked bun, though not as puffy. I’m looking forward to tasting them again tomorrow when they are soft. I didn’t have mung beans on hand but still wanted to make it today so I made them with a Black sesame sweet white bean paste filling instead. I plan to make them again with the mung bean filling next time.
Is there a good substitute for condensed milk for those of us that can’t digest dairy?
Hi Kat, I’m glad you enjoy this recipe too! I like this soft mung bean cake too. The filling is very flexible and you can pretty much use whatever you like. As for the condensed milk, you can just omit it and it shouldn’t affect much 🙂