Vietnamese National Dishes

Cơm lam

Soak glutinous rice, then roast it in fresh bamboo tubes over charcoal embers and serve it with a coarse peanut-sesame dip.

Vietnamese National Dishes
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Fresh cơm lam bamboo tubes roast over charcoal beside cut sticky-rice portions and peanut-sesame salt.
The tubes cook over glowing embers before the sticky rice is peeled and served.
Yield 4 servings
Cook About 1 hour
Passive 4 hours 10 minutes for soaking and resting
Total About 5 hours 40 minutes
Calories per serving About 540 kcal
Ingredients ↓
Overview

Cơm lam

Cơm lam is glutinous rice cooked inside a fresh bamboo or nứa tube. The dish is associated with several communities across Vietnam, including Jrai and other Central Highlands groups, and each area has its own rice, tube and serving customs. In Gia Lai, bamboo rice is often paired with grilled chicken and a peanut or sesame salt; this recipe includes a simple peanut-sesame dip but not the chicken.

Use Gia Lai-grown Khẩu Cẩm glutinous rice if you can identify and buy it; ordinary white glutinous rice is a practical substitute. The grains are soaked, placed loosely in the tube with a little water, sealed with banana leaf and roasted over embers. The bamboo contributes a gentle aroma, while the leaf and thin inner bamboo membrane help hold the rice together when the tube is peeled away. This measured home version gives you a consistent starting point; tube size, rice age and fire strength still affect the result.

Practical

Practical

  • Tips for successChoose fresh, clean, food-safe bamboo or nứa tubes with one natural closed node. Do not use tubes that are moldy, cracked, painted or chemically treated. Soak the rice for the full four hours, then drain it well. Wet rice can spill or steam unevenly if packed tightly. Fill each tube only about two-thirds full and leave at least 3 cm of headroom. The rice needs room to swell. Cook over medium charcoal embers rather than tall flames. Rotate the tubes every 5–10 minutes so one side does not scorch. The one-hour roast is a guide. Open a test tube carefully; if the center grains are chalky or firm, roast the rest for another 10 minutes and check again.
Ingredients

Ingredients

Bamboo rice

  • 500 g glutinous rice, dry weight; use Gia Lai Khẩu Cẩm if reliably identified and available, or ordinary white glutinous rice
  • 2.5 litres cool potable water for rinsing and soaking; drain and discard
  • 200 ml potable water for cooking, 50 ml per tube
  • 4 small banana-leaf squares, about 10 cm each, washed and dried, for plugging the tube openings

Peanut-sesame salt

  • 40 g dry-roasted unsalted peanuts, skins removed if desired
  • 15 g whole white sesame seeds
  • 3 g fine salt
Method

Method

Method

  1. Rinse and soak the rice. Rinse the glutinous rice in potable water until the water is mostly clear. Cover it with the cool soaking water in a clean bowl, cover the bowl and refrigerate for 4 hours. Drain the rice well and discard the soaking water.

  2. Prepare the tubes. Wash the bamboo tubes and check that each is clean, fresh and intact, with a natural closed node at one end. Wash and dry the banana leaves. Set up the outdoor grill and light the charcoal so it can settle to medium embers while you prepare the rice.

  3. Fill and seal. Divide the drained rice evenly among the four tubes, filling each about two-thirds without packing it down. Pour in 50 ml potable water per tube. Leave at least 3 cm of space at the top, then fold a banana-leaf square over each opening as a loose plug.

  4. Arrange over the embers. Place the tubes at an angle above the medium charcoal embers, not directly in tall flames. Use long tongs and heat-resistant gloves, and keep the cooking area outdoors and clear of anything flammable.

  5. Roast and turn. Roast for about 60 minutes, rotating each tube every 5–10 minutes and moving it along the ember bed for even heat. Start checking at 50 minutes. The outside will darken and the rice-and-bamboo aroma will become pronounced. If the center grains are still chalky or firm, continue in 10-minute increments.

