Like pumpkins and candy at Halloween, rice flakes are a must during the fall in the capital.
It is an unwritten rule that when you talk about autumn in Hanoi, you have to mention rice flakes. No one knows when the flat sticky rice first became an autumn delicacy in the capital, but the art of making the tasty snack has been well-preserved for more than a century in Me Tri Village.
More than 50 households in this village have their fires burning for rice flakes twice a year, depending on the harvest season.
Experience shows that rice picked during fall makes the best rice flakes because it is sweeter and more aromatic.
The sticky rice used for rice flakes should come from young plants. Me Tri Village in Nam Tu Liem District and Vong Village in Cau Giay District are the most famous places in the north for this treat.
These women are removing the grains from paddy flowers.
The grains are soaked in water. The tailings, which float to the surface, are removed.
The grains are roasted for two hours.
Then they are ground under a wooden pestle, and the ground grains are screened again to remove all the husks.
The final product is wrapped in lotus leaves, and these green-yellow flakes are ready to serve. Some creative northerners have also used them to make delicious steamed sticky rice or ice cream, and coat shrimp and fish balls with the flakes before frying.