Dong leaves in Tet season

On the eve of Tet, from peaceful rural markets to bustling urban markets, the lush green of dong leaf bundles is present. Dong leaves are an indispensable ingredient for wrapping banh chung - a traditional cake during the traditional Tet holiday.

Dong leaves have long and wide blades, thin but tough. Banh chung wrapped in dong leaves when boiled has a natural green color, is both beautiful and retains its characteristic aroma.

Dong leaves are sold at Lai Dong market, Tan Son district from the beginning of December.

In the middle of December, when the apricot and peach trees have budded, it is also the time when the Tet dong leaf season really begins. Dong leaves are carried by trucks back and forth everywhere. Dong leaves usually grow in humid places, especially streams, under the forest canopy, the higher the humidity, the greener and larger the dong leaves are, so in mountainous districts in the province such as Thanh Son, Tan Son, Yen Lap... people often take dong growing in the forest or dong growing on the hills. When the dong leaves are cut, people classify them into different sizes from big to small, then they will be purchased and transported to small traders or sold to retailers.

At the markets, a corner of green dong leaves contributes to the fragrance and color of spring. At Lai Dong market, Tan Son district, from the beginning of December, people have started selling dong leaves. With her hands deftly untying a bundle of dong leaves to advise customers, Ms. Dinh Thi Ha, Chieng 1 area, Lai Dong commune said: “Dong leaves grow a lot in humid areas, under the forest canopy, especially along small streams. My main job is farming, near Tet I take the opportunity to go to the forest, just follow the streams and streams to find dong leaves. Around December 20th, small leaves are sold for about 35,000 VND/100 leaves; large leaves are about 50,000 VND/100 leaves, and usually the price will be higher near Tet”.

Dong leaves are used to wrap banh chung.

- Wrapping banh chung at Chinh Anh facility, Hung Viet commune, Cam Khe district

Along with harvesting cassava available in nature, people also take advantage of areas near ponds, river banks, and garden land to grow cassava. Normally, cassava leaves are mainly sold to establishments specializing in wrapping banh chung. However, during Tet, the demand for cassava leaves increases significantly when many families wrap banh chung themselves to worship their ancestors. Cassava leaves are harvested all year round, but during Tet, the price is high and the market demand is high, so around September, people will stop cutting and take care of the trees to make the leaves big and beautiful to serve the needs of people during the Lunar New Year.

People of Cao Xa commune, Lam Thao district harvest dong leaves to serve the Tet market.

Beside the tall cassava bushes that obscure people's heads, hurriedly harvesting leaves to deliver to the facility to wrap banh chung, Ms. Kieu Thi Tu - Zone 11, Cao Xa commune, Lam Thao district said: "Knowing that cassava plants prefer high humidity, I planted about 1 sao of cassava leaves near the pond bank, in the corner of the garden. The tree has strong branches, each year it can produce dozens of branches, each branch can yield 5-6 leaves. After cutting, tying them up, and leaving them in a cool, shady place, the leaves can last for a whole month, so from the full moon of December, I started cutting and selling them."

To produce a beautiful, square cake is quite a feat, going through many stages, starting from the selection of dong leaves. The aroma of the leaves blends with sticky rice, green beans and pork when the banh chung is boiled, awakening the whole kitchen, bringing a feeling of warmth and closeness when Tet comes. In modern society, there are many types of modern packaging materials, but still cannot replace this special type of leaf in wrapping banh chung.

Nguyen Hue

Source: https://baophutho.vn/la-dong-vao-vu-tet-226382.htm