Bouyei Five-Colored Flower Rice

Bouyei Five-Colored Flower Rice

　　The Bouyei people have a deep love for cleanliness and are blessed by the beautiful mountains and waters of Luoping, making them an ethnic group full of charm. In terms of food, they pay great attention to both cleanliness and flavor, and their Five-Colored Flower Rice is truly unique.

　　Five-Colored Flower Rice is a specialty of the Bouyei people. Not only are the colors bright, but the flavors are also distinctive. The common colors are red, purple, black, white, and yellow, collectively known as “Five-Colored Flower Rice.” Some versions are dyed in just three colors—red, yellow, and white—and are called “Three-Colored Flower Rice.”

　　Every year after autumn, the Bouyei carefully select premium glutinous rice and set it aside specifically for making flower rice. By the time of the traditional March 3rd festival the following year, they gather various edible wild plants from the mountains or around their homes. They crush the roots, stems, flowers, and leaves of these plants separately to extract three pigments—red, yellow, and blue. From these three colors, they also create black and purple, completing the five colors needed for the flower rice.

　　White is the natural color of the rice, while red, dark red, and purple are achieved by soaking the grains in the juice extracted from a plant called “Sisters’ Rice Leaf,” with the difference in shades depending on the concentration of the juice. Yellow is made by soaking the seeds of a plant called “Yellow Rice Flower,” black is produced by burning straw-like wheat stalks, soaking the ashes in water, filtering out the residue, and using the colored water to soak the rice. Purple-black is created by soaking the rice in the juice extracted from the leaves of the sweet gum tree.

　　The soaked glutinous rice is then divided into five small earthenware basins, and the five different color juices are mixed in one by one. Once the colors have fully soaked into the rice, the five bowls of colored rice are taken to a small river for rinsing—the river is called Duoyi, and the Bouyei girls washing the flower rice along its banks are considered the most beautiful scenery on this “river of daughters.” Only after rinsing can the colored rice be mixed together, steamed in a bamboo steamer, and finally spread out in a tray to dry. At this point, the Five-Colored Flower Rice is vibrant in color, fragrant, and delicious—it can be eaten cold or steamed warm. For those with a sweet tooth, adding a bit of honey makes it even more fragrant and sweet.

　　If there is leftover Five-Colored Flower Rice during festivals, it can also be shaped into small round rice balls or naturally sun-dried and stored for later consumption. The small rice balls are meant to be fried—they puff up, become crispy, and not only taste deliciously crunchy but also look very appealing, making them an excellent pairing with alcohol. Sun-dried flower rice can be scooped into a bowl, softened with hot water, and turned into a flower porridge. Adding a few poached eggs to the porridge turns it into a fragrant egg and flower rice congee, which is considered the best dish the Bouyei serve to guests.