SOUTHERN ‘HỎI’ CAKE
“Good sauce is to eat with ‘hỏi’ cake, my love for her is to last through years”- Legend has it that these cakes are originated from the south in the ancient times. In the early days, they were called ‘xổi’ cakes (xổi means swift eating); they were hot steamed and one had to blow off the heat to eat along. As time passed, the word had been mispronounced as ‘hỏi’ cake. According to Lady Ich Thien, wife of royal officer Ung An (a descendant of Ming Meng King), hoi cakes were brought by Tu Du Majesty from his hometown in Go Cong-Tien Giang to Hue, transforming it to a royal dish in the 19th century. It later become a common dish and spread to other provinces. Cakes are made of rice flour. Old rice is chosen and grinded into flour and then leave to rest overnight for the flour to bloom. Next, the dough is molded into large cubes of oval shape, called ‘twists’; each weighs one kilogram. Molds are made from tin or bronze and attached to a solid wooden frame. The bottom of the mold is chiseled with several small holes so that cake dough when compressed will escape from there. To make a cake, the baker put a ‘twist’ into the mold and uses a compressing tool pressing down tightly. The compressed dough runs through the mold coming out into long fibers. Those who catch the fibers just sit there waiting, gently picking up each piece and putting them on the bamboo frame. When a frame is full, it is sent to a steamer. Cooked cakesare cooled down. Peanut oil is applied on the cake surface to prevent dryness and stickiness. Then they are fold neatly into layers and put in a bamboo basket covered with banana leaves. This is an indispensable food during festivals, offerings, weddings, worships at the communal house and pagodas. It represents the culinary culture of prosperity in the south [14]. Often, these cakes are served with boiled pork; even better is roast pork, or barbecue [15]. Regional display is different. For example, in the South, cakes are put on plates without onion oil while in the North, chive leaves are a must.
“Chive leaves get wet in a shower. Pity is those who have mothers without fathers. Pancakes, hub cakes, flower cakes, and hoi cakes without chive leaves are like horn-less ghosts.”
Phong Dien wavy patterned hoi cake: “Who is about to visit Hau River, Tien River, come to eat Phong Dien wavy patterned hoi cakes in Cai Rang …” – Living in the very land of hoi cakes, Ut Dzach family has invented a wavy patterned type in order to boost their competitiveness. And they have been the only family to do this so far in Phong Dien, Can Tho. Each fiber is soft and chewy; it is rolled into beautiful wavy patterns and layered neatly on green banana leaves. Some onion oil is spread on top to create an interesting look and enhance its appealing feature. Wavy patterned hoi cakes are different form the regular type in several features. First, its look takes more time and effort to create. Second, its balanced flavor lies in the dough recipe – a seasoning tip without using conservatives. Third, the compression is done manually not by a machine. These cakes can be served with roast pork and sausages but according to local people, it is best to eat with barbecued meat.
Soc Trang hoi cake: “Those going straight to Nam Can, let’s stop for Soc Trang hoi cakes, BaiXau; Fish paste, green bananas, start fruits, vegetables and Dai Ngai lobsters. One can’t forget!”- In Soc Trang using hoi cakes as wrapping paper for shrimp cakes appear ‘classier’ than spring rolls since there is no need to use rice paper to hold up all the crumbs of meat or shrimps. A careful observation reveals the richness in the food presentation. It suggests prosperity when a beautiful peeled shrimp is wrapped around by a delicate white layer of hoi cake. Soc Trang people crave for fish paste as fish sauce is properly not ‘up to the league’. If one is fortunate to see how a Soc Trang lady of three origins- Vietnamese, Hoa, and Khmer-picking vegetables by hand, slowly striping a shrimp to make a roll. She next dips the roll in the fish sauce, slightly shakes it and gently passes the roll to you. One would surely fall for such a charm.
Collected by Linh Trang
