Vietnamese Rice Krispies and Honey Smacks

Hey were Rice Krispies by chance based upon a Vietnamese snack? These guys here in the southern Vietnamese town of Cai Be heated up gravel from the nearby river (using longan shells as fuel, BTW), threw grains of rice in there, and stirred away until the rice popped like popcorn. After sifting out the gravel and husks, they were left with what was basically Rice Krispies.

With that popcorn analogy in mind, I was hoping that they would take the rice puffs and perhaps sprinkle some salt or ground up basil or something for a savory snack. Instead, they then mixed it with some kind of honey to thus make what were effectively Rice Krispie Treats, cut into squares just like the marshmallow-based version. This one was less sweet and sticky though, and apparently it was common to use your hands to crumble it apart while still in the plastic bag before dispensing. They even had some bigger ones made from wheat or something that were a bit like Honey Smacks.

Nearby, we came across a lady with a cart deep frying all sorts of food, be they quail eggs, wontons, or what have you (no Mars bars, in case you were wondering). I pointed to a few items like egg rolls, string beans, and some kind of stuffed eggplant thing for her to fry. They tasted just like you would imagine, and was kinda like tempura once battered up (or maybe even that refried tofu stuff from Foo Kee in Singapore). Mmm...deep fried food: good in any culture.