A unique and delicious dish: sticky rice with palm fruit.

Not sweet, not easy to eat, but palm fruit is becoming a specialty in Phu Tho. From ripe palm fruit, through the skillful hands of the locals, the simple palm fruit sticky rice dish, whose origins are unknown, carries the flavor of the mountains and hills, rich, creamy, and unique.

Palm meat is mixed with sticky rice.

Around the 11th lunar month, when the cold winds arrive, the midland region of Phu Tho enters the palm fruit ripening season. Palm fruit – a fruit not for everyone. It's not easy to eat, even somewhat astringent on the first try. But for the people of Phu Tho, palm fruit is a simple, rustic gift from their homeland, an indispensable part of the winter season.

We can find palm fruit in many places, from rural markets to city streets or online... and many dishes are made from palm fruit. From stewed palm fruit, palm fruit pickled in fish sauce, rice balls wrapped in palm leaves, fish stewed with palm fruit... to sticky rice with palm fruit, silkworms from palm fruit, and palm oil.

During palm season, Mr. Loc goes searching for the best palm trees to harvest and sell.

The palm fruit ripening season can last several months, depending on the weather. When the palms are ripe, people go up the hills and into the forests to harvest them. Tall palm trees with thorny trunks and dense foliage usually yield delicious fruit. Harvesting palms is not easy; it requires experience and skill. Harvesters must use ladders or long poles to knock the clusters of palm fruit down. Mr. Nguyen Huu Loc, a palm harvester with many years of experience in Zone 10, Van Phu Ward, shared: "Not everyone knows how to eat palm fruit, and even less so how to cook it properly. Palm fruit is selective in terms of who eats it, and also in terms of who cooks it. Not every tree produces delicious fruit. When harvesting, I have to test whether the fruit is ripe enough, whether the pulp is thick, and whether it's very or not astringent. If the raw palm fruit tastes good, only then do I harvest it to sell..."

It is precisely this meticulousness, selective taste, and unique flavor that makes delicious palm fruit a sought-after local delicacy.

The palm fruit is rubbed to remove the outer skin, then it is boiled until cooked.

Among the countless dishes made from palm fruit, palm fruit sticky rice is considered both unique and simple, yet not everyone can make it well. Palm fruit sticky rice doesn't require complicated ingredients, just two main things: palm fruit and glutinous rice. However, to achieve a batch of fragrant, rich, and chewy sticky rice, meticulous attention to detail is needed in every step.

Those who make sticky rice with palm fruit usually choose ripe, undamaged, slightly bitter palm fruits with a naturally rich flavor. Mrs. Nguyen Thi Hoa, from Nui Trang area, Phu Ninh commune, while nimbly making palm fruit sticky rice, recounted: "I don't know when it started, but palm fruit has become a delicious and unique dish that my sisters and I have never tired of eating since we were children. Every palm fruit season, we go hunting for the best palm fruits to boil, and then we make palm fruit sticky rice together. This delicious dish isn't found everywhere..."

After harvesting, the palm fruits are washed, shaken to remove the outer skin and reduce bitterness, then placed in a pot of hot water at about 70 degrees Celsius. The "boiling" process lasts 20-25 minutes, depending on the ripeness of the fruit. When the palm fruits are soft and a layer of golden-yellow oil rises to the surface of the water – this is a sign of a good batch of palm fruit. At that point, the golden-yellow flesh of the palm fruit is separated for further processing.

The glutinous rice must be of high quality, with plump grains, soaked overnight to make it soft and fragrant. The cooked sticky rice is poured onto a tray and immediately mixed with the palm meat while still hot, with a little salt added for flavor. The cook's hands must be quick and even to ensure the palm meat blends into each grain of rice. Afterward, the sticky rice is steamed a second time to allow the palm flavor to penetrate deeper, resulting in a soft, glossy, and rich texture.

Palm oil, when mixed with glutinous rice, gives the sticky rice an attractive dark yellow color. Some people, being more meticulous, may add a little fried shallots and lard, enhancing the rich and unique flavor.

The palm meat, mixed with sticky rice, turns into an attractive dark yellow color.

Enjoying sticky rice with palm fruit is a sensory journey. The first bite might be a little strange, but the more you eat, the more you'll be hooked, and you'll clearly feel the rich, creamy, and nutty flavor spreading across your tongue – a taste unlike any other type of sticky rice. Sticky rice with palm fruit is usually eaten with simple sesame salt, yet it's a satisfying combination.

In the chilly air of a winter morning, a steaming bowl of sticky rice with palm oil not only warms the stomach but also evokes the warm and affectionate way of life of the countryside. It is a simple, unpretentious gift, yet it contains the love and affection of the land and people of the central highlands.

Sticky rice with palm fruit – along with other rustic dishes – has contributed to the unique culinary identity of Phu Tho. Anyone who has tasted it once will surely carry with them a fond memory of Phu Tho – a place of golden ripe palm fruit and flavors that cannot be found anywhere else.

Moc Lam

Source: https://baophutho.vn/la-mieng-tu-mon-xoi-co-244928.htm