The uniqueness and deliciousness of the salt-cured chicken dish of Song La Construction and Trading Services Joint Stock Company (Group 8, Duc Tho Town, Ha Tinh) has helped the product be recognized as a 3-star OCOP, opening up many opportunities for market development.
Video: Production process of Song La salt-cured chicken.
In 2021, when she first enjoyed salt-cured chicken, Ms. Nguyen Thi Hai Yen (born in 1991) - Deputy Director of Song La Construction and Trading Services Joint Stock Company was attracted by the delicious and unique crispy flavor of this dish. After that, Ms. Yen began to research and learn how to prepare salt-cured chicken.
To find a suitable recipe for the dish, Ms. Yen went online to find instructions and learn how to prepare it. Then, to improve her skills, she went to Hanoi to learn the secret of making salt-cured chicken properly. When she returned to Ha Tinh, with the knowledge she learned and the experience she accumulated, she successfully created the salt-cured chicken with pepper according to her own recipe.
The input materials for the production of salt-cured chicken are the top priority of the production facility.
According to Ms. Yen, to have a standard product of Song La salted chicken, the first step is to choose the ingredients, which is extremely important. Ms. Yen said: “The type of chicken we use is free-range chicken, firm meat, weighing 1.5 - 1.7 kg, growing period of 10 - 12 months. In particular, the chicken ingredients always ensure quality standards of food hygiene and safety, with clear origin from farms and ranches in Duc Tho district and neighboring districts”.
To make delicious, flavorful salted chicken with beautifully colored skin is a rather elaborate process. Accordingly, after the chicken is plucked and slaughtered, it is soaked in vinegar for about 2 hours, then boiled in water with salt, ginger, and lemongrass to clean and remove the bad smell.
Delicious batches of salt-cured chicken are produced to ensure food hygiene and safety.
When the water boils, dip the chicken in, lift it up and repeat this many times so that the chicken is cooked but not cracked and still retains its beautiful, tight skin. Continue like this, after 10 minutes, soak the chicken in cold water again (the chicken feet will be whiter than usual), dip the chicken and soak it 3 times like that before incubating. To get a beautiful yellow color for the chicken skin, Ms. Yen uses fresh ground turmeric, simmered with cooking oil. After incubating the chicken for 12-14 hours, it is then vacuum-sealed and can be preserved for many days. This dish is suitable for sale in eateries, restaurants or online business.
Ms. Yen said: “Consumers are increasingly careful and concerned about the origin and quality of food. Therefore, the company focuses on choosing local free-range chicken ingredients, ensuring a closed production process, meeting food hygiene and safety standards.”
In order to build a sustainable development of the Song La salted chicken brand, Ms. Yen and Song La Construction and Trading Services Joint Stock Company have boldly invested more than 500 million VND to build a factory of more than 200m2 , a cold storage, a steamer, a feather plucking machine... to create a closed production process, ensuring food safety and hygiene standards.
Song La salt-cured chicken products have a closed production process.
With careful investment in quality and image, the salt-cured chicken products of Song La Construction and Trading Services Joint Stock Company have been widely welcomed by customers inside and outside the province. At first, the company sold about 600 - 700 salt-cured chickens per month. However, at that time, the products were mainly sold online, the consumption market was quite narrow, and most of them were sold within the province.
To professionalize the product, Ms. Yen registered to participate in the OCOP program "One Commune One Product" and the Song La salt-cured chicken product achieved the 3-star OCOP rating in May 2023. "The recognition of the Song La salt-cured chicken product as a 3-star OCOP has opened up a bigger step for the company. Currently, on average, we sell about 1,000 chickens per month. During peak months such as the wedding season, we can sell about 1,500 chickens. The consumption market is also expanding in provinces and cities in the South such as Ho Chi Minh City, Binh Duong, Lam Dong...", Ms. Yen shared.
With the selling price of 280 thousand VND/whole chicken and 150 thousand VND/half chicken, on average each month, the company earns nearly 280 million VND, the profit after deducting expenses is about 60 million VND.
The initial success of Song La salt-cured chicken has helped Ms. Yen confidently conquer the market.
Having the opportunity to enjoy the salt and pepper chicken dish and being attracted by this dish, Ms. Nguyen Phuong Thao (Son Bang commune, Huong Son) said: "I find Song La salt chicken very different from salt chicken from other places because the chicken is crispy, chewy and has a very unique aroma. Especially, when the product is recognized as a 3-star OCOP product, it helps us consumers feel more secure about the quality."
Talking about her upcoming plans, Ms. Yen shared: “In order for the Song La salt-cured chicken brand to be more widely known, I plan to double the production volume, expand the market to the North, connect to bring products to restaurants and wedding centers. At the same time, I will cooperate with local people to raise free-range chickens to ensure raw materials and continue to improve quality and design to bring the product further."
In the immediate future, Ms. Yen is preparing to implement a plan to open a store selling salt-cured chicken in Duc Tho town to serve individual customers, cherishing the idea of building salt-cured chicken into a local specialty product.
Being recognized as a 3-star OCOP has created momentum for the development of the Song La salt-cured chicken brand.
According to Vice Chairman of Duc Tho Town People's Committee Nghiem Sy Duc, although it has not been on the market for long, the Song La salt-cured chicken brand has been trusted by local people and neighboring areas because of its delicious, attractive, novel products, ensuring food hygiene and safety. The recent recognition as a 3-star OCOP product has created momentum for the brand's development, helping this dish gain a foothold in the market, expanding consumption opportunities.
Thuy Anh - Giang Nam
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