Walking around Ha Noi streets, especially at “Hoan Kiem lake walking street” or in the traditional place or event in Vietnam, you can see street vendors who sell colorful “Tò He” made with glutinous rice which can be eaten.
In the past, the northern people made and sold “Tò He” during festivals, particularly Tet (Vietnamese Lunar New Year) holiday and Trung Thu (Mid-Autumn festival) at the local market. Nowadays, To He is regularly present in most traditional events, and public spaces in the city.
Because everything made is edible, in some northern regions, people are also called "the cake" or "the stork toy". Because they are relatively similar to the real thing, with a little added sugar, children and adults both like.
Later, these items were often attached with a reedy trumpet pipe, the head with malt candy, raw materials made of steamed rice flour, bright colors with varied types. Trumpet can emit a fascinating sound, when blowing up there are intermittent cries “tò… te… tò… te”. Perhaps that is why people call it " tò te ", after which it is pronounced "Tò He".
With simple tools including a tray of glutinous rice powder in various colours, a small knife, a few bamboo sticks. By their professional skill, To He artisans can knead many lovely shapes (animals, cartoon characters, flower, fruits...)
Making materials to manipulate the clay is not simple. Making flour is the main secret. If the dough is not good, it’ll be easy to peel off, get off the stick. The main material for making Tò He is glutinous rice powder mixed with a small amount of sticky rice with the ratio of ten parts of rice and one part of sticky rice. If the weather is hot, dry and It needs to add more sticky rice to keep the plasticity of Tò He. The dough is mixed well, soaked in water and then pureed, boiled and kneaded quickly
After that, people hold the dough into individual pieces and dye them. The four primary colors are yellow, red, black and blue. Previously, people used colors derived from natural plants and boiled with a little powder: yellow made from Sophora japonica flowers or turmeric, red from Gac fruit (momordica cochinchinensis) or gardenias, black from burned straw or dyer's weed, green leaves from indigo leaves or galangal leaves ... Other colors are created from these four colors. Now, industrial food coloring is used for more convenience.
To he is strangely attractive, not only to children but also to many people of all ages. Just a little glutinous rice powder with a small bamboo stick, about 40 cm long, the talented hands of the Tò He artisans will make everyone's imagination momentarily become a reality. Watching the process, the movements of the hands, manipulate the colorful pieces of dough skillfully with give you a chance to find the very attractive of this toy.
- Note dry powder (not sticky water - mix the two things together)
2: Knead the dry dough
- Knead the dry powder with water at the rate of 5kg of powder / 400ml of water (avoid the case when the dough is too flexible - or called crushed)
- When the finished product is kneaded into a large batter, we pinch it into small pieces with a fist and evenly round it; then beat each small piece of dough.
3: Prepare a pot of boiling water and let each dough to boil for 6 minutes.
- Take each dough out and let it cool for 15 minutes, then knead all the dough into a large dough (take care to knead it smoothly)
4: Put preservative in with small percentage. Knead the dough evenly with flavoring
- The powder is divided evenly into 7 parts for 7 colors.
5: mix colors for 7 parts flour
6: we put the molded product into the toaster oven ... and after 15-20 minutes there will have finished product.
Mix 1kg of flour in a large pot then mix the tartar flour (3-4 spoons)
After adding 300gr salt into the pot, pour about 3 tablespoons of cooking oil.
Then we pour in the water until everything in the pot becomes thick like a cake
Put the pot on the stove, medium and low heat, and then constantly stir (this stage is quite laborious)
After the mixture has become stiffer and .. your hands are tired, turn the pot down, wait for less heat, pour it on the tray, and add cooking oil to keep it from sticking (trick here !!!)
Then try to mold the whole Tò He dough
We divide the whole pile of Tò He dough into small clumps, then add the food coloring in turn into each grasp and squeeze to squeeze.
We can also create and mix with each other to produce different colors.
Tò He story
In the past, the northern people made and sold “Tò He” during festivals, particularly Tet (Vietnamese Lunar New Year) holiday and Trung Thu (Mid-Autumn festival) at the local market. Nowadays, To He is regularly present in most traditional events, and public spaces in the city.
Because everything made is edible, in some northern regions, people are also called "the cake" or "the stork toy". Because they are relatively similar to the real thing, with a little added sugar, children and adults both like.
