Published:  15:52 Monday - January 23, 2017

Cơm lam, "bamboo-tube rice" is a Vietnamese rice dish found in the Northwest Mountainous Area. At present, it becomes a specialities in this area that anyone coming here want to try.

Cơm lam was originated when mountain people, such as the Tháy people, would prepare for long journeys by pressing wet rice, with added salt, into bamboo tubes, and cooking.Cơm lam is also served in Central Highlands food stalls with chicken.

Specifically, they use rice, often glutinous rice, cooked in a tube of bamboo, combine with salted roasted sesame, grilled pork or chicken skewers. The bamboo chosen should be fresh and young so that the new membrane inside the tube can wrap the rice, adding it a special flavor, fragrance and sweetness. To prepare the rice, first fill the tube with about 80% of rice and 10 % of water, in favor of water inherent in bamboo, then adding a little coconut water to make the rice more pleasant; wrap the tube with banana leaves and then burn it on fire until it smells pleasant.

When it is done, the singed skin of the bamboo is removed, leaving a thin cover that is also peeled away when you eat. Sniffing the blending fragrance of fresh bamboo, banana leave, and sticky rice as well as experiencing the sweet flavor of rice, bamboo, and coconut, and the greasy saltiness of sesame, or the great taste of grilled wild boar are certain to induce guests to fall in love with “cơm lam”. A tube of “cơm lam” plus fragrant grilled wild boar taken with a sip of “rượu cần” (literally “straw wine”) is enough for you fall in line with nature and people here.