When you come to Nghe An, remember to eat stir-fried snails, the flavor is unmatched.

In Vinh City, there are many restaurants selling stir-fried snails - Photo: CBMM

If Da Nang people have snails, Nghe An people have stir-fried snails. They seem different, but they are actually "related" because the preparation is relatively similar.

However, compared to snail dishes in the tourist city of Da Nang, stir-fried snails from Nghe An are still in a hidden area, waiting for you to discover.

Stir-fried snails from Nghe An are very elaborate.

Hanoians who live in Saigon will occasionally crave the taste of Northern snails (a dish of boiled snails dipped in fish sauce, ginger, lemongrass, and chili, Northern style), while people from Nghe An, when away from home, crave a bowl of stir-fried snails.

I still remember more than 10 years ago, when I first came to Hanoi to study at university, a group of students from Nghe An made an appointment to meet in front of the gate of the Academy of Finance to eat stir-fried snails.

Just because a friend told us about this dish here, many people were excited and cycled from all the universities all the way to Bac Tu Liem to get it.

Result: Total disappointment. "This is not stir-fried snails", "This stir-fried snails is so strange" because people stir-fry snails with chili sauce and "dare" to call it stir-fried snails.

We agreed to call it "pha ke" stir-fried snails.

Since then, living in the capital for more than 10 years, there has never been another time when the whole group invited each other to eat stir-fried snails, because we knew that there would be no dishes from our hometown here.

Called "pha ke" because stir-fried snails from Nghe An are very elaborate.

When buying snails, Nghe An people often soak them in rice water or salt water... to remove all dirt and remove the fishy smell.

Stir-fried snails from Nghe An have a spicy, salty, sweet taste... all of it - Photo: DAU DUNG

After cleaning the snails, use pliers to twist the snail's bottom (so that when cooking, the spices can soak into the snail meat and when eating, you can suck it back into your mouth without needing any utensils).

Next, Nghe An people mix snails with basic spices, shrimp paste (some regions in Nghe An also call it ruoc hoi), galangal, lemongrass, chili, molasses, old lemon leaves, fresh turmeric or turmeric powder, lard... mix well and marinate for at least 30 minutes to an hour.

Then, boil it in three layers and you have the Nghe An stir-fried snail dish.

Hearing this, people from other regions wonder what "three tides" are?

The pot of snails boils three times, each time it boils, use chopsticks (big chopsticks) to stir the spices evenly. A Nghe person who is familiar with this dish will show you every little thing.

The principle of this dish is not to cook it too much, too much will lose its taste; but not enough heat will easily cause stomachache. This requires the "experienced hand" of the housewife. My mother once joked "the top is informed by spices, the bottom is informed by ancestors".

Compared to boiled snails, which require grapefruit thorns, bamboo toothpicks or small pieces of steel to pry the snails apart, when eating Nghe An stir-fried snails, you just need to pick up the snails and suck them. The snail meat and the essence of the dish are all rolled into your mouth in an interesting way.

Stir-fried snails are served with Do Luong dry rice paper and salted figs. The dry rice paper is delicious when dipped in the stir-fried snail sauce. Some people like the strong flavor of the stir-fried snail sauce, so they can drink a few sips.

Stir-fried snails from Nghe An are delicious to eat - Photo: DAU DUNG

A sentimental song of a Nghe An native

In the past, there weren’t many shops, so sometimes mothers would go to the market and buy some rice snails, bitter snails, etc. to make stir-fried snails. The whole family would sit and work hard unscrewing the snails. The laughter of the young and old can still be heard today.

Especially kids, afraid of spicy food but still sucking on it. Eating and exclaiming because of the spiciness. But if this dish is not spicy, it is considered... useless.

Therefore, do not be surprised that Nghe An people are good at eating spicy food. Through their hometown dishes, the spicy taste has followed them from childhood to adulthood and has become a habit. Nghe An people who do not know how to eat spicy food are considered as... aliens.

An aunt selling stir-fried snails in Dien Chau district - Photo: DAU DUNG

Later, there were people carrying stir-fried snails or riding bicycles to sell stir-fried snails in every nook and cranny. Wherever they went, their deep voices could be heard: "Who's stir-fried snails?"... So from all directions, people came out with bowls to buy. A few tens of thousands for a bowl of snails, you can eat until you're tired.

Now back in the countryside, there are still women and aunts selling stir-fried snails. However, they go by motorbike. In no time, the pot of snails is gone, so they have to go home to get snails to sell again.

Besides, many stir-fried snail restaurants have sprung up, catering to drinkers or groups of friends who have been hanging out for a long time. They eat and gossip about all sorts of things.

If you go to Nghe An, remember to try the stir-fried snails. This dish is rich and flavorful, salty, sweet, bitter, spicy… there is no shortage of anything in the world. Who knows, in a moment of “going for a walk” in culture, you might suddenly understand a sentiment of the Nghe An people.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/ve-xu-nghe-nho-tim-oc-xao-an-nha-dam-da-chua-tung-thay-20240429154640116.htm