Unveiling 3 Delectable and Beautiful Ways to Prepare Five-Color Sticky Rice to Enrich Your Tet Feast

Five-color sticky rice is a specialty dish from the Northwestern mountains with its beautiful colors and delightful flavors. Creating the colors for five-color sticky rice is simple with common natural ingredients around us. Below are 3 ways to make five-color sticky rice: Traditional method, Vegetable-based method, and Fragrant jackfruit method.

Prepare to be mesmerized by the sight of five-color sticky rice

Five-color sticky rice is made from five types of glutinous rice with five different colors usually representing the five elements. However, depending on regional conditions, we can mix or use different colors other than those suggested. Five-color sticky rice is often made on occasions such as ancestral worship, Tet holidays, weddings, full moon days,... Try your hand at making five-color sticky rice with the recipe below!

1. Traditional Five-Color Sticky Rice

Ingredients for Traditional Five-Color Sticky Rice

- 2kg of delicious glutinous rice

- 1 bunch of pandan leaves

- 1 bunch of purple yam leaves

- 1/2 of a gac fruit

- 200g of fresh turmeric or turmeric powder

- White wine

- Seasonings: 6 tablespoons of salt, 4 tablespoons of sugar, 5 tablespoons of coconut milk

Ingredients for Traditional Five-Color Sticky Rice

How to make Traditional Five-Color Sticky Rice

Step 1: Prepare the ingredients

- Wash glutinous rice thoroughly, then soak in water for 6 - 8 hours until the rice becomes soft and sticky when cooked.

- Prepare coloring ingredients for five-color sticky rice such as: Purple yam leaves, pandan leaves, and fresh turmeric. Wash them clean, remove the skins, then cut into small pieces and grind into a paste.

Step 2: Creating colors for sticky rice

- Yellow sticky rice uses fresh turmeric. After grinding, mix it with 1.5 liters of filtered water, then strain to collect the turmeric water, and discard the turmeric residue.

- Purple sticky rice uses purple yam leaves. Cut them into pieces, then put them in a pot with 1.5 liters of filtered water and boil for about 15 minutes until the color from the leaves evenly spreads. Strain to collect the purple water and discard the yam leaf residue.

- Green sticky rice uses pandan leaves. Cut them into pieces, then grind or crush them into small pieces. Mix with 1.5 liters of filtered water, stir well, and strain through a sieve to collect the water, discarding the pandan residue.

- Red sticky rice uses gac fruit. Take a large bowl and put the gac flesh in it. Add a little white wine and squeeze the gac flesh until it separates from the seeds. Discard the gac seeds.

Soaking the sticky rice in coloring solutions

Step 3: Soaking the rice with the prepared colored water mixture

This is one of the most important steps in making five-color sticky rice, as the soaking time and method determine the final color outcome:

• After soaking the rice in water, rinse it again and divide it into 5 equal portions.
• Soak 3 portions of rice in a colored water solution made from pandan leaves, purple yam leaves, and turmeric. Then add coconut milk seasoning (1 tablespoon per portion), sugar (1 tablespoon per portion), and salt (1 tablespoon per portion). Mix the rice with the seasonings and soak for about 3 hours until the rice is evenly colored.

Soak the rice with the colored water mixture to create the colors of five-color sticky rice

• Mix one portion of rice with the prepared gac flesh and add 1 tablespoon of salt. Leave the remaining rice as is and add a little salt, then mix evenly.

Step 4: Steaming the five-color sticky rice using a steamer

• After soaking the glutinous rice, transfer it to the steamer, separating the different colored rice portions with candle wax paper or small woven bamboo mats to prevent them from mixing.
• Place the steamer on the stove over medium heat (avoid using too high heat to prevent water from splashing onto the rice, making the bottom soggy). Add 1 liter of water (2/3 of the steamer) to steam the rice. Cover the steamer and steam the rice for 30 - 45 minutes. Use a chopstick to poke holes in the rice to allow steam to rise and cook the rice. For the gac rice, you can leave the seeds to create a chewy texture and prevent the rice from becoming sticky.
• Every 10 minutes, use a dry cloth to wipe off the condensation on the steamer lid.

