Sweet and fragrant taste of Giay people's moon cakes

Every year, after the full moon of the seventh lunar month, Giay families in Muong Hum start preparing ingredients to make moon cakes. The bustling, eager atmosphere and the sweet aroma emanating from the kitchen smoke make autumn in Muong Hum very special. But what is more special is the way Giay women in Muong Hum tell stories about making moon cakes.

Giay women prepare ingredients to make moon cakes.

For the Giay people, women must know how to make moon cakes. The cake is not only a traditional dish but also considered the "soul", a symbol of community unity during the Reunion Festival. The art of making cakes is passed down from grandmothers and mothers to their children, requiring meticulousness and strict adherence to the proportions of ingredients to create a delicious, unique flavor.

The Giay people often make moon cakes with two familiar fillings: green bean filling and mixed filling. For green bean cakes, the most difficult step is cooking the filling. After cleaning, the green beans are soaked for about 4 hours, steamed, crushed and then cooked. The cooking process takes on average 2 - 2.5 hours until the green beans reach the standard consistency.

Cake making process.

For mixed-filling cakes, the filling ingredients are equally sophisticated. Ingredients include: pumpkin jam, local black pork fat sweetened with sugar, lemon leaves, sesame, peanuts... All blend together in the sweet, refreshing taste of sugar and condensed milk.

However, the crust making stage is the decisive factor for the success of the traditional mooncake of the Giay people. Only when eggs, flour and condensed milk are mixed in the “golden” ratio, the crust will be soft, spongy and retain its original shape, without cracking when baked at high temperatures.

The traditional way of baking moon cakes is also very special. Apart from a few households using modern ovens, most Giay people still keep the traditional way of baking cakes with wood stoves. The cakes to be baked are placed in a thick cast iron pot on the stove, then a fire pan is placed on the lid of the pot, so that the cakes will be evenly golden on both sides.

Every Giay woman knows how to make moon cakes.

Although it is so elaborate and complicated, all Giay women in Muong Hum know how to make traditional moon cakes. When autumn knocks on the door, the cool breeze blows, the persimmons on the trees turn red, in the small kitchens of the Giay people, the bustling atmosphere of women preparing batches of sweet and fragrant moon cakes resounds.

This year, Ms. Vuong Thi Ha made about 100 more cakes to give to her distant relatives. After preparing all the ingredients, she invited some women in the village to come to her house to make the cakes. In no time, the house was filled with laughter, everyone gathered around the big table, each person taking on a step, creating a warm and happy atmosphere.

Ms. Vuong Thi Ha said: I learned to make cakes from my mother-in-law. Before, I only made moon cakes to serve the needs of my family and to give to relatives and acquaintances who lived far away. About 15 years ago, at a big fair, when I stood at the booth introducing the moon cakes of the Giay people in the old Bat Xat district shop, I received the first orders. Since then, every Mid-Autumn Festival, my family has supplied the market with about 2,000 cakes.

Delicious cakes.

Like Ms. Ha, Ms. Ly Thi Hoa also learned how to make cakes from her mother-in-law and became a famous baker in Muong Hum. From the secret passed down from her mother-in-law, through her skillful hands and creativity, Ms. Hoa has now created a famous recipe for delicious moon cakes. Every Mid-Autumn Festival, Ms. Hoa makes about 3,000 cakes to supply the market.

Ingredients that make up a delicious traditional cake.

For the Giay people in Muong Hum, Mid-Autumn Festival is as important as the Lunar New Year, and moon cakes play a special role similar to banh chung during Tet. The cake is not only a bond between family, neighborhood, and community, but also a cultural symbol that carries the identity of the Giay people.

According to the Department of Culture and Society of Muong Hum commune, there are currently more than 200 households making moon cakes in the commune, mainly concentrated in Pieng Lao and Muong Hum villages.

From being a traditional cake associated with the life of the Giay community, the product has now reached the market and been welcomed by many consumers. The aspiration of Giay women today is to establish a cooperative, making Muong Hum mooncakes an OCOP product in the future.

Source: https://baolaocai.vn/ngot-thom-vi-banh-trung-thu-cua-nguoi-giay-post882567.html