San Chay people's sticky rice cake
Rice cakes are made from glutinous rice, lye water, and chít leaves. The glutinous rice chosen must be mountain-grown, with every grain being perfect. The San Chay women carefully remove any black or damaged grains, wash it thoroughly, and then soak it in lye water to soften it. The lye water used for soaking the rice is made from burning bean husks, pomelo peels, jackfruit peels, and paulownia trees to create a unique flavor. After soaking the rice until it reaches the desired softness, it is removed, wrapped in chít leaves, boiled, and left to cool before eating.
The chít leaves are boiled thoroughly, changing the water several times to remove all the chlorophyll. Each rice cake only requires 2 or 3 chít leaves. Glutinous rice, soaked in water until it turns amber, is drained. Using a ladle, the rice is placed in the center of a clean, dry chít leaf, spread evenly and lengthwise, then rolled into a cylinder. The ends of the leaf are folded shut and tied tightly with soft string. Each rice cake is only about a handspan long and slightly larger than the core of a small banana, so it only needs to be boiled for three hours until tender. Once cooled, the cake is peeled and sliced into thin rounds. The translucent, beeswax-like appearance is already appealing, and dipping it in honey makes it even more delicious.
Le Hoa (St)