Prepare and steam a variety of colorful sticky rice

• Once the rice is evenly cooked, add coconut milk on top, mix well, and steam for an additional 3 - 5 minutes until the rice is softer, more fragrant.

The final product after applying PasGo Team's traditional method of making colorful sticky rice

The finished colorful sticky rice looks visually appealing

After steaming, transfer the sticky rice to a bowl or plate, arrange it beautifully, and enjoy the enticing and delightful colorful sticky rice dish. The rice is soft, chewy, infused with the rich fragrance of coconut milk. For an even better taste, enjoy it with sesame salt and dried shredded pork. 

2. Colorful sticky rice made from vegetables and fruits

Ingredients for making colorful sticky rice from vegetables and fruits

- 2 kg of delicious glutinous rice

- 1 bunch of pandan leaves / 1 cluster of palm leaves

- 1 dragon fruit with red flesh

- Fresh turmeric or turmeric powder

- 1/2 of a gac fruit

- Coconut milk

Ingredients for cooking colorful sticky rice from vegetables and fruits

Method for making colorful sticky rice from vegetables and fruits

Step 1: Prepare the ingredients for making sticky rice 

- Rinse glutinous rice thoroughly and soak for 6 - 8 hours to allow even swelling and softening.

- Green sticky rice: Clean pandan leaves, chop them into pieces, then blend with 1 liter of filtered water. Strain to remove the leaf residue.

- Yellow sticky rice: Wash and peel fresh turmeric, then crush it into a paste. Mix with 1 liter of water, stir well, and strain through a sieve to collect the liquid, discarding the turmeric residue. Alternatively, if using turmeric powder, dissolve it in water for quicker results.

- Purple sticky rice: Cut red-flesh dragon fruit in half, remove the peel, then cut into small pieces and mash. Mix with 1 liter of water to dissolve the mashed dragon fruit and strain through a sieve to collect the liquid. 

- Orange-red sticky rice: Extract the flesh of gac fruit into a large bowl, add a bit of alcohol, mix well, and squeeze thoroughly to remove all gac seeds. Discard the seeds.

Prepare the ingredients for making colorful sticky rice from vegetables and fruits

Step 2: Soak the rice with the color mixture

- After soaking, rinse the rice thoroughly with water, then divide it into 5 different portions. Soak the rice with pandan water, turmeric water, and dragon fruit water, then let the rice soak with these 3 colored waters for 3 hours to absorb the colors.

- For the pandan water portion, soak about 2/3 of it with the rice, keeping 1/3 of the water aside. After steaming, if the color of the rice fades, we can pour in some of this reserved water to make the rice more visually appealing and the color richer. For the portion soaked with turmeric water, soak it for about 1 hour if you don't like the strong smell of turmeric. Then discard all the soaked water and replace it with fresh filtered water. You can repeat this process 1-2 times to reduce the strong turmeric smell. Similarly, for the dragon fruit water portion, we also reserve some to pour onto the rice during steaming.

- For the gac fruit portion, mix the soaked and cleaned rice evenly with the gac fruit mixture, and let it sit for about 30 minutes to absorb the color.

- Keep the remaining portion of rice intact and mix it with a pinch of salt for a richer flavor.

Soak the rice with the prepared colored water mixture

Step 3: Steam the colorful fruit sticky rice

- After soaking the rice with the colored mixture, drain the rice and spread it out to dry. Then, place the rice evenly on a steaming tray, separating the different colored rice with bamboo strips or wax paper to prevent them from mixing during steaming.

- Place a pot on the stove, add some water to the pot, then place the steaming tray with the rice on top. Cover with a lid and steam for 45 minutes until the rice is soft and sticky. Every 10 minutes, open the lid, mix the rice evenly, and use a dry cloth to wipe away the condensation on the lid.

Steam colorful vegetable and fruit sticky rice

- Once the rice has swollen and cooked, re-dye the rice by pouring the remaining water mixture on top, then mix evenly and steam for an additional 10 - 15 minutes to enhance the color and beauty of the rice. At this point, drizzle coconut milk over the remaining rice to make it softer and more fragrant.

