The Autumn Feast and Mum’s Gentle Hands

“When can we finally ‘break the feast’?” – the timeless question on every child’s lips each full-moon season. In Vietnam, phá cỗ (“breaking the feast”) is the moment the whole family finally tucks into the Mid-Autumn spread.

What was on the Mid-Autumn tray of our childhood?

Childhood Mid-Autumn memories are always steeped in the sweet fragrance of autumn fruits. The vibrant golden bananas, the fragrant thị fruit (a small, sweet-scented cousin of the persimmon) we playfully hid in our pockets, the plump red persimmons, and the undisputed star: the “pomelo puppy”. I can still see Mum meticulously separating the pomelo flesh strand by strand to craft its fluffy coat, then carefully placing two shiny longan seeds for its eyes.

Our feast was never extravagant. It was just humble, homegrown treats, yet it held a whole universe of love and the delicate craftsmanship of our mothers and grandmothers.

We kids would constantly sneak over to snatch a piece of candy or gently boop the pomelo puppy’s nose, craning our necks to watch the moon rise to its peak so we could finally gather round and break the feast together. ✨

The most peaceful corner of memory

Those rustic, simple Mid-Autumn days may be in the past, but the scent of the traditional fruit tray and the silhouette of Mum quietly peeling pomelos and slicing melons will always remain the most peaceful corner of my memory.

The moon is already glowing bright. How is your family preparing the Mid-Autumn feast this year?