Milk rice paper (or also called coconut milk rice paper) is a special type of the Vietnamese culinary

rice paper Rice paper is a product constructed of paper-like materials made from different plants. These include: *''Thin peeled dried pith of Tetrapanax papyrifer'': A sheet-like "paper" material was used extensively in late 19th century Guangdong, China ...

, which was originated from

Ben Tre Ben is frequently used as a shortened version of the given names Benjamin, Benedict, Bennett, Benson or Ebenezer, and is also a given name in its own right. Ben meaning "son of" is also found in Arabic as ''Ben'' (dialectal Arabic) or ''bin' ...

province.

Description

Milk rice paper is a steamed rice crepe sheet that has been dried. The shape of milk rice paper is similar to that of much regular Vietnamese rice paper: round and thin. However, milk rice paper type has milky color, while regular rice paper is translucent. Moreover, milk rice paper does not have the same chewy texture as regular rice paper and is thicker and harder.

Ingredients

The basic ingredients used for making milk rice paper are:

rice flour Rice flour (also rice powder) is a form of flour made from finely milled rice. It is distinct from rice starch, which is usually produced by steeping rice in lye. Rice flour is a common substitute for wheat flour. It is also used as a thickening ...

cassava ''Manihot esculenta'', common name, commonly called cassava, manioc, or yuca (among numerous regional names), is a woody shrub of the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, native to South America, from Brazil, Paraguay and parts of the Andes. Although ...

flour, water, salt, sugar, pandan leaves and

coconut milk Coconut milk is a plant milk extracted from the grated pulp of mature coconuts. The opacity and rich taste of the milky-white liquid are due to its high oil content, most of which is saturated fat. Coconut milk is a traditional food ingred ...

. The coconut milk is the key ingredient that ensures its distinctiveness. Additional ingredients such as durian, black sesame seeds, green rice, etc. are added to give it a variety of flavors.

Usage

Milk rice paper can be used as either sweet or savory food, but the most commonplace way is to eat it as a sweet treat. Although milk rice paper cannot be combined with as many dishes as regular rice paper, people can still enjoy it straight out of the package or toasted on a fire to create a crunchier texture and bring out the coconut aroma.

Traditional artisan villages

As the Vietnamese village of Ben Tre has recently become a popular tourist destination, milk rice paper – its specialty – is also becoming better known. However, rice paper manufacturing is not a very profitable industry, so many artisan villages are disappearing. In order to save them, the Vietnamese government has facilitated close cooperation between the artisan villages, which aims to sustainable survival and development. Some famous artisan villages are Cu Lao May, My Long, and Cai Be. These villages still stick to the traditional production method of grinding rice, grating dried coconut, toasting sesame seeds, drying ingredients in the sunshine, etc. No additives are added. Thus, natural flavor is kept. Besides milk rice paper, these artisan villages also produce other products with various ingredients and usages such as rice paper with dried shrimps or with milk and eggs; rice paper for spring rolls or egg rolls, etc. These artisan villages work all year around, but most of their earnings come in connection with the Tet holiday. During Tet, an average artisan family makes a few hundred sheets per day, which means the productivity during this period is three times higher than in the normal season. Normally, with every 20 kilos of batter, 500-600 milk rice paper sheets can be produced.

Appliance of technology in production

Just a few years ago, the production process was still old-fashioned, relying mainly on menial labor and experience handed down from generation to generation. Therefore, productivity and consistency in quality and quantity was not guaranteed. Increasingly, modern machines such as gristmills, electric coconut graters, kneading and mangle machines for the batter, cutting machines for the finished rice paper and vacuum machines for packing are used to increase output. The machines also increase the consistency of shape and flavor, and improve preservation and hygiene.sovhttdl.bentre. (2015, September 23). Làng nghề bánh tráng Mỹ Lồng, bánh phồng Sơn Đốc. Retrieved from http://vanhoamientay.com/lang-nghe/lang-nghe-banh-trang-my-long-banh-phong-son-doc/

References