  6. Rest and make the dip. Lift the tubes with tongs and rest them for 10 minutes before handling. Toast the sesame in a dry skillet over medium-low heat for 2–3 minutes, until fragrant. Coarsely pound the sesame, peanuts and salt together; keep some texture. Carefully split and peel the charred outer bamboo, leaving the thin inner membrane around the rice if it releases cleanly. Slice each tube into portions on a stable board.

  7. Serve and store safely. Serve the warm rice with the peanut-sesame salt. Grilled chicken is a common Gia Lai accompaniment but is not included here. Eat promptly. For leftovers, remove the rice from the bamboo, spread it in a clean shallow container and cool it as quickly as possible, ideally within 1 hour. Refrigerate at or below 4°C / 40°F and eat within 24 hours. Reheat only once, until steaming hot throughout (74°C / 165°F). Discard rice left at room temperature for more than 2 hours, or more than 1 hour above 32°C / 90°F.

Practical

Practical

Practical guidance

If you cannot find fresh, food-safe bamboo, steamed glutinous rice is a useful alternative, but it will not have the aroma or shape of cơm lam. Do not improvise with painted, treated or unidentified bamboo. Khẩu Cẩm rice is a local option when available; otherwise, use plain white glutinous rice, not ordinary long-grain rice. The grilled chicken and lá-é salt often served in Gia Lai are separate dishes and are not part of this recipe.

Troubleshooting

The rice is firm in the middle: Return the tubes to the embers for 10 minutes, rotating them, then test another tube. The outside is blackening too quickly: Move the tubes farther from the embers and turn them more often; avoid direct flames. Water or rice leaks from the opening: The tube may be overfilled or the leaf plug too tight. Leave more headroom and use a loose leaf seal next time. The rice falls apart when peeled: Let the tube rest for the full 10 minutes and peel the charred outer layer in small sections, keeping the thin inner membrane around the rice.

Food safety

Soak the rice covered in the refrigerator and cook it promptly after draining. Use only fresh, clean bamboo intended for food; discard any tube that is moldy, cracked or chemically treated. Keep the fire outdoors, cook over embers rather than tall flames, and use long tongs and heat-resistant gloves. Let the tubes rest before opening because both the bamboo and trapped steam are very hot. Serve the rice promptly or hold it above 63°C / 145°F. For leftovers, remove the rice from the bamboo, spread it in a clean shallow container and cool it quickly, ideally within 1 hour. Refrigerate at or below 4°C / 40°F and eat within 24 hours. Reheat only once until steaming hot throughout, to 74°C / 165°F. Discard rice left out for more than 2 hours, or more than 1 hour when the temperature is above 32°C / 90°F.

FAQ

Can I use regular rice? Use glutinous rice, also called sticky or sweet rice. Ordinary long-grain rice has a different texture and will not hold together in the same way. Can I cook the tubes over a gas grill? Use a grill only if it can hold the tubes securely over steady indirect heat. Rotate them often and check the center grains; cooking time may differ. Can I prepare the rice without bamboo? You can steam the soaked rice, but the result is a different rice dish without the bamboo fragrance and tube shape. What should I serve with it? Peanut-sesame salt is included. In Gia Lai, grilled chicken and lá-é salt are common accompaniments, but they are not part of this recipe.

Nutrition per serving (estimate)

Nutrition per serving (estimate)

  • Serving sizeOne quarter of the rice made with 125 g dry glutinous rice, plus one quarter of the peanut-sesame salt
  • Calories540 kcal
  • Carbohydrate105 g
  • Protein12 g
  • Fat8 g
  • Fibre5 g
  • Sodium310 mg
Allergens

Allergens

Contains peanuts and sesame. Check packaged rice and condiment labels for additional allergens or cross-contact. The rice without the dip does not contain these ingredients, but it may be processed in facilities that handle them.

A final note

A final note

  • Leave room for the soaked rice to expand and rotate the tubes over steady embers.
  • Refrigerate leftover rice within an hour and eat it within a day.
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