Com Lam: A specialty of Hoa Binh’s mountainous region

Traveling to Hoa Binh, visitors not only can admire the historical relics and landscapes here but also enjoy many famous specialties, one of which is com lam –rice in a bamboo pipe.

No one knows when this unique rice dish was first made, but only know that people often bring it with them when they go hunting in the mountain or working on the rice terrace. Their work can sometimes last from early morning to dusk, and sometimes they even have to sleep in the woods. Thus, they bring some rice so that when they are hungry, they will chop bamboo pipes on the roadside, put some rice and some water in, cook the rice tube, and it is ready for eating. Initially a habit results from the need to cook rice quickly, it quickly becomes a culinary specialty. Com lam dish is made by many minor ethnicities who live by the mountains: the Tay, the Thai, the Nung, the Muong, etc. However, the com lam of Muong people in Hoa Binh is the most famous because it is made from the fragrant highland sticky rice.

Com lam can be eaten with chicken, grilled meat, sour bamboo shoots, etc. However, the best combination of com lam is with salt. Com lam of Hoa Binh people is usually smaller and has a different flavor than that of other ethnic minorities in mountainous provinces such as Cao Bang, Tuyen Quang, and Lang Son. Although Hoa Binh lam rice does not have peanut or bean seeds like the other versions in other provinces, it is replaced by the typical aroma of coconut and coconut milk, the smell of sugarcane and of Hoa Binh forest leaves.

However, there is more to Com lam than just a local dish for people to enjoy. A product of the routine of the working people in this mountainous region, this simple-to-made staple food has become an integral part to what defines the people of the highland. It is certainly a gift for people from Hoa Binh to miss, and for tourists from foreign land to love.

Ngo Quang Dung

Source: www.dulichvietnam.com.vn