The heavy rain in the forest poured down, snails from the cracks in the ground and rocks competed to come up to the surface to find food and reproduce... This was also the time when people in Thanh Lam and Thanh Son communes... (Ba Thuoc district, Thanh Hoa province) took the opportunity to go into the forest to hunt for rock snails (also known as mountain snails, medicinal snails).
This seasonal work has brought significant income to many households living under the forest canopy. However, this work is relatively hard and potentially dangerous.
Local people often boil or grill rock snails, very delicious.
Hunting for rock snails in Pu Luong forest
After the afternoon rain, under the canopy of Pu Luong forest, the rustling sound of water flowing from small streams. Under the roof of the stilt house, Mr. Nguyen Van Thao and his wife, Ms. Le Thi Ai, in Lan village, Thanh Lam commune, Ba Thuoc district, Thanh Hoa province, quickly finished dinner and hurriedly changed clothes to prepare for the trip to the forest.
Mr. Thao said that rock snails only come out when it has just rained and the forest is still wet; after the rainy season or when the cool breeze begins, the rock snails are almost lost. It is very difficult to catch these snails in winter or hot weather because they are buried deep in the ground and in the carpet of rotten leaves. People living near the forest can still find snails but have to be diligent in looking for them at night. If it rains continuously when the weather is cold, the snails will come to the surface for a very short time to get oxygen and then disappear.
“In this profession, you don’t need to invest anything, just a set of forest clothes, a plastic basket, a sack, a water bottle, a machete, and a flashlight to start your career. However, hunting for rock snails in the forest will be very difficult because you have to go deep into the forest, crawl into caves or turn over rotten leaves to find them. Not to mention, sometimes snail hunters also have to face many dangers when they accidentally encounter snakes, centipedes and poisonous insects in the forest,” Ms. Ai shared.
To avoid possible risks, people who go snail hunting always go in groups, usually 3-4 people or more, to help each other in case of accident or fall, or in case of wild animal attack...
Following the small path towards the rocky mountains, the foresters parked their motorbikes, tied their shoelaces tightly and covered their heads to avoid the leaves scratching their faces. They went deep into the core of Pu Luong forest. After the rain, the trees were lush and dense, the water from the branches and leaves splashed out and soaked their clothes. Awakened, the forest mosquitoes flew around and leeches also scurried around like a festival. Climbing over jagged and slippery rocks, everyone reached a flat area.
Here, flat snails, as big as small teacups, crawl out in great numbers, some crawling on the ground, some clinging to leaves and rotten tree trunks. If you don’t pay attention, it’s hard to spot them because the snail shells are hard, with alternating white and gray stripes that look like rotten leaves. Thao shared: “It’s easiest to pick up snails when they’re still clinging to tree branches and rocks, because when there’s a noise, the snails will release their mouths and fall into the rotten leaves, making them very hard to find.”
Rock snails - A special dish to treat guests
For ethnic minorities living at the foot of Pu Luong Mountain, rock snails are not only used as food but also considered a valuable medicine. According to Mr. Thao, rock snails mainly eat forest leaves and their favorite dish is the tobacco plant. In the past, when modern medicine was hard to buy, people used snails to treat blurred vision or eye film by burning rock snails to ashes, diluting, filtering the water to apply to the eyes and wash the face.
Snails are also used to treat some intestinal diseases. In the past, people often caught snails to grill and eat to stave off hunger on the spot when going into the forest to make a living, but recently they have learned to collect and sell them as a commodity.
Although catching rock snails is not difficult, it is quite hard and risky because you have to go deep into the old forest at night.
Rock snails live on land, so when caught, they can be kept in a small tank or a large tray for a week without worrying about spoilage. Occasionally, sprinkle some water and cornstarch, cold rice, fresh fruit... to feed the snails. However, farmed snails will become thin and their deliciousness will decrease because they do not eat herbs and leaves.
After more than 4 hours in the forest, Thao and his wife picked up more than 10kg of stone snails. Coming out of the forest, traders were waiting and buying them for tourist areas. With the current price of 50,000 - 70,000 VND/kg, Thao and his wife also earned nearly 1 million VND. "In recent years, the demand for buying stone snails has been high, and traders have bought all the snails that people catch. We deliver stone snails to tourist establishments in the district and some neighboring districts.
Stone snails in Pu Luong are considered to have a more delicious quality because this place has a large area of old-growth forest and many limestone mountains - an ideal environment for stone snails to reproduce and develop" - said Mr. Thao. Through Facebook, since the beginning of this year's crop, Mr. Ha Van Tuan, a trader specializing in purchasing stone snails to supply restaurants and district markets, a resident of Lung Niem commune, has posted about purchasing stone snails and stone crabs in all groups and associations on social networks.
Mr. Pham Van Manh, Executive Director of Ebino Pu Luong Resort & Spa, Thanh Lam commune, also confirmed that rock snails are one of the dishes that guests always prioritize in the menu of the facility, but unfortunately they are not always available. Not only eating at the resort, guests also order snails to take home as gifts. Some delicious snail dishes that are favored by many tourists are: steamed with beer, salad, grilled with lemongrass, stir-fried with bamboo shoots, cooked with banana and bean... However, local people prioritize boiled snails because they retain the aroma of the medicine.
In particular, the dipping sauce for rock snails does not need to be too elaborate, just add a little garlic, chili and ginger spices, add a little chopped lemongrass to enjoy the sweet, delicious, fatty but not greasy taste of this snail dish. The dish will be especially flavorful when enjoying this specialty with a little spicy Pu Luong leaf wine, with a hint of forest leaves.
Local people often boil or grill rock snails, very delicious.
According to local people, rock snails are gradually decreasing due to increased consumer demand and more and more hunters. To preserve and conserve this product, the government and local people are working together to protect natural forests; not to exploit and catch snails by manual methods. Many people hope that the agricultural sector can research and expand rock snail farming to gradually develop an economic model, capable of supplying products all year round, meeting market demand, contributing to increasing people's income.
Source: https://danviet.vn/oc-da-con-dac-san-la-bai-thuoc-quy-tu-rung-pu-luong-thanh-hoa-mua-cang-to-cang-bo-ra-nhieu-20250214154806906.htm
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