Thursday - December 29, 2005

New Years Trivia: Vietnam

The more popular name for the Vietnamese New Year is Tet, where as the formal name is Nguyen-dan. Tet is a very inportant festival because it provides one of the few breaks in the agricultural year, as it falls between the harvesting of the crops and the sowing of the new crops. The Vietnamese prepare well in advance for the New Year by cleaning their houses, polishing their copper and silverware and paying off all their debts.

They observe the custom of the kitchen god tao for a week before the New Year, they believe there are three gods represented by the three legs of the cooking equipment used in the kitchen. The middle god is a woman the other two are her husbands. It was once customary to provide the gods with a carp on which to travel. The carp represents the second last stage in the process by which animals are gradually transformed into dragons. They buy the carp from the market, bring it home and place it in a bucket of water to place at the altar of the house before it is later set free.

A special rice pudding is eaten at New Year which must be prepared beforehand. The rice pudding is known as banh chung ** or banh tet. The pudding contains mung beans and pork. New Year foods such as preserved sweets, beef, chicken, fish, oranges, coconuts, grapefruits and other seasonal fruits, especially watermelon. Watermelon is considered lucky because the flesh is red, so the choice of the melon must be taken carefully so as to find one rich in color. The seeds are often dyed red also and served as delicacies.

The last day of the year a plant such as the bamboo tree is planted in the courtyard of their homes. They decorate the tree with bells, flowers, and red streamers. The decorations are not for decorative purposes but are to guard the family against evil spirits. During the middle of the day an offering is placed on the altar of the household for the ancestor’s of the family. This is done every day thorughout the New Year Festival and along with that incense is burnt at the altar.

They believed in the custom of the first person through the door in the New Year will reflect the family’s future luck and wealth. On the first day of the new year they visit all their closest friends, teachers and their parents. The second day they visit their in-laws and other friends who are not as close. Third day they visit the family of their teacher and their more distant relatives.

On the fourth day the spirits return to heaven and business returns to normal. They also visit their local temple and they bring back flowers or greenery as a gift from the celestial spirits. This gift will be kept in the house all year.

** Vietnamese Rice Cake in Banana Leaf (Banh Chung) Recipe:

• 2 cups sticky (glutinous) rice, preferably long-grain
• 1 drop green food coloring (optional)
• 1/4 cup dried split mung beans
• 2 tablespoons chopped shallots
• 1 1/2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 6 ounces pork shoulder or butt or chicken thighs, cut into 1/4-inch thick chunks
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 (15 x 17-inch) sheets plastic wrap plus extra
• 1 (15 x 17-inch sheet aluminum foil
• 2 (15-inch square) pieces banana leaf
• Kitchen string

Place the sticky rice in a large bowl and cover with 3 inches of water. Stir in the food coloring, if using, and let the rice soak overnight. You should have about 4 cups of rice after soaking. In a separate bowl, soak the mung beans for at least 4 hours. Combine the shallots, fish sauce, black pepper and pork pieces and let marinate for 30 minutes.

Just before cooking, drain the rice and the beans and leave them in separate bowls. Add the salt to the rice and stir to blend. Heat the oil in a frying pan over moderate heat. Add the pork pieces and all the marinade and stir just until the meat is brown around the edges, about 3 to 4 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and set aside. Using a steamer basket, steam the mung beans over simmering water until they’re soft, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.

To make the packet, neatly lay down the wrappers in this order: one sheet of plastic wrap, the aluminum foil and two sheets of banana leaves (one perpendicular to the other). Place 1 cup of rice in the center of the banana leaf, spreading it over a 5-inch-square area. Place half of the mung beans on top then add the pork pieces. Cover again with the remaining mung beans and place 1 cup of rice on top.

Bring the narrow sides of the wrappers together. Fold the gathered edges over twice, then flatten against the packet. (You now have two open ends.) Fold one end over and hold the packet upright. Add half of the remaining rice, tapping it and pushing it down so the packet will be an even square. Fold the ends (like wrapping a gift box) and repeat on the other side.

Place the packet with the folded sides down in the center of the remaining plastic sheet. Wrap tightly so water will not seep into the packet during cooking. Tightly tie the packet with two parallel strings in both directions (as in a tic-tac-toe pattern). Fill a large stockpot with water. Add the packet and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a low simmer. Place a colander or something heavy to keep the packet submerged in the water. Cook, uncovered, for 4 hours, adding more water as necessary. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool for 1 hour.

To serve, cut the packet (without unwrapping) into 1/2-inch slices. Remove the wrapping and arrange the slices on a serving plate. Serve warm or at room temperature. If wrapped in plastic and refrigerated, the cake will keep for 1 week.

_{Source: An e-mail from some guy named Tranh An Vuong.}

Posted by Ronald Reagan's Ghost     on 12/29/2005 at 10:18 AM   
Filed Under: • Fun-Stuff •  
• Comments (6) • Trackbacks(0)  Permalink •  

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