A dish from pitcher plant flowers
According to Food Expert Chiem Thanh Long, pitcher plants have long been used as a folk medicine to treat diseases related to the liver. It is dried and boiled with water to be drunk like tea.
Photo: Pitcher plants
Additionally, pitcher plants also release body heat, act as a diuretic, eliminates phlegm, cures inflammation, reduces blood pressure and cures gastric and duodenal ulcers.
Also according to food expert Chiem Thanh Long, using pitcher plants as medicine in a dish that has originated from the ethnic minority people of Gia Rai in Central Vietnam. Gia Rai people use pitcher plants to replace bamboo pitchers for cooking, transporting and storing foods when they work on the farm.
In the semi-final round - southern region of the 2015 Golden Spoon contest, Chef Trung Hoang Nguyen brought to the contest a dish called “Chả hoa nắp ấm” which drew the attraction and intrigue of the judges.
Photo CTV- “Chả hoa nắp ấm” dish
Chef Trung shared that he used a mix of mashed pork and mince, mushroom, egg and spices then stuffed a male flower of a pincher plant because of its nice smell. As it steams together the aroma is unique. One must select a flower which is not too young and too old to make this dish, because if it is too young then the flower can easily be crushed, and if it is too old then it is difficult to cut the cooked dish neatly. After stuffing the mixture into the flower, it is steamed only 10 minutes before it is ready to be served.
Another dish was made using the flower, which was made of sticky rice cooked in the same was as preparing “cơm lam”. This is done by baking rice inside bamboo. The male flower and sticky rice are first soaked in water. The rice is then stuffed inside the pitcher plant and put into the steamer until it is well cooked.
Le Nam
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