Millet from Jia County

Millet from Jia County

　　Millet from Jia County

　　A variety of broomcorn millet. Its stalks are hairy, the panicles are loose yet clustered, and the grains are hard and non-sticky. In northern Shaanxi, “millet” is pronounced as “mi.” Broomcorn millet is divided into soft millet and hard millet. The rice milled from soft millet is called soft rice, which is used to make the famous northern Shaanxi rice wine. This soft rice can be ground into flour to make cakes, and it is used in both fried cakes and date cakes in the region. The rice milled from hard millet is called yellow rice. In the daily life of farmers, yellow rice is the staple food, and yellow rice steamed buns are also made from this grain. A folk rhyme goes: “Yellow rice congee with pickled vegetables — everyone who sees it loves it.”