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| Finished rice flakes are packaged and vacuum-sealed before being delivered to customers. |
Memories of the old green rice season
No one remembers exactly when the profession of making green rice flakes began in Son Vinh hamlet. We only know that every time the rice in October begins to turn yellow, the whole village resounds with the sound of mortars and pestles, and the sound of laughter. Mrs. Tran Thi Ma, over 70 years old this year, still remembers clearly the years of her youth when she was attached to green rice flakes. "Back then, my village was the only one in this area that made green rice flakes. Every harvest season, the young people in the village made green rice flakes all night long without anyone feeling tired. It was so much fun!", she said, her eyes shining with excitement mixed with nostalgia.
Mrs. Ma's memories appear clearly like a slow-motion film: chilly nights, the villagers gathered around the fire, each pair of hands quickly pounding green rice, the smell of new rice mixed with the rhythmic sound of the pestle, the sound of children playing, the cheerful laughter of the women. Green rice at that time was not just a dish, but the crystallization of village love, of youth and memories.
"In the past, making green rice had to be pounded by hand, from threshing, roasting, sieving to pounding, all done by hand. Choose glutinous rice that has just ripened, thresh it in small handfuls, roast it in a pan or roast it over charcoal in a clay oven. If roasting, you have to change the tray several times so that the green rice is evenly cooked and has a beautiful green color," said Mrs. Ghost.
The pounded green rice is served to guests, served with steamed and mashed green beans. The aroma of sticky rice mixed with the rich taste of green beans creates an unforgettable flavor. In the distant gaze of Mrs. Ma, it seems like her whole youth comes back in the green color of that day.
Move with the new rhythm of life
Despite its unique cultural value, the craft of making green rice flakes in Son Vinh was once at risk of extinction. But thanks to dedicated people like Ms. Nguyen Thi He, Mrs. Ma's daughter-in-law, the old craft has now found new life.
Learning from her mother and grandmother, Ms. He found a way to combine traditional techniques with modern machinery. The first batch of green rice made by machine only produced... 2kg of green rice from a whole bag of rice. But she was not discouraged, the more she worked, the more experience she gained. Up to now, the products made by her family are considered the best in the region.
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| Mrs. Ma is currently helping Mr. He and his wife with some steps of making green rice flakes at the factory. |
Each rice crop, Ms. He and her husband, Mr. Ma Khac Chung, can make 5-6 quintals of rice, up to 1 ton on a peak day. If in the past, rice was washed in a pot and roasted in a pan, now they have improved it with a washing tank, the tea roasting pan has been remade to be suitable for roasting rice, saving labor and increasing productivity. After roasting, the rice is put through a hulling, sieving, and pressing machine to replace the previous manual pounding and sieving steps.
These improvements help Son Vinh green rice its traditional flavor, while being more consistent, cleaner, and more appealing. The market is increasingly favoring the product, making Ms. He determined to expand production.
Cooperative Group - The fulcrum for rice grains to reach far
In March 2022, Ms. He and 14 other members established the Son Vinh Lychee Sticky Rice Production Cooperative. With a modern machinery system, a standard factory and a methodical process, the cooperative not only helps her family but also creates livelihoods for many other households in the village.
With support from Me Tri green rice village ( Hanoi ), Ms. He learned the secret of adjusting the temperature and adding water during the roasting process, making the green rice softer, stickier, and more fragrant. "Having learned the good things, I just came back and improved my way of making it. The core is still to preserve the quality of the green rice of my hometown," she shared.
Thanks to its superior quality, Son Vinh green rice produced by Ms. He and her husband and the members of the cooperative are sold out as soon as they are produced. No longer being sold at the market, customers now proactively come to the factory to buy. Many customers even place orders year-round, opening up the prospect of building a solid brand for the village's products.
With a raw material area of 5 hectares of lychee rice produced according to VietGAP standards, the cooperative has brought to the market nearly 10 tons of green rice each crop. In 2023, Son Vinh lychee rice was recognized as a 3-star OCOP product. By 2024, it will continue to be honored as a "Typical agricultural product of Thai Nguyen province".
Most recently, at the 2nd Conference to Honor Outstanding Thai Nguyen Farmers in 2025, Ms. Nguyen Thi He was honored as a Provincial-level Excellent Production and Business Household with a revenue of 1.6 billion VND and a profit of 851 million VND.
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| Ms. He andMr. General harvest sticky rice, raw material for making green rice flakes. |
Amidst the changing rural life, the craft of making Son Vinh green rice flakes still retains the soul of the homeland. More than just a culinary product, the green rice flakes here carry the story of people who love their job, are diligent, creative and know how to preserve the traditional craft their ancestors left behind.
From manual hands to modern machines, from memories of pounding green rice late at night to spacious workshops today, the green rice grains still retain the flavor of the land and sky, of village love, and the pride of the people of Dinh Hoa, Thai Nguyen.
Nowadays, in addition to traditional green rice products, thanks to equipment that helps preserve green rice for a long time, Ms. He has also created many types of Tet cakes made from green rice with the strong flavor of spring, expanding the direction for craft village products.
“Com can be stored in the freezer for a long time while still maintaining its quality,” Ms. He shared, as an affirmation of the potential of her hometown product to reach far.
Every green rice season, Son Vinh people not only make a rustic gift from the countryside, but also wrap a whole memory, a long-standing cultural vein into each young green rice grain. From the diligent hands of the villagers, those fragrant and soft rice grains seem to preserve and spread the soul of the homeland, silently connecting the past with the present, from the bamboo tray at the alley entrance to the specialty stalls throughout the region. In each green rice grain, the soul of the homeland is still there, deep, persistent and constantly spreading.
Source: https://baothainguyen.vn/lanh-te/202507/hon-que-trong-tung-hat-ngoc-xanh-3462239/
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