← Nouns Cooking · Vietnamese

Ingredients

• 400 g Glutinous (sticky) rice
• 200 g gấc fruit pulp (fresh or frozen)
• 2 tbsp rice wine or sake (optional)
• ¾ tsp Salt
• 3 tbsp Sugar
• 120 ml Coconut milk
• 2 tsp Vegetable oil
• 2 tbsp sesame seeds, for the topping
• 1 tbsp sugar, for the topping
• ½ tsp salt, for the topping

Method

1. Rinse the rice until the water runs clear and soak it in cold water for at least 6 hours or overnight. Drain well.
2. Put the gấc pulp in a bowl with the rice wine and squeeze it with your hands to separate the red flesh from the seeds; discard the seeds. Rub the red pulp and the salt into the rice until every grain is coloured.
3. Spread the rice in a steamer lined with a damp cloth or banana leaf. Steam over high heat for 20 min.
4. Tip the rice into a bowl, stir in the sugar, coconut milk and oil, then return it to the steamer for 15–20 min more, until tender, glossy and sticky.
5. Toast the sesame seeds in a dry pan for 2–3 min until golden, then crush lightly with the sugar and salt. Serve the rice in mounds or pressed into moulds with the sesame salt on the side.

Tips

• Frozen gấc pulp is sold in Vietnamese grocers; if you can’t find it, a little beetroot juice gives the colour but not the subtle flavour.
• Contains sesame in the topping.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

Delightful Plate Vicky Pham