Violet sticky rice with omelette is delicious and nutritious.
Having never tried this dish before, I thought it was like either sticky rice with salted peanut, or sticky rice with chicken. So, I was both excited and curious to try.
This dish requires a little bit wet sticky rice, and omelette must be soft and wet too. My friend says local people grow violet sticky rice mainly for consuming at home. Some sell it when they have a lot. People like sticky rice because it keeps them full for a longer time. Also, the dish is not complicated to make.
Time passed. I now no longer work as an event-maker, and thus do not have chances to eat violet sticky rice with omelette made by the local people. But this morning at the market, I saw a basket full of violet sticky rice on the sidewalk next to boiled bamboo shoots, ginger and forest banana flowers. So excited, I bought two cans of violet sticky rice.
“Cook sticky rice. It’s good,” said the seller, a minority group member. “Certainly, I will make it soon when I get home,” I smiled.
Living in the city, I did not have any firewood stove; I had to cook sticky rice in an electric rice cooker instead. This dish of sticky rice must be a little wet, so I could not steam it, since it would be too dry. I mixed violet sticky rice with some regular sticky rice, washed it over, put it in the cooker, poured in some water, then switched the cooker on.
While waiting for the sticky rice to be ready, I began to make omelette. It was simple. I fried shallot with some oil in a pan, bit egg with some fish sauce, added in some spring onion. I then poured in the mixture, sprinkled in with some pepper. I covered the pan and waited a little bit. Remember not to keep it too long. If so, the omelette would be too dry.
When the cooker switched it off, I turned the content over with a pair of chopsticks, then put the lid on again and wait for 5-10 minutes more. Then I put the sticky rice in a small bowl and began to enjoy. The sticky rice was then reddish brown in color, soft and glutinous. Omelette tasted fatty and smelled good of egg and spring onion.
Violet sticky rice or black sticky rice can be processed into many other delicious dishes and drinks such as yogurt with violet sticky rice or violet sticky rice wine. Violet sticky rice with omelette is delicious, nutritious; and best of all, it is simple too cook. From now on, I can enjoy the dish right at home without having to take the pass and slopes to A Luoi as before.
Story and photo: NAM GIAO