According to many elders in the Tay ethnic minority areas, the full moon festival in July is an important holiday, only after the annual Lunar New Year. Therefore, despite being busy with work and taking care of their lives, the Tay people still keep the old customs passed by their ancestors, fully preparing offerings to their ancestors on the full moon day of the July; In which, indispensable items are the traditional cakes made from glutinous rice, including rom cakes, black rise cakes and banana cakes.

On the full moon day of July, Tay families make cakes to offer to their ancestors.

Following the introduction, we went to Cop Ke village, Thong Nhat commune (Lao Cai city) on the full moon day of July. These days, the households resound with the sound of pounding cakes. Many days before the ceremony, the daughters and daughter-in-law in the Tay families have prepared the necessary ingredients to wrap the cakes.

Every year, from the 10^th to the 15^th day of the July of the Lunar calendar, the sisters in the family often focus on making cakes. But this year, due to the influence of the Covid-19 pandemic, in order to ensure compliance with regulations on pandemic prevention and control, the sisters did not gather in large numbers, whoever stayed in their own house to wrap cakes to preserve the traditional culture. . Mrs. Hoang Thi Lich from Cop Ke village shared with us: The custom of wrapping cakes to offer to ancestors of the Tay people has existed for very long time. According to the old people, the cake must be made by the hands of the children and grandchildren in the family to show respect. So, no matter how busy they are, the households in the village still keep their traditional beauty.

In addition to glutinous rice, green beans are the main ingredients, carefully selected, carefully screened to select the beans, round and glossy rice grains, banana leaves are indispensable for wrapping cakes. Wanting fragrant and beautiful cakes, Tay women often choose green banana leaves (usually the leaves of banana trees), less torn, cut along the leaves and then dry in the sun, clean, neatly arrange to wait for the day to wrap the cake. Hemp leaves, dried bananas are also merticulously prepared by mothers and grandmothers in the days before so that when making cakes, they will have the best ingredients, resulting in fragrant, delicious, and soft cakes.

Like other Tay communities, these days, in every stilt houses of the Tay Van Ban people, they are preparing to make cakes. When the ingredients are fully prepared, the Tay women skillfully make and wrap the cake evenly and beautifully. With the main ingredient is glutinous rice flour, depending on different preparation such as mixing hemp leaves or dried bananas will give different smells and tastes. The filling of the cake is also varied, seasoned with necessary spices depending on the taste of each family, usually sweet bean filling, salty bean filling or peanut filling. Beautiful round cakes, carefully wrapped with banana leaves in pairs. After wrapping the cake, they are brought to the kitchen to be steamed. Soon, the cakes are cooked, the aroma spreads everywhere. The still hot cakes are displayed on a tray to offer to ancestors, pay respects and pray for health and peace. Not only making cakes enough for the family to use, the Tay people often make leftovers to make gifts for relatives and friends. For this reason, Tay women often stay up late on this occasion and get up earlier to prepare ingredients for wrapping cakes and making gifts for their families.

Modern life is developing more and more, but the Tay people always remind their children and grandchildren to keep the tradition, so the girls at the age of 10 have been taught by their grandmothers and mothers how to choose ingredients, how to wrap the cake so that it is the most delicious. Mrs. Hoang Thi Hoa, the Tay person in Lang Giang commune (Van Ban), is nearly 90 years old this year but is still smart and quick. She often advises her children and grandchildren: No matter how high the tray, the full meal, and how many rare products, but without the rom cakes, black rise cakes and banana cakes      to offer, the ceremony is not complete with respect to the ancestors. Therefore, no matter what, we have to prepare these traditional dishes by ourselves for the ceremony."

Together preserving the old features, the simple, small, beautiful, sweet, and delicious cakes chosen to offer are the hearts and feelings of the Tay people for their ancestors on the occasion of the solemn occasion.

Rice to make flour is selected from the most fragrant sticky rice in the region

Cakes filling is made with bằng green bean and peanut powder, which is steamed.

The leaves to wrap cakes are selected from banana leaves, dried to create toughness.

With banana cakes made from glutinous rice flour, after mixing dried bananas with flour, the maker must mill it out to create the glue.

Roll the cake from the filling and glutinous flour, roll it in banana leaves...

... and then steam in large, steamed pots.

The delicious finished product is expected by the whole family.

Choosing the best, most delicious cakes, Tay women offer their ancestors at home or bring them to the village communal house on important holidays to offer to heaven and earth

*Duck meat on the full moon of July of the Tay people in Nghia Do, Vinh Yen (Bao Yen)

After the Lunar New Year (May 5^th in Lunar Calendar), the Tay people in Nghia Do, Vinh Yen (Bao Yen) often choose the best-developed gourd ducks to separate the flock and start fattening to prepare for the full moon day of July. And only the Tay people here use duck meat as the feast to make offerings to their grandparents and ancestors.

Duck meat is the indispensable dish on the full moon day of July of the Tay people in Nghia Do, Vinh Yen.

On the full moon day of July, the Tay families here often get up early before sunrise, set fire to boil pot of water, catch two gourd ducks (both male and female) to start preparing them for making the offering feast for the full moon worshiping ceremony in July at noon. The offering feast to the ancestors is also very simple, not complicated, depending on the conditions of the family, in addition to boiled duck meat, it can be accompanied by duck meat cooked in bamboo tube, duck blood soup, castrated rooster or pork, grilled fish, banana cakes…

The offering feast to ancestors is displayed on the tray lined with banana leaves. Because duck meat is the main dish, it is solemnly placed in the center of the tray by the Tay people, surrounded by side dishes so that the offering tray on the full moon day of July must be fully prepared, showing prosperity, paying respects to grandparents and ancestors.

According to the viewpoints of the Tay people in Nghia Do, Vinh Yen, because there is no custom to worship ancestors on the Dragon Boat Festival and on the 1^st and 15^th of every month, apart from the Lunar New Year and the full moon of January, the full moon of July is the the occasion of the year for the Tay people to burn incense and offer feast to their ancestors to pray for favorable rain and wind for the bountiful harvest, the prosperous and happy family.

In addition to the Lunar New Year and the full moon of January, the full moon of July is the most important day of the Tay people in Nghia Do, Vinh Yen

Ly Van Noi, Chairman of People's Committee of Nghia Do Commune, said that in order to maintain and promote traditional values, to promote the image of community tourism. Currently, the local government is encouraging the people to participate in the program of renovating and restoring the ducks gourd, step by step building brand for the product of Nghia Do ducks gourd.