Rice dumplings from the countryside market

Wandering around the rural market to buy sticky rice dumplings.

Although it's no longer purely "rural," the market still retains the delicious treats from decades ago. And even though you buy so much that your hands are heavy, from vegetables and fruits to meat, you still have to lug along a "bunch" of traditional cakes, especially a few dozen sticky rice dumplings.

Anyone who has never made sticky rice dumplings before might think they're not too complicated at first glance. However, sticky rice dumplings are considered a labor-intensive dish, requiring many steps in the preparation process.

The main ingredients of banh u (rice dumpling) are glutinous rice and mung beans. Thanks to the skill of the person wrapping them, banh u from rural markets have their own unique flavor.

The person making the cakes must pick out any unripe grains mixed in, then wash the glutinous rice thoroughly with clean water and drain. Small mung beans are soaked in water until they swell, then carefully peeled. The pork used for the filling must be pork belly marinated with ground pepper and several characteristic spices of the countryside kitchen. Besides the glutinous rice and beans, banana leaves and string for tying the cakes are also prepared several days in advance. Each time they wrap the cakes, everyone spreads out a mat, gathers around, and each person quickly wraps each cake.

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The alleyway of steamed rice dumplings, red ash from the fire, has preserved the spirit of the Dragon Boat Festival for over half a century.As the Dragon Boat Festival approaches, the "rice dumpling village" in alley 1172 Pham The Hien, Binh Dong ward, Ho Chi Minh City, becomes bustling with activity. Amidst the ever-changing urban life, batches of ash-wrapped rice dumplings continue to be produced regularly, preserving their familiar flavor for over half a century.

The craft of wrapping banh tet and banh u in bamboo leaves in Hoa Dien.The traditional craft of wrapping banh tet and banh u in bamboo leaves in Thanh Loi hamlet, Hoa Dien commune, helps many families achieve stable livelihoods and contributes to solving the unemployment problem in the locality.

An entire neighborhood in Ho Chi Minh City stayed up all night wrapping hundreds of thousands of glutinous rice dumplings to celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival.These days, the small alley on Pham The Hien Street (Ho Chi Minh City) is brightly lit throughout the night as dozens of households are busy wrapping hundreds of thousands of sticky rice dumplings in bamboo leaves for the Dragon Boat Festival.

Wrapping the rice cake is also an art form. If the wrapper isn't skillful, the cake will be uneven in size and won't look appealing. Careful and skillful placement of the glutinous rice into the banana leaf is essential; it must be neatly and evenly distributed before wrapping the leaf and folding the edges at both ends of the cake to ensure a tight, even, and balanced fit.

The value of sticky rice dumplings remains unchanged; their flavor can never fade.

The cake must be perfectly shaped, with sharp edges and a slender form, four pointed corners, and six equal sides. The string used to tie the cake should not be too tight so that the glutinous rice grains can expand and cook evenly when boiled.
After preparing the dough, gently fill the pot with the mixture and place it over a charcoal fire. Cook for several hours until the cakes are evenly cooked, then remove them from the pot.

With each bite, you'll experience the full flavor of the marinated meat, the soft, cooked mung beans blended with sticky rice, and the rich, chewy, and crispy texture of the pork.

Sticky rice dumplings are not only the product of the skillful hands of the maker but also the fragrant aroma of the countryside, from the scent of banana leaves and string. Half a dozen dumplings cost only twenty thousand dong, not too expensive to give as gifts to guests near and far.

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Eating glutinous rice dumplings on the Dragon Boat Festival evokes a deep longing for home.On the occasion of the Dragon Boat Festival, many young people living far from home express their intense homesickness; some choose to buy tickets to return to their hometowns to reunite with their families, while others celebrate the festival in a different way, going to the market in the heart of Ho Chi Minh City to buy a few glutinous rice dumplings to ease their homesickness.

Ho Chi Minh City: Dragon Boat Festival market is bustling, with a strong increase in purchasing power.Amidst the bustling urban life, the traditional rice dumplings, rice wine, and fruit platters of the Dragon Boat Festival still retain their meaning of family bonding and preserving national cultural identity through generations.

Sticky rice dumplings and fermented rice wine become popular dishes during the Dragon Boat Festival.VHO - On the 5th day of the 5th lunar month, the Dragon Boat Festival market became vibrant with familiar items such as glutinous rice dumplings wrapped in banana leaves, fermented rice, fruits, and herbs for steaming. Although purchasing power was not as explosive as in previous years, traditional dishes still held a special place in people's lives.

In times of economic hardship, sticky rice dumplings were only found at ancestral worship ceremonies. Gradually, they became a popular snack sold in local markets. Occasionally, they even graced the elaborate menus of feasts and gatherings in Quang Nam province.

This just goes to show that the flavors of one's homeland never fade.

Source: https://baoquangnam.vn/banh-u-cho-que-3137590.html