(Dan Tri Newspaper) – Sugarcane juice, during the boiling and concentrating process, turns into syrup, emitting a fragrant aroma. This special drink is produced only once a year to celebrate Tet (Lunar New Year).
From around mid-November in the lunar calendar, when the sugarcane has accumulated enough sugar, people in Nghia Hung commune, Nghia Dan district, Nghe An province begin harvesting. The sugarcane is cut, the tops are removed, and it is bundled into bunches for easy transportation. Sugarcane cutters can earn 200,000 VND per day from this seasonal work.
According to Mr. Tran Van Dong, Vice Chairman of the Nghia Hung Commune People's Committee, the entire commune has 500 hectares of sugarcane. Only a small portion is supplied by farmers to sugar factories, while the majority is sold to sugarcane molasses processing facilities in Gang village.
The craft of making sugarcane molasses in Gang village, Nghia Hung commune, dates back to 1960 and was recognized as a traditional craft village in 2013. Two of the village's main products, sugarcane molasses and rock sugar, achieved 3-star OCOP (One Commune One Product) certification in 2023. The village's products are sold as soon as they are produced, especially during the Lunar New Year.
The sugarcane pressing process has been mechanized using pressing machines. The use of these machines increases pressing efficiency, extracts all the sugarcane juice, and minimizes labor and manpower.
The sugarcane juice is then put on the stove to cook. Instead of using individual cast-iron pans as before to cook the syrup, the villagers of Gang have created a stove system that can hold five pans of syrup cooking simultaneously.
Maintaining the fire to ensure the correct temperature in the furnace is crucial. Each batch of honey takes about 1.5 hours to cook. During that time, fuel must be constantly added and the temperature of the stove maintained. This is a strenuous task that requires great patience.
With high temperatures, the sugarcane juice boils and bubbles. People use a tall iron container, about 50cm high, placed over the pot to prevent the boiling water from overflowing. While the water boils, the cook must continuously use a long ladle to skim off the foam. This is the most important step to ensure the syrup is clean, clear, and has a beautiful color.
Once the sugarcane juice has been concentrated into syrup, the foam is skimmed off one more time before it cools and is stored in barrels for preservation.
The process of filtering out sediment continues during honey storage to ensure that the product supplied to the market is of the highest quality and has the most appealing color.
Mr. Vo Dinh Luong, Director of the Lang Gang Sugarcane Molasses Processing Cooperative, said that currently, each 200-liter barrel of molasses costs 4-4.2 million VND. This season, his family expects to produce 60 barrels of molasses, and after deducting production costs, raw materials, and labor, he expects to earn a profit of over 60 million VND.
"We produce honey every 2-3 days, when we have enough ingredients. The honey-making process lasts from 4 to 20 hours. From mid-December onwards, the honey-making furnaces are practically burning all day long to meet market demand," Mr. Luong shared.
According to Mr. Nguyen The Vinh, Deputy Director of the Lang Gang Sugarcane Syrup Processing Cooperative, most of the sugarcane syrup is supplied to the market for the Lunar New Year, while a portion is kept and stored in barrels to crystallize into rock sugar. The crystallization process of syrup into rock sugar takes 8-9 months.
"One 200-liter barrel of molasses will yield about 40kg of rock sugar. Compared to selling molasses, rock sugar has a higher economic value, earning 1.2-1.5 million VND per barrel," Mr. Vinh said.
Gang village's sugarcane molasses has a unique flavor, a deep amber color, is clear, and has a sweet aroma. It is mostly consumed before the Lunar New Year, primarily used in the production of certain types of cakes and in cooking traditional dishes.
The honey-making profession has created jobs for more than 200 workers in Gang village, with an income of about 6 million VND per month.
Dantri.com.vn
Source: https://dantri.com.vn/lao-dong-viec-lam/do-mo-hoi-dung-bep-nau-thu-nuoc-song-sanh-thom-ngot-goi-tet-20250105233651081.htm
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