Soldiers of the Guard Brigade enthusiastically wrap banh chung (traditional Vietnamese rice cakes) for Tet.

On the morning of February 6th (the 27th day of the 12th lunar month), Brigade 144, under the General Staff of the Ministry of National Defense – a unit tasked with protecting the Ministry of National Defense's headquarters, conferences, international delegations of the Ministry, and other security duties – organized a "Green Sticky Rice Cake Wrapping Contest" to celebrate the Lunar New Year of the Year of the Dragon 2024.

From early morning, officers and soldiers were present at the unit's football field, preparing ingredients for making the cakes such as banana leaves, meat, beans, etc., for each competing team.

This is an annual activity of the unit during the Lunar New Year, aimed at recalling the traditions and cultural beauty of the Vietnamese people, creating a warm and friendly atmosphere of camaraderie. Banh chung (traditional Vietnamese rice cake) is also a long-standing traditional dish in Vietnam, indispensable during the Lunar New Year.

The competition consisted of 7 teams, each with 10 officers and soldiers participating, divided into 5 different groups for wrapping the rice cakes. Each group had 2 officers and soldiers competing in wrapping the cakes within 60 minutes. The organizers would score based on the quantity, quality, and stages of wrapping, as well as the final product.

Seven teams from the Youth Union branches of Battalion 1, Company 18, and Company 20 participated in the competition. A total of approximately 1,500 banh chung (traditional Vietnamese rice cakes) were made in this year's competition.

Banh chung (Vietnamese sticky rice cake) is judged according to the following criteria: The cakes are uniform in size, meet the specified dimensions, have square edges, the leaves are green and flat, and the weight is between 600-700g.

Soldier Vu Van Hau (born in 2004, on the right), from the 5th Firefighting Company (Battalion 1, Brigade 144), beams as he experiences wrapping banh chung (traditional Vietnamese rice cakes) for the first time. This is an incredibly memorable Tet holiday for Hau, as it's the first time the young soldier has celebrated Tet away from home.

As the lively sounds of Tet music filled the air, Hau felt a pang of nostalgia for his family and loved ones. However, thanks to meaningful and heartwarming activities like today's at his unit, Hau was able to temporarily forget his homesickness.

The atmosphere was joyful, convivial, and lively around the trays of cakes prepared by the young soldiers.

The finished banh chung (traditional Vietnamese rice cakes) were arranged on each team's fruit platter for the organizers to judge. Spring peach blossoms, peony flowers, red couplets... all contributed to bringing the festive atmosphere of Tet (Vietnamese New Year) to the unit.

The judges went to each team to inspect and score their finished products after a morning of hard work.

Young soldiers hold pairs of traditional Tet rice cakes in their hands after completing the rice cake wrapping competition.

Source link: https://dantri.com.vn/tet-2024/chien-si-lu-doan-can-ve-phan-khoi-goi-banh-chung-tet-20240206105342340.htm