With simple tools including a tray of glutinous rice powder in various colours, a small knife, a few bamboo sticks. By their professional skill, To He artisans can knead many lovely shapes (animals, cartoon characters, flower, fruits...)
Tò He secret
Making materials to manipulate the clay is not simple. Making flour is the main secret. If the dough is not good, it’ll be easy to peel off, get off the stick. The main material for making Tò He is glutinous rice powder mixed with a small amount of sticky rice with the ratio of ten parts of rice and one part of sticky rice. If the weather is hot, dry and It needs to add more sticky rice to keep the plasticity of Tò He. The dough is mixed well, soaked in water and then pureed, boiled and kneaded quickly
After that, people hold the dough into individual pieces and dye them. The four primary colors are yellow, red, black and blue. Previously, people used colors derived from natural plants and boiled with a little powder: yellow made from Sophora japonica flowers or turmeric, red from Gac fruit (momordica cochinchinensis) or gardenias, black from burned straw or dyer's weed, green leaves from indigo leaves or galangal leaves ... Other colors are created from these four colors. Now, industrial food coloring is used for more convenience.
To he is strangely attractive, not only to children but also to many people of all ages. Just a little glutinous rice powder with a small bamboo stick, about 40 cm long, the talented hands of the Tò He artisans will make everyone's imagination momentarily become a reality. Watching the process, the movements of the hands, manipulate the colorful pieces of dough skillfully with give you a chance to find the very attractive of this toy.
How to make Tò He like a Vietnamese
Vietnamese style
Ingredient:
- Colored food products (Should buy 7 colors: Green - red - yellow - blue - purple - pink – black)
- Powder preservatives - Alum - Soak with lots of water before use, only for 2% of the total mixture.
- 3kg of glutinous rice flour
- 2kg of sticky rice flour
Steps to make it
1: Mix dry flour (glutinous rice flour and glutinous rice flour together)- Note dry powder (not sticky water - mix the two things together)
2: Knead the dry dough
- Knead the dry powder with water at the rate of 5kg of powder / 400ml of water (avoid the case when the dough is too flexible - or called crushed)
- When the finished product is kneaded into a large batter, we pinch it into small pieces with a fist and evenly round it; then beat each small piece of dough.
3: Prepare a pot of boiling water and let each dough to boil for 6 minutes.
- Take each dough out and let it cool for 15 minutes, then knead all the dough into a large dough (take care to knead it smoothly)
4: Put preservative in with small percentage. Knead the dough evenly with flavoring
- The powder is divided evenly into 7 parts for 7 colors.
5: mix colors for 7 parts flour
6: we put the molded product into the toaster oven ... and after 15-20 minutes there will have finished product.
Simple way if you don’t have sticky rice
Ingredient:
- Colored food products (Should buy 7 colors: Green - red - yellow - blue - purple - pink – black)
- Aromatic flavors (according to your taste): brown - chocolate / coffee, red - strawberry, yellow - lemon / banana, orange - orange, green - nuggets, violet - taro, white - vanilla, coconut milk, etc.
- Powder preservatives - Alum - Soak with lots of water before use, only for 2% of the total mixture.
- 2kg of flour (not Vietnamese style, easy to find in foreign country)
- Cream of Tartar
- Cooking oil
- 1kg Salt
Steps to make it
Mix 1kg of flour in a large pot then mix the tartar flour (3-4 spoons)
After adding 300gr salt into the pot, pour about 3 tablespoons of cooking oil.
Then we pour in the water until everything in the pot becomes thick like a cake
Put the pot on the stove, medium and low heat, and then constantly stir (this stage is quite laborious)
After the mixture has become stiffer and .. your hands are tired, turn the pot down, wait for less heat, pour it on the tray, and add cooking oil to keep it from sticking (trick here !!!)
Then try to mold the whole Tò He dough
We divide the whole pile of Tò He dough into small clumps, then add the food coloring in turn into each grasp and squeeze to squeeze.
We can also create and mix with each other to produce different colors.
Finished, soaked in more flavor depending on the color, then packed tightly to avoid drying.
Tips:
- Add stickiness: add tartar
- Extra thick: add flour
- More slippery: add oil
- Dark color: add products
- Heavy smell: add flavor
- Add liquid: add water
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