Rice harvesting takes place only once a year, and there are only two weeks where the ripening grains are suitable for producing Khao Mao.
Khao Mao doesn’t age well, it gets dry and tough quickly. The-once-vivid beautiful green color that portrayed the essence of its immaturity and the beginning of the rice harvesting season, slowly fades away, along with its bread like scent.
So one can only imagine in which anticipation the farmers are waiting for the Khao Mao season, a once in a year time opportunity to eat genuinely fresh and delicious pounded unripe rice flakes.
But Khao Mao means much more than just tasty food for the rice growers’ community. Khao Mao fills them with sense of accomplishment, with pride and joy – a sign that the fieldwork is almost completed.
Families first to produce Khao Mao will wear a humble smile of triumph. They will be highly regarded by the community as the winners – The harder the work, the more glorious is the sense of pride. But they will be also the first to share the yield with their neighbors. Who are eager to taste the freshest ever Khao Mao, just like themselves.
“Khaao Mao Khlook” is a cereal like dish, it is soften with hot water or young coconut juice, sweeten with sugar and mixed with grated coconut and sesame seeds. Its simplicity and the freshness of the ingredients makes it with no doubt the first Khao Mao dish of the season. And if, as by chance, golden ripe Lady Finger banana is laying around the house, the dish is heading for a perfect harmony.
Sweet Pounded Unripe Rice Flakes Cereal with Coconut Flesh and Banana
Hanuman and Chef Thapakorn Lertviriyavit
“Khaao Mao Khlook” is a cereal like dish, it is soften with hot water or young coconut juice, sweeten with sugar and mixed with grated coconuts and sesame seeds. Its simplicity and the freshness of the ingredients makes it with no doubt the first Khao Mao dish of the season. And if, as by chance, golden ripe Lady Finger banana is laying around the house, the dish is heading for a perfect harmony.
1/2 – 3/4cupssalted water (น้ำเกลือ)1 teaspoon salt dissolved in 1 cup of water
1/2cupsemi-matured coconut (มะพร้าวทึนทึก)grated (thin strips of fresh but firm flesh)
1/2tablespoongranulated sugar (น้ำตาลทราย)
1tablespoonwhite sesame seeds (งาขาว)
lady finger banana (กล้วยเล็บมือนาง)
Instructions
Pour the warm water over the Khao Mao flakes (Pounded Unripe Rice).
Wait until the flakes absorb the water and their color become vivid green.
Roast white sesame seed until golden and fragrant.
Grate the coconut into thin long strips.
The Khao Mao and the Grated coconut are ready to be mixed.
Add white sugar.
Bruise the roasted sesame seed to release their aroma.
Mix everything together and serve along ripe Lady Finger bananas.
Notes
1. You can use boiled young coconut juice instead of water. 2. You can add pandan juice to improve the fragrance and color of the dish. 3. You can bread flowers (Vallaris) to improve the rice scent.
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Unripe rice snack – “Khao Mao Mee” (ข้าวเม่าหมี่ ) also known as “Khao Mao Song Kreuang” (ข้าวเม่าทรงเครื่อง) or by it’s royal name “Khanom Khao Mao Rang” (ขนมข้าวเม่าราง) is a delicious snack. It makes an unusual use of the unripe rice grains, which are normally used for desserts making. The following recipe describes an ancient and hard to find version of it. These days, there is a tendency to add other ingredients like peanuts or to deep fry the unripe rice grains until fluffy and crispy.
Deceptively simple, the recipe for battered, deep-fried unripe rice and grated coconut banana rolls (khao mao thaawt, ข้าวเม่าทอด) is actually quite challenging to master. Like so many Thai dessert recipes, this seemingly straightforward dish has a complex character.
Khao mao bueang and khao Mao Mee (ข้าวเม่าหมี่) are the only two known savory dishes from antiquity made from pounded unripe rice grains (ข้าวเม่า; khao mao). While khao mao mee (ข้าวเม่าหมี่) is still a well-known and widely available dish, very few people remember khao mao bueang. Therefore, we are pleased to reintroduce into the Thai culinary repertoire the delicious khao mao bueang.
This ball-shaped dessert has a sweet coconut filling (gracheek), surrounded by a thin crust of pounded unripe rice crumbs, along with a tempting fragrance enriched with a Thai dessert candle or fresh flowers.
Demonstrating brilliant creativity and attention to detail, this classical Thai dessert uses only three basic ingredients. In this article, we have elected to follow the traditional recipe published in 1908 by Thanpuying Plean Passakornrawong.
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