Glutinous rice chupatty of Ve Village – A traditional speciality in Hanoi – Food – Travel

Glutinous rice chupatty of Ve Village – A traditional speciality in Hanoi – Food – Travel

Hanoi Times – There are many sorts of glutinous rice chupatties; however, it is not easy to enjoy the delicious o­ne that was used as king offering. That’s the glutinous rice chupatty of Ve Village (or Dong Ngac at present) in the suburb of Hanoi.

The glutinous rice chupatty of Ve Village is made from sticky rice which is first selected carefully, then washed and dried. The secret to make “bac” sauce is the five ingredients including betel leaf, soapberry, wild taro, bark of the coral tree and the lamp wick tree. All these five ingredients must be mixed proportionately and poured into a big pot to boil carefully. Then “bac” sauce is decanted, left cold and mixed with sticky rice. This mixture is soaked in water for about half an hour and then cooked.

Only a few people cannot make glutinous rice chupatty. A group of rice cake makers includes at least ten people, of which three men must be young, strong and take charge of grinding sticky rice. Women and children are responsible for kneading dough and putting it out to dry in the sun for seven times. When it is completely dry, it should be preserved carefully in a big jar. o­nly when eating will it be fried. Frying glutinous rice chupatty is an art because it is advisable to choose fresh and white pork fat. First, heat the pan. Then pour fat and put cakes into the frying pan. When the fat is heated, it will make these cakes float and suddenly swell up as big as duck eggs. Then these cakes will be covered with asugar coat. People now can enjoy both the fragrance and the sweetness of this cake.

Nowadays, there are a wide variety of cakes; therefore, glutinous rice chupatty is seldom mentioned. Even children in Ve Village have never seen or eaten this cake. Whether sticky rice chupatty – a king offering goes into oblivion or not. Let’s keep up simple Vietnamese foods in general and glutinous rice chupatty in particular. It’s a valuable folk culture and national feature.-

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