Sweet and soft sweet potatoes buried in husks

Sweet rustic taste

Not only is it delicious, sipping each piece of sweet potato buried in rice husks, I also feel the love and connection within the family, the love of the village in the countryside.

Surrounding the pot of sweet potatoes were Mrs. Chien's grandchildren. They were all chattering, waiting for her to give them sweet potatoes to eat. Behind them were some neighbors who Mrs. Chien had invited over to enjoy the sweet potatoes buried in rice husks.

The sound of laughter filled the yard. People told stories about their daily lives… Eating and chatting together seemed to make the sweet potato dish more delicious and interesting.

The potato skin is thin and easy to peel off, revealing the attractive yellow potato core. Each stream of honey flows evenly like honey. The potato is sweet and fragrant, and when eaten, the taste is completely different from regular boiled sweet potatoes or sweet potatoes baked in an air fryer or oven.

Mr. Pham Khac Tuan, Mrs. Chien's son, said that seeing his children surrounding his grandmother's pot of sweet potatoes, his childhood memories came flooding back. "When I was young, my uncles and I also surrounded my grandfather's pot of sweet potatoes buried in rice husks just like that," Mr. Tuan shared. Those days were hungry, and when the potato harvest season came, his grandfather made a big pot of sweet potatoes buried in rice husks for his grandchildren to eat freely. The whole group of grandchildren "lined up" to wait for him from the time he washed the potatoes until he put them in the pot and buried them in rice husks. To this day, he still clearly remembers the smell of straw, the crackling sound of the remaining rice flowers blooming in the pile of pink ashes.

“He said, if you want delicious sweet potatoes buried in husks, you have to wait a few months after harvest, until the potatoes are really wilted, the honey will be abundant, and the food will be sweet and fragrant. But he never waits until the potatoes are wilted, he just makes them until the children are full and then thinks about what to do next,” said Mr. Tuan.

As for Mrs. Nguyen Thi Dung, Mrs. Chien's neighbor, eating a piece of sweet potato reminds her of a time of hardship. For the people of her hometown, sweet potatoes buried in rice husks are a precious dish. "We can only eat them during harvest season, but we have to eat them sparingly. Sweet potatoes buried in rice husks are breakfast for the children before going to school, and a snack when we carry them around to the fields. Sometimes when we work through the afternoon, we share each sweet potato wrapped in dong or banana leaves," said Mrs. Dung.

For the people here, sweet potatoes buried in rice husks are a delicious, unique dish that helps them overcome difficult times. The sweet taste of the potatoes also represents love and connection between people in the family and the village.

Sophisticated

Nowadays, it is difficult to eat a rustic dish like sweet potato buried in rice husk because even if you have money, you cannot find it anywhere. Although it is a “rustic” dish, the preparation is very elaborate.

Mrs. Chien said that every time the monsoon comes, she makes sweet potatoes buried in rice husks for her children and grandchildren to eat. The sweet potatoes buried in rice husks are hot when they are first taken out, and you can blow on them while eating. Maybe that is why this sweet potato dish is suitable for monsoon or cold rainy days.

To make the standard sweet potato dish, she had to buy honey sweet potatoes. This is a type of sweet potato with yellow flesh, when cooked it has a rich sweetness, oozing honey and a characteristic aroma.

Mrs. Chien revealed that to make delicious sweet potatoes, you must use a clay pot. “This is the traditional way my ancestors passed down,” said Mrs. Chien.

According to Ms. Chien, before burying the rice husks, the potatoes must be washed, drained, and then placed in a clay pot. There is no need to pour water like when making boiled sweet potatoes; the maker will line it with a layer of fresh banana leaves. “Then cover the pot with the lid upside down and quickly flip the pot of potatoes upside down with the lid facing down, and the pot facing up. Doing so will make the lid fit tightly, and the process of burning the rice husks and smoke will not get inside, and the potatoes will be delicious,” Ms. Chien said. Perhaps this is the secret and also the most difficult step, requiring the maker to be “familiar” with the lid so it doesn’t slip.

To get the rice husks, people will put a layer of straw in the middle of the ash stove. The pot of sweet potatoes is placed in the middle in an upside-down position. They surround the pot with straw and light 3 fires at 3 equal points. The smell of the newly harvested rice straw still has the fragrant scent of rice. When the fire flares up, people slowly pour rice husks to cover the lid.

The smoke rose up, making my eyes sting. I poured a layer of cold ash on top to let the rice husks burn gradually, completing the important step. “Just pour a moderate amount of rice husks, if you put too much, you can burn the whole batch of potatoes,” Ms. Chien shared.

Normally, potatoes are buried overnight before being eaten. Therefore, people often bury potatoes in the evening before and eat them early the next morning.

The next morning, when we woke up, there was a pot of fragrant, sweet, soft potatoes waiting for the whole family.