VietNamNet Bridge – Rice is not only the staple of Vietnamese diets, but also the major ingredient in many signature dishes.

Blended flavors: Before being grilled, the chicken is soaked in salt, herbs as well as ground mac khen grain (a type of pepper), chili and lemongrass. —VNA/VNS Photo Huong Vien

Besides the better known ubiquitous stir fried rice, the chicken rice of Hoi An Town and the rice cooked with coconut typical of the south, com lam is a feature of traditional festivals of several ethnic groups. These include the Tay, Dao, Muong, Nung, Thai in some northern mountain provinces like Cao Bang, Son La, Yen Bai, Lao Cai and Hoa Binh, as well as in the Central Highlands provinces.

There is no official document indicating the origin of this dish. But based on its name, it is said to have originated in the Thai ethnic community of Viet Nam. In the Thai language, lam means “grill”, indicating the cooking method. While lam in the Viet language means “green blue”, a reference to the colour of the bamboo tube covering the dish.

It is said the ethnic people who lived in remote mountainous areas often went to the forest to gather wood for cooking or building houses. These long-distance trips could take several days, and the men would bring along rice, salt and a knife as basic necessities. As they also had to find a way of cooking without a pot people eventually discovered how to grill rice in a bamboo tube. Tiếp tục đọc “Rice and chicken: fun, fired up and flavourful” →