- To make the sticky rice shinier and tastier, you can also drizzle some cooking oil over the rice portions, then simmer for 1 - 2 minutes and turn off the heat.

Finished product: Colorful vegetable and fruit sticky rice

Finished product: Colorful vegetable and fruit sticky rice

After cooking, the colorful sticky rice will have a beautiful appearance, a delicious aroma, and a soft, enticing texture. In ancient times, it was believed that those who could make the most vibrant and visually appealing sticky rice were skilled and prosperous, leading to a happy family. This colorful vegetable and fruit sticky rice dish can be enjoyed with various side dishes such as sausage, pork belly, braised meat, shredded pork, salted peanuts, and more.

3. Fragrant multi-colored jackfruit sticky rice

Multi-colored jackfruit sticky rice is a dish that combines the delicious sweet aroma of jackfruit with the vibrant colors of different rice grains, making it irresistible. Particularly, the colorants for this dish are entirely derived from various vegetables, fruits, and leaves such as turmeric, pandan leaves, and butterfly pea flowers.

Ingredients for cooking Multi-colored Jackfruit Sticky Rice

- 1.5kg glutinous rice

- 500g ripe jackfruit

- 150g purple leaves

- 150g pandan leaves

- 150g dried or fresh butterfly pea flowers

- Fresh turmeric

- Coconut milk

Ingredients for making multi-colored jackfruit sticky rice

Method for cooking multi-colored jackfruit sticky rice

Step 1: Prepare the ingredients

- Rinse the rice thoroughly and soak it for 6 - 8 hours to allow it to swell and soften.

- Peel and separate the jackfruit into segments, then remove the seeds by making a slit along each segment to avoid crushing the fruit. Place the jackfruit in a sealed bag or container and store it in the refrigerator.

- Clean and peel the fresh turmeric, then chop it finely and crush it. Add it to 1 liter of water, dissolve, and strain through a sieve to collect the turmeric-infused water, discarding the turmeric residue.

- Wash the purple leaves thoroughly, chop them into pieces, and boil them in 1 liter of water for about 15 minutes until the water turns purple. Strain to collect the purple water, discarding the leaf residue.

- Clean the pandan leaves, chop them finely, then blend or crush them to extract 1 liter of pandan-infused water. Strain to collect the pandan water.

- Wash fresh butterfly pea flowers, then boil in 1 liter of water for 15 minutes until the water turns uniformly blue. Remove the flowers and collect the infused water.

- For dried butterfly pea flowers, place them in a large bowl, then pour boiling water over them, cover tightly, and let steep for 15 minutes. Remove the flowers and collect the water.

Prepare the ingredients for making multi-colored jackfruit sticky rice

Step 2: Soak glutinous rice

- After soaking, rinse the glutinous rice thoroughly and divide it into 5 different portions. Soak each portion separately with the prepared colors from step 1, leaving one portion uncolored. Let the rice soak for about 2 - 3 hours to absorb the colors, then drain the water. Mix the different colors of rice together to create a vibrant and visually appealing rice mixture.

Mix the soaked rice varieties together

Step 3: Steam the multi-colored jackfruit sticky rice

- Pour 500ml of water into a pot and bring it to a boil. Place the glutinous rice in a steaming basket and spread it evenly to ensure even cooking. Steam the glutinous rice for 30 - 45 minutes. Alternatively, you can steam the rice with coconut water for a softer texture and a hint of coconut aroma.

Steam the multi-colored jackfruit sticky rice

- To enhance the vibrant color of the sticky rice, you can add a few drops of essential oil of each type during the rice soaking process. This will not only give the rice a beautiful color when steamed but also impart a distinctive aroma to the sticky rice.

 
Finished product: multi-colored jackfruit sticky rice

After steaming, spread the sticky rice onto a plate. Then, take out the jackfruit segments from the fridge and proceed to stuff the sticky rice into the jackfruit segments. Enjoy! The multi-colored jackfruit sticky rice is not only visually appealing but also delicious, making it a perfect treat for entertaining guests and loved ones.

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