Ingredients
Rice
- 1 kgglutinous rice, soaked overnight
- 300 mlcoconut milk
- 1 tbspsalt
Pan
- 300 mlpeanut or sesame oil
- 100 gfresh ginger, julienned
Mix-ins
- 200 gfresh coconut, sliced
- 200 groasted peanuts
- 100 gsesame seeds, toasted
Directions
- Soak the glutinous rice overnight and drain it.
- Cook it either by steaming for 30 minutes or by simmering in the coconut milk until soft and sticky.
- Heat the oil in a very wide heavy pan, one considerably larger than seems necessary.
- At the festival this is made in pans the size of a table, worked by two or three men with wooden paddles, and the scale is not incidental: the mixture is heavy and moving it takes real force.
- Add the ginger to the hot oil and fry it until fragrant.
- Add the cooked rice and start working it against the base of the pan with a flat wooden paddle.
- Now the pounding, which is the dish. Press, fold and beat the rice for 20 to 30 minutes over a low heat.
- Beat it until the individual grains have broken down and merged into one glossy elastic mass that pulls away from the pan in a single sheet.
- This is what separates htamane from sticky rice with things stirred into it. It is judged by the stretch, and stopping early leaves you with a rice salad.
- Work the coconut and most of the peanuts and sesame in as you go, so that they run through it rather than sitting on top.
- Keep adding oil as you work. It takes a great deal, and the mixture should stay glossy rather than dry, which is what stops it sticking to the pan and to the teeth.
- Season with the salt, tasting as you go, because htamane is savoury and needs more than you would expect.
- Turn it out, flatten it, and scatter the remaining peanuts and sesame over the top.
- Cut it into squares and serve warm or at room temperature.
- It is made at the Htamane festival on the full moon of Tabodwe, in late January or February, cooked in vast pans at monasteries and offered before it is shared out.
- It is a communal dish rather than a household one, and being handed a piece of it is the point.
Technique
- It is savoury rather than sweet, which surprises people expecting something like a rice pudding.
- Sesame oil gives a stronger flavour and peanut oil a cleaner one; both are used.
- It keeps two or three days and is eaten cold as readily as warm.
Substitutions
- Desiccated coconut soaked in coconut milk, if fresh is unavailable.
- Cashews in place of peanuts.
Variations
- With considerably more ginger, which is the strongest-flavoured version.
- Made small, in a domestic pan, outside festival season.
- With a little jaggery worked in, for a sweeter version.
History
Glutinous rice pounded with coconut, sesame, peanut and ginger in huge pans at the Htamane festival, on the full moon of Tabodwe.
Frequently asked questions
What is Htamane?
Htamane is a snack from Myanmar: festival sticky rice kneaded with peanuts, sesame, ginger and oil. Glutinous rice pounded with coconut, sesame, peanut and ginger in huge pans at the Htamane festival, on the full moon of Tabodwe.
How long does Htamane take to make?
Htamane takes 20 min plus overnight soaking of preparation and 1 hr of cooking. The recipe makes 10 servings. It is rated hard to make.
What can I substitute in Htamane?
Yes, within limits. Desiccated coconut soaked in coconut milk, if fresh is unavailable. Cashews in place of peanuts.
What is the most important thing to get right in Htamane?
Work the coconut and most of the peanuts and sesame in as you go, so that they run through it rather than sitting on top.
