A Brief Introduction of The Ba Cot sweet soup (Chè Bà Cốt)

Ba Cot sweet soup (Chè Bà Cốt) is a traditional dessert which is often served with mung bean sticky rice or mung bean coated sticky rice. It is such a wonderful dish, combining warm spicy flavor of ginger, sweetness of syrup and charming aroma of soft sticky rice.

The ingredients for this dish are so simple, just including sticky rice, Chinese rock sugar or “Hoa mai” sugar and ginger. Sticky rice used in processing must be Nep Thom (aromatic sticky rice). The rice is soaked in cold water for about 1 to 2 hours, then left to drain. We pour drained rice into a pot and thoroughly simmered. In cooking process, keep the heat low so that the rice is gradually cooked, avoid being broken. In terms of ginger, we select the old ginger to assure the soup will be more aromatic and lightly spicy. Ginger is shaved, crushed and juiced. We dissolve sugar in water, boil the mixture and carefully filter to remove impurities. When the rice turns soft, pour in sugar liquid, keep cooking until the mixture is lightly viscous and the rice is infused with sugar. Finally, we add ginger juice and gently stir. Sweet soup is ladled into small bowls, served hot or chilly with a little mung bean sticky rice. Scoop a little sticky rice, dip into sweet soup, then put into mouth, you can fully enjoy the passionate aroma of ginger, sweetness of soup and buttery taste of glutinous rice.

A Brief Introduction of The Areca flower sweet soup (Chè Hoa Cau)

Areca flower sweet soup (Chè Hoa Cau) is considered as a charm of Hanoi cuisine. Ingredients for this dessert is quite simple and rustic (tapioca starch, coconut milk, pomelo flower, mung beans) but cooking this is totally not easy. To creat the proper flavor for this dish, the cook must be patient, refined and talented. Tapioca is dissolve with cold water, and carefully purified. Pour tapioca liquid into a pot and cook in low heat, add pomelo flower, soaked mung bean and continuously stir the mixture until it turns clear and viscous. You must be assured that the soup is not over-cooked or under-cooked. If you let the heat too high, the natural aroma of pomelo flowers will be lost. A well-cooked sweet soup has viscous syrups and nice yellow scattered mung beans. Finally, we drizzle a little coconut milk on the top, let greasy taste of coconut blend with sweetness of the soup. Che hoa cau is always ladled into small bowls, and often served with xoi vo (mung bean coated sticky rice).

A Brief Introduction of The Young rice sweet soup (Chè Cốm)

Young rice sweet soup (Chè Cốm) is probably the easiest com-derived food. Boiled sugar syrup, added some tapioca starch and sprinkled with a few grains of com, then a warm bowl of che com is ready for the autumn weather of Hanoi.

A Brief Introduction of The Longan lotus seeds sweet soup (Chè Long Nhãn Hạt Sen)

Longan lotus seeds sweet soup (Chè Long Nhãn Hạt Sen) was a precious tribute only offered to the King; however, nowadays it becomes an idyllic food for everybody.

Fresh and fleshy longans are often selected to cook sweet soup. We wash and peel off the fruits then carefully use the tip of knife to remove longan seeds. Lotus seeds are also peeled off, removed the bitter core and washed carefully. We boil lotus seeds in water until it is cooked, tender but not mushy. Then, we carefully insert a cooked lotus seed into each longan. When it is all completed, rinse the filled longans with boiled water and put into glasses. Chinese rock sugar is added to lotus boiling water to make syrups. The syrups must still keep lotus flavor and have proper sweetness. We let the syrups cool down, then ladle it into glasses, add some crushed ice and enjoy its stunning taste.

Longan lotus seeds sweet soup (Chè Long Nhãn Hạt Sen) with cool sweet syrups, buttery lotus seed, and charming lotus fragance will satisfy any diners. This stunning dessert is also known as a sedative and insomnia treatment remedy.