Bamboo is a highly versatile plant that can be used for various applications, including cooking rice in sections of its culms. Near Gerak, in Perak State, Malaysia, I met a street vendor who was traditionally cooking rice. Similar vendors can also be found in most other Southeast Asian countries. In the following, I would like to describe how he cooked the rice. However, there are many ways to skin a cat. His approach can be either more simplified (e.g., when staying in the forests) or more refined (e.g., for a private party). But it serves as a good starting point.
Preparations for cooking
For cooking rice, the following items are necessary: bamboo culms, wrapping leaves, uncooked rice, coconut shavings, optional food additions, water, and hot coals of an open fire.
Bamboo culm
Each section of a bamboo culm has to have a closed and an open end. The internode length should be large, and the inner diameter should be an optimum between the amount of rice to be cooked and the length of the internode. The wall thickness of the bamboo should be small for easy splitting, but thick enough not to burn through. In our case, the total length of the bamboo culm was approximately 50 cm, or 20 inches, with an outer diameter of about 5 cm, or 2 inches.
Wrapping material
The inside of bamboo culms is covered with a thin skin, which consists of cellulose and is not edible. The uncooked rice will therefore be wrapped in leaves, which, however, will infuse the taste of these leaves into the rice. The most common wrapping material is banana leaves, which are available in large sheets and are easily divided into sections. They are mostly free of insects, their eggs, and larvae. And they do instill a slight taste and smell to the rice, which is regarded by most people as pleasant. Our vendor also used a banana leaf as wrapping material.
Other leaves sometimes used are those of sago or papaya. Sago leaves are distinctly neutral, whereas papaya leaves impart a pronounced bitter taste. Many Indonesians believe that this bitterness will help them fight malaria.
Rice additions
Optional food additions to the uncooked rice can include any other food items, such as pieces of vegetables, fish, or meat. Due to the different cooking times of these items, however, it is preferable to cook the rice and other food items separately. In farming communities in Southeast Asia, rice remains the primary staple, often accompanied by side dishes such as meat, fish, or vegetables. Or just fish sauce and chilies as a condiment.
Cooking the rice
As a rule of thumb, one part of uncooked rice, together with two parts of water, will result in three parts of cooked rice.
Filling the bamboo tube
In our case, a part of a bamboo leaf will be rolled into a cylindrical shape, which fits into the tube. The leaf does not cover the upper and lower ends, but will be closed with the fingers on one end for filling. Into this leaf cylinder, raw rice mixed with coconut shavings is filled to a little bit more than one-third of the tube length. Coconut shavings are essential, as they release oil that greases the wall between the rice and wrapping. This makes for easier separation of both. After that, the filled wrapping will be put into the bamboo tube. The entire tube, including its contents, is now filled to two-thirds of its length with water and is placed next to a fire to start cooking.
Cooking itself
The cooking time depends on many variables, but when the cooked rice appears at the top opening and no longer lets steam off, the cooking should be finished. In the case of having a bed of hot coals, a cooking time of around 30 minutes can be expected. Lively fires under the bamboo tubes should be avoided. These make it challenging to turn the tubes and burn both the rice inside and the tube outside. Slowly cooking over hot coals is much more desirable.
Our street vendor was experienced with all his variables (size of bamboo tube, amount of water for the rice species, amount of rice and coconut shavings, size and duration of the fire,…). His resulting product, the rice was cooked and tasted perfectly.
The cooked rice will be retrieved by splitting the bamboo tube. This simple task sometimes leads to comical effects, as seen in the video above. After splitting the bamboo tube, it will be used as firewood.
Lessons learned about cooking rice in a bamboo:
- Bamboo culms with long internodes and thin walls will be used for cooking rice.
- Wrapping materials are the leaves of non-poisonous large-leaved plants, like banana, sago, or papaya.
- One part of uncooked rice will be mixed with two parts of water, to make three parts of cooked rice.
- Coconut shavings are used as a condiment and to provide oil for greasing the rice and wrapping for easy separation of both.
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