Hanoi turns cool, beautiful, romantic but a little sad in the autumn. This season brings to Hanoi people delicious foods such as Young green rice (Cốm), Dracontomelon duperreanum (Sấu), mooncake (Bánh trung thu). Young green rice sweet soup – a Vietnamese traditional food is an elegant food of Hanoi. The Young green rice and Young green rice sweet soup have become something important in Hanoi. It is not only a food but a part of local life, the unique culture of Hanoi. The sweet soup has attracted not only local people but also visitors including travelers. Local people love to eat sticky, lightly sweet and outstandingly fragrant Young green rice sweet soup (Chè cốm, Che com) at street food stalls on the streets, enjoy the streets and the fresh air on cool Autumn days. Eating a portion of Young green rice sweet soup to warm your stomach and satisfy your taste is one of the should-try things in Hanoi.
The main ingredient, as well as the soul of this sweet soup, is Young green rice. Hanoi people have created a dedicated food from young green glutinous rice which is harvested about 10 days earlier. The young green Golden-flower glutinous rice is pounded using wooden pestles until the grains and husks are apart. The grains turn flat and they become a great ingredient to make Young green rice sweet soup. Vong village in Hanoi is famous for high-quality Young green rice.
Below is the recipe for the simplest Young green rice sweet soup:
Ingredients:
- Dried/Fresh Young green rice: 200g
- Sugar (white granulated sugar or rock sugar): 150g
- Kudzu powder: 50g
- Fresh pandan leaves: 2
Steps:
- If it is dried Young green rice, rinse it in a drainer, soak it in water for 3-5 minutes, the dried Young green rice turns tender.
- Mix kudzu powder with 100ml of water.
- Add Young green rice to 1l of water, add sugar and pandan leaves, cook until the sugar has melted, add kudzu powder mixture, stir until the sweet soup broth turns thick.
- Serve Young green rice sweet soup in a bowl.
They can add pandan leaf extract to the sweet soup and top it with coconut milk to enhance its flavor. Here is a more complex recipe for Young green rice sweet soup:
Ingredients:
- Dried/Fresh Young green rice: 200g
- Sugar (white granulated sugar or rock sugar): 150g
- Kudzu powder: 50g
- Fresh pandan leaves: 5
- Coconut milk: 250ml
- Coconut meat: 100g (optional)
Steps:
- If it is dried Young green rice, rinse it in a drainer, soak it in water for 3-5 minutes, the dried Young green rice turns tender.
- Mix kudzu powder with 100ml of water.
- Grind 3 pandan leaves with 200ml of water, filter to get the extract.
- Add Young green rice to 1l of water, add sugar and 2 pandan leaves, cook until the sugar has melted, add pandan leaf extract, kudzu powder mixture, coconut milk, stir until the sweet soup broth turns thick.
- Serve Young green rice sweet soup in a bowl, top it with coconut milk and shredded coconut meat.
