Cold snail noodle soup: Why October snails, Hanoi people?

Is it 'Oc October, Hanoian' or 'Oc October, January'? What is the difference between cold and hot vermicelli with snails?

Cold vermicelli with snails dish of Hanoi people - Photo: DAU DUNG

Just snail dishes alone, more than 30 food lovers, mostly Hanoians, gathered together - in the October Snail Workshop, Hanoians recently held at Fufiem café - to decode. Laughing freely.

Because not only did I get to hear stories from "my grandparents' time", and have the most sophisticated Hanoi food experts "tell" me the recipe, I also got to enjoy authentic cold vermicelli with snails - a gift that, according to writer Vu Bang, "has reached the goal of the art of delicious food of Hanoians".

"October snails, Hanoi people" or "October snails, January people"?

According to journalist Vinh Quyen - one of the admins of the group "Ha Thanh Huong Xua Vi Cu" (more than 15,000 members), "in Hanoi, autumn is the most beautiful of all seasons. Hanoi girls are also the most beautiful when autumn comes".

At that time, the cool breeze began to blow, the weather was a bit chilly, the girls wore velvet dresses, and graceful scarves, beautiful and romantic beyond description. Comparing snails to people, what comparison can be made?

Author of the book series "Ha Thanh Huong Xua Vi Cu" Vu Thi Tuyet Nhung said that the proverb "October Snails" is very familiar to Hanoians .

But I once heard another saying: Snails in October, people in January . Both have their reasons.

Meaning: Snails in October are fat, yellow, shiny, full-mouthed, white inside, crispy. People in January are dressed in silk, brocade and silk for festivals.

In the old days in Hanoi, families often gathered together to eat snails while watching the moon. From the full moon of the Mid-Autumn Festival to October is the time when snails are most delicious. In summer or winter, snails are very thin, with many small snails. There is a folk saying: It is better to eat flaky snails than to eat snails in May .

Snail water container - Photo: DAU DUNG

Collector Truong Viet Anh said that his sister once said that rich girls in Hanoi have a habit of gathering in the afternoon, eating, talking, and playing snails.

Ms. Tuyet Nhung remembers the cold vermicelli and snail vendors passing by the Hanoi sidewalks with their shoulder poles tilted to one side.

On one side of the basket were fifteen sets of bowls and chopsticks and a small bowl of chili sauce displayed on a bamboo basket.

Next to it is a specialized iron hammer for pounding and opening snails and a bamboo fork for scooping snail juice.

On the other side of the basket was a Phu Lang earthenware jar with a small mouth, containing snail broth mixed with vinegar, fish sauce and salt.

Around the ceramic jar are several hundred boiled and cooled Vietnamese snails, apple snails, and bamboo snails.

No wonder when preparing to "treat" the foodies in the workshop with cold snail noodles, the experts had to order special copper coin noodles. Then they had to find a ceramic jar to hold the snail broth, and a bamboo spoon to scoop it. Not to mention finding the right vinegar.

And that's how you eat Hanoi style. Otherwise, please go somewhere else.

Workshop Snails in October, Hanoi people - Photo: DAU DUNG

Cold snail noodle soup… takes the soul adrift

Culinary expert Nguyen Phuong Hai said he doesn't know when cold vermicelli with snails first appeared, but the word "cold vermicelli with snails" slowly entered the culinary "dictionary" of Vietnam in general and the culinary dictionary of Hanoi in particular, the first credit goes to Mr. Vu Bang (in Delicious Hanoi Dishes ).

Previously, in documents, grandparents used the words "vermicelli with snails and vinegar". No one used the words "cold vermicelli with snails".

Bamboo fork to scoop snail broth for cold snail noodle dish - Photo: DAU DUNG

In the past, Hanoi did not have hot snail noodle soup. This dish developed from cold snails. They all have snails, noodles, and vinegar, so how can we distinguish them clearly?

Hanoians say that for cold snail noodle soup, they usually use mussel noodle soup or coin noodle soup, made from jackfruit snails. There is only snail water and vinegar. No shrimp paste. Tomatoes are stir-fried with chili to make the sauce, when eating, add it to create a light red color, mildly spicy.

This is an old afternoon treat of Hanoi, sold by street vendors. No one eats cold vermicelli with snails in the morning.

After adding the caramel, the cold bowl of vermicelli with snails will have a soft red or yellow color - Photo: DAU DUNG

As for hot vermicelli with snails, we usually use vermicelli noodles and fatty, crunchy apple snails. Served with tomatoes, green onions, perilla, raw vegetables, and shrimp paste. Usually eaten in the morning or in cold winter.

Ms. Vu Thi Tuyet Nhung also added a silly sentence. Vinegar is the soul of vermicelli with snails. To make this dish, you must know a wine seller to have a good life. If the vinegar is not good, then… throw it away!

Delicious, that is vinegar made from glutinous rice, the finished product is light yellow but clear, has a slightly sour, fragrant smell.

After talking about Hanoi snails, everyone was happy to enjoy cold vermicelli with snails - Photo: DAU DUNG

It's hard to find seasonal sticky rice these days. Well, velvet sticky rice is fine. Behind Ms. Nhung's "fine" is the sophistication, extremism, and cuteness of Hanoians.

Perhaps that's why she reserved the words "unique and elegant" to talk about her hometown Hanoi's cold vermicelli with snails. And this is clearly not just about cuisine, through the way of eating, the way of cooking, the way of loving, we see the soul of Hanoi, the culture of Hanoi.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/bun-oc-nguoi-sao-lai-oc-thang-10-nguoi-ha-noi-20241028182558398.htm