Currently trending on social media.
These days, the sticky rice cart of Mrs. Cao Kim Thoa (62 years old, residing in Binh Chanh District) and her husband, located on Tung Thien Vuong Street (District 8, near the foot of Cha Va Bridge), has suddenly become a sensation on social media, with many people sharing its address.
Ms. Thoa said she has been selling sticky rice since she was 21 years old.
[CLIP]: Sticky rice cart in Ho Chi Minh City that has been wrapping rice in banana leaves for 40 years.
That's why when I arrived at this sticky rice stall at 8 o'clock, I saw a long line of people waiting, and the pot of sticky rice was almost empty, even though I knew this stall usually sells from 5 to 10 o'clock. "We're out of sticky rice, dear, come back in the afternoon!" Many customers who came to buy sticky rice sadly left after hearing the owners' words, deciding to come back another time.
Mr. Dang Tuan Duy, a regular customer.Among those customers was Mr. Dang Tuan Duy (28 years old, residing in District 8). He said that normally he goes to work at 7:30 AM and stops by to buy sticky rice on his way. He buys it for breakfast or lunch 5-6 times a week because it's delicious, but for three consecutive days he couldn't buy any.
Sticky rice here costs 17,000 VND, and customers can order more if they wish.
"I've been eating here for over six years, ever since I got married and moved here. Normally, the sticky rice stall is very busy, you have to wait a bit, but you can still buy some. These past few days, for some reason, it's been incredibly crowded; if you arrive a little late, you won't get any. I just drive along the road looking for places that sell breakfast and buy some," he said.
As one of the last customers to buy sticky rice, Ms. Hanh (from District 5) said she accidentally found out about this sticky rice stall online when it had been trending for the past few days. Although she made an effort to go early, the sticky rice was almost sold out by the time she arrived.
"I almost missed out on buying sticky rice. I saw people recommending the shop, saying they only wrap the rice in banana leaves and the owner soaks it in coconut milk, making it taste delicious. And it was true! Just looking at it made my mouth water," she commented.
The sticky rice dish is simple but delicious.
While busily preparing portions of sticky rice for customers, Mrs. Thoa confided that it wasn't just recently that her sticky rice stall had a stable base of loyal customers; it was always crowded, especially before the summer break for students.
The sticky rice that Mrs. Thoa sells looks simple, but when eaten with dried shrimp, stir-fried pickled mustard greens, Chinese sausage, quail eggs, shredded pork floss, and peanuts, the combination creates a unique taste of childhood unlike anywhere else.
Furthermore, the owner revealed that the sticky rice here is cooked with coconut milk so that the "rice grains absorb the coconut milk," resulting in a fluffy, glossy texture with a slightly sweet taste. Besides that, the shop also offers pandan leaf sticky rice, cooked entirely with natural pandan leaves and served with mung beans, similar to steamed sticky rice.
Sticky rice is wrapped entirely in banana leaves.
"The reason I've always wrapped sticky rice in banana leaves is because I find it looks nicer that way, and the rice stays hot longer. If I put it in a plastic container, the rice cools down quickly, becomes hard, and neither the customers nor I are happy with it. No matter what, I have to wrap it in banana leaves because it's what makes the sticky rice taste so good when it reaches the customer," Mrs. Thoa revealed her reason.
Why does it have such a unique name?
I wondered why many customers called it "firefighter sticky rice," and the owner laughed, saying it was because it was located near a fire station in District 8, making it easy to spot the place to buy sticky rice, and she thought it was a nice name. But for her, the name wasn't that important; what mattered was that the sticky rice was delicious and the customers liked it.
From what I observed, Mrs. Thoa and her husband are quite accommodating to their customers. No matter what the customers request, what they like to eat, or what they can't eat, the owner enthusiastically fulfills their requests. She says she wants customers to have the best and most satisfying experience when they visit and support her restaurant.
With each meal, the owner tries her best to please the customers.
At 20, the owner got married. At 21, wanting a profession to make a living and also liking the business of selling sticky rice (because she thought sticky rice looked beautiful), she decided to open a shop. It was called a shop, but back then, Mrs. Thoa's sticky rice stall only had a small table, and she sold about 2 kg of sticky rice a day.
Despite having worked in restaurants for many years, cooking sticky rice was difficult for Mrs. Thoa in the beginning, as she admitted that her cooking wasn't good enough and customers didn't like it. Many times, she sadly had to throw away the sticky rice because it didn't sell well and she couldn't eat it all.
Ms. Thoa, the seller"Learning by doing, I've become a better cook, discovering my own secrets for making sticky rice. Customers have come to support me and become loyal, some for decades. My husband, after retiring from his freelance job, has also been helping me sell for over ten years," said Mrs. Thoa, looking at Mr. Ngo Van Hung (63 years old, Mrs. Thoa's husband) busily cleaning up.
The owner is passing on her trade to her daughter, so that the daughter can inherit it in the future.
Ms. Thoa said that she has replaced her sticky rice cart three times; every ten years or so, it breaks down and needs replacing. But thanks to these "generations" of sticky rice carts, she has been able to support her entire family and raise her children to adulthood. Currently, she is "training" and passing on the trade to her youngest daughter so that she can inherit her mother's food stall when she is no longer able to sell.
Source link
Comment (0)