In the latest episode of “Around the World,” Great Big Story introduced seven rice dishes in 7 countries from Mexico to Iran, including Vietnam, accompanied by seven local people. According to that, “bánh tét lá cẩm” – a Vietnamese southern traditional food was shown through the cooking steps of Mrs. Le Thi Hoa, (Can Tho).
There are two criteria for this introduction, the rice needs to be a part of a more complex dish and it is connected to a country’s culinary identity.
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| Mrs Le Thi Hoa showed her bánh tét. Photo: Great Big Story |
Bánh tét lá cẩm is a violet cylindrical glutinous rice cake, which is usually used in Tet holiday. This is one of the most specialties in Can Tho as its unique taste and color. The main ingredients of the cake are sticky rice and violet tree leaves processed carefully using a special formula.
Rice is the principal food of Vietnamese dishes. However, a delicious bánh tét lá cẩm is made of Thai sticky rice, according to Mrs. Hoa. Besides the unique violet color, the rice cake contains pork, dried shrimp, salted duck eggs, and mung beans. The most difficult stage is to tie the cake with banana leaves, requiring the cook to hold closely tight.
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| Bánh tét lá cẩm rice cake. Photo: Great Big Story |
This year, CNN also listed Vietnamese noodles soup among top Asia’s dishes, including Pho, Bun Rieu, and Cao Lau. Pho is considered as the national food and exported with pride all over the world.
Other rice dishes in the list are Horchata (Mexico), Tahchin (Iran), Thiébou diene (Senegal), Karelian Pastry (Finland), Tteokbokki (South Korea), and Maqlubeh (Palestine).
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| Horchata (Mexico). Photo: Great Big Story |
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| Tahchin (Iran). Photo: Great Big Story |
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| Karelian Pastry (Finland). Photo: Great Big Story |
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| Tteokbokki (South Korea). Photo: Great Big Story |
