Sweet and fragrant mooncakes of the Giáy people.

Every year, after the full moon of the seventh lunar month, Giáy families in Mường Hum begin preparing the ingredients for making mooncakes. The atmosphere is bustling and exciting, and the sweet aroma emanating from the kitchen smoke makes autumn in Mường Hum truly special. But even more special is the way Giáy women in Mường Hum tell stories about making mooncakes.

Giáy women prepare ingredients for making mooncakes.

For the Giáy people, women must know how to make mooncakes. The cake is not only a traditional food but also considered the "soul" and symbol of community bonding during the Mid-Autumn Festival. The art of making these cakes is passed down from grandmothers and mothers to their children, requiring meticulous attention to detail and strict adherence to the proportions of ingredients to create a delicious and distinctive flavor.

The Giáy people typically make mooncakes with two common fillings: mung bean and mixed nuts. For mung bean mooncakes, the most laborious step is simmering the filling. After washing the mung beans, they are soaked for about 4 hours, steamed until cooked, mashed, and then simmered. The simmering process takes an average of 2-2.5 hours until the mung beans reach the desired consistency.

The process of shaping the cakes.

For the mixed-filling mooncake, the ingredients are equally elaborate. They include candied winter melon, local black pork fat simmered with sugar, lime leaves, sesame seeds, peanuts... All blended together in a subtly sweet, fragrant sauce of sugar and condensed milk.

However, the crust-making process is the crucial factor determining the success of the traditional Giáy mooncake. Only when eggs, flour, and condensed milk are mixed in the "golden ratio" will the crust achieve the desired softness, fluffiness, and maintain its shape without cracking when baked at high temperatures.

The traditional way of baking mooncakes is also very special. Apart from a few households using modern ovens, the majority of Giáy people still maintain the traditional method of baking mooncakes over a wood-fired stove. The cakes to be baked are arranged in a thick cast-iron pot placed over a fire, then a pan of fire is placed on top of the pot lid, so that the cakes are evenly golden brown on both sides.

Every Giáy woman knows how to make mooncakes.

Despite its elaborate and complex nature, every Giáy woman in Mường Hum knows how to make traditional mooncakes. When autumn arrives, with its cool breezes and ripe persimmons turning red, the small kitchens of the Giáy people fill with the bustling atmosphere of women preparing batches of fragrant and sweet mooncakes.

This year, Ms. Vuong Thi Ha made about 100 extra cakes to give to relatives living far away. After preparing all the ingredients, she invited several women from the village to her house to make the cakes. Soon, the house was filled with laughter and conversation, everyone gathered around the large table, each person taking on a different task, creating a warm and joyful atmosphere.

Ms. Vuong Thi Ha said: "I learned how to make mooncakes from my mother-in-law. Previously, I only made mooncakes for my family and to give as gifts to relatives and acquaintances far away. About 15 years ago, at a large fair, while standing at a booth introducing mooncakes made by the Giay people in the Bat Xat district (formerly) booth, I received my first orders. Since then, each Mid-Autumn Festival season, my family supplies about 2,000 mooncakes to the market."

These cakes are delicious.

Like Ms. Ha, Ms. Ly Thi Hoa also learned to make mooncakes from her mother-in-law and became a renowned baker in Muong Hum. Using the secrets passed down from her mother-in-law, and through her skillful hands and creativity, Ms. Hoa has now created a famously delicious mooncake recipe. Each Mid-Autumn Festival season, Ms. Hoa makes around 3,000 mooncakes to supply the market.

Ingredients that make up this delicious traditional dish.

For the Giáy people in Mường Hum, the Mid-Autumn Festival is as important as the Lunar New Year, and mooncakes play a special role similar to sticky rice cakes during the New Year. The cake is not only a bond connecting family, village, and community, but also a cultural symbol deeply rooted in the Giáy people's identity.

According to the Culture and Social Affairs Department of Muong Hum commune, there are currently more than 200 households making mooncakes in the commune, mainly concentrated in Pieng Lao and Muong Hum villages.

From being a traditional cake closely associated with the life of the Giáy people, the product has now expanded to the market and is well-received by many consumers. The aspiration of Giáy women today is to establish a cooperative and make Mường Hum mooncakes an OCOP product in the future.

Source: https://baolaocai.vn/ngot-thom-vi-banh-trung-thu-cua-nguoi-giay-post882567.html