Culinary quintessence from sticky rice

In the highland communes of Tuyen Quang, sticky rice not only feeds people but also contributes to nurturing the culture and customs of the community. On the rice fields, sticky rice ripens in season, giving off a fragrant aroma, and is created by the local people into many unique dishes. Among them, three typical dishes closely associated with the lives of the ethnic minorities of Tuyen Quang are bamboo-tube rice, sticky rice cake and five-color sticky rice.

Bamboo rice - flavor from the mountains and forests

Bamboo rice is a familiar dish of the Tay, Dao, and Mong people. Fragrant sticky rice is washed, soaked in cool spring water, then put into young bamboo tubes, covered with banana leaves at both ends, and grilled over hot coals. When the bamboo tube is charred, the fragrant smell of bamboo mixed with the smell of cooked sticky rice is released, and the bamboo rice is formed. Bamboo rice is not only a daily meal on the fields, but also a symbol of connection with nature, of the spirit of persistent labor in the mountains and forests.

Banh Day - a dish of festivals and reunions

In the lives of the Mong, Dao, Tay people, etc., Banh Day is an indispensable dish during Tet or festivals. Sticky rice is steamed, pounded in a wooden mortar with a large pestle, forming a smooth, soft mass, then shaped into round, white cakes. Banh Day symbolizes completeness, fullness, and is closely associated with agricultural beliefs praying for favorable weather. In many highland villages in Tuyen Quang, during holidays and Tet, there is always a tray of Banh Day offered to ancestors, then shared with children and visitors to enjoy.

Five-color sticky rice - a brocade painting of the forest

If sticky rice is simple and sticky rice cake symbolizes abundance, then five-color sticky rice is as brilliant as a brocade on a happy tray. Highland women skillfully dye sticky rice with natural colors: purple leaves for purple, red gac fruit for red, turmeric for yellow, green sticky rice for green, and the original white color of sticky rice...

The three dishes - bamboo rice, sticky rice cake, and five-color sticky rice - although prepared differently, have something in common: they are the crystallization of fragrant sticky rice, hard work, and creativity of ethnic people.

Source: https://baotuyenquang.com.vn/van-hoa/am-thuc/202508/tinh-hoa-am-thuc-tu-lua-nep-e5d3ede/