National Drink · Toasted Rice Water
Ranon'apango (Ranovola)
Photo: Hariniaina14 / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
It's made from the burnt crust stuck to the bottom of the rice pot — Malagasy cooks pour boiling water over that scorched layer instead of scraping it out and tossing it.
After rice is cooked and served, the caramelized crust left in the pot is steeped in boiling water to make ranon'apango, a lightly smoky, tea-colored drink also called ranovola ('golden water'). It's poured free alongside nearly every home and street meal in Madagascar, from breakfast mofo gasy to dinner.
Why it's made this way: Because rice is cooked in nearly every Malagasy household daily, this byproduct drink became the default table beverage nationwide and is widely regarded as the country's national drink.
More from Madagascar
Part of World of Street Food — 690 dishes from 118 countries.
Something wrong here? Tell us in the comments below.
Photo credits.