The first time trying the unique 4-legged specialty dish in the West, the foreign guest was surprised by its eye-catching appearance and attractive flavor, both eating and praising it as delicious.
Dustin Cheverier (born 1988, from the US) is one of the quite famous content creators in Vietnam with a personal YouTube channel with more than 830,000 followers.
He has lived in Ho Chi Minh City for about 10 years and regularly shares videos of his travel and culinary experiences in many provinces from the South to the North.
The American guy commented that Vietnamese cuisine is very attractive. Therefore, he spent a lot of time learning and experiencing local dishes and specialties, from popular dishes to "unique" dishes that not every Western guest dares to enjoy.
Most recently, Dustin and a friend, Jesse, went on a trip to the West.
They chose Soc Trang as a stopover and stayed at the house of Mr. Nguyen Van (a local) to best experience the life and culture of the river region.
Dustin said that Western cuisine impressed him the most because it has many unique and delicious dishes.
Therefore, on this trip with Jesse, he wanted to introduce to his close friend some unique dishes here. Among them was grilled mouse.
Grilled mouse is a rustic dish that appears in many provinces in the West such as Ben Tre, Soc Trang, Vinh Long, Bac Lieu... Depending on the characteristics of each place, the type of mouse hunted for food can be field mouse or coconut mouse, small in size.
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In Soc Trang, Dustin and Jesse were introduced and instructed on how to catch mice by Mr. Van.
Accordingly, they sailed along the canals and set metal traps (with bait inside) at the base of trees and in the foliage. These are places where rats often go to find food.
The two Western guests were instructed to set about 15 traps, wait overnight, and then collect and check the traps the next morning. Of the traps they set, they caught 5-6 mice, which they then brought home to process and use as ingredients to prepare dishes.
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Before cooking, Dustin and Jesse were also instructed on how to clean the rat meat.
Accordingly, the mouse is blanched in boiling water to pluck the hair, then the belly is cut open, the intestines are removed, the head, legs and tail are cut off. Next, the mouse meat is washed with wine or diluted vinegar and lemon, then washed again with water and drained.
After cleaning the rat meat, season it with spices of your choice. When grilling, Mr. Van uses a charcoal stove, and when the rat meat is almost cooked, he brushes it with a layer of honey.
This method not only helps the grilled rat meat smell smoky and have a beautiful golden brown color, but also increases the sweet flavor of the dish.
Carefully observing how Mr. Van prepared grilled rat meat, Jesse commented, "Just looking at it makes it look delicious."
“The way he cooks it with the spices and the things he puts on it, it gives it a really nice aroma and color. Just by looking at it, I know the grilled rat meat will be delicious,” the Western guest shared.
When the hot dish was served, Dustin and Jesse began to enjoy it. Dustin commented that the rat meat looked attractive with its golden color. When he ate it, he felt the meat was soft, slightly chewy and soaked in different spices.
Jesse admitted that this was a delicious snack, “with a chewy texture and no fishy smell”. The young man even ate 3 grilled rats because it was so delicious.
In addition to grilled mice, during their time in Soc Trang, the two Western guests also got to taste many delicious local fruits and dishes such as star apple, water coconut, snake meat, stewed pork leg with beans, grilled snails with pepper, etc.
Photo: Dustin Cheverier
Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/khach-tay-thu-dac-san-it-nguoi-dam-an-o-mien-tay-noi-chi-nhin-da-thay-ngon-2368930.html
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