Despite the hefty price tag of 200,000 VND, customers are still scrambling to buy and eat these chicken feet.

Chicken feet are widely sold in markets, priced at a few tens of thousands of dong per kilogram (about 20 pieces per kilogram). At street stalls, grilled or boiled chicken feet cost just over 10,000 dong each.

Besides commercially raised chicken feet, many vendors on the market also sell Dong Tao chicken feet at quite high prices, ranging from 350,000 to 400,000 VND/kg. Some even sell them in pairs for 200,000 VND each.

Dong Tao chickens are a specialty breed widely raised in Hung Yen province . This type of chicken is characterized by its large, tendon-rich legs that are chewy and crunchy. Therefore, the price of Dong Tao chicken is also determined by its legs. The larger the legs, the more expensive the chicken.

Dong Tao chicken feet are being sold on online marketplaces. Photo: Provided by the seller.

Holding a carefully vacuum-sealed bag of Dong Tao chicken feet in her hand, Ms. Dam Thi Hai from Minh Khai (Hai Ba Trung, Hanoi ) said: "It's rare to see this store selling them, so I immediately bought 3kg to freeze and eat gradually."

Previously, these giant chicken feet were very expensive, costing around 1 million VND/kg. Therefore, even though Dong Tao chicken feet are a family favorite, Ms. Hai rarely buys them to eat.

For the past two years, she has bought them more frequently because the price is much more affordable than before. Whenever she gets her hands on these chicken feet, she usually stews them with Chinese herbs, or in the summer, she boils them and then marinates them in lemongrass and kumquat.

On the afternoon of July 30th, less than half an hour after posting an advertisement for 10kg of Dong Tao chicken feet on her personal Facebook page, Ms. Le Thi Thanh Nhan - an online agricultural product seller in Cau Giay (Hanoi) - had to add a "sold out" note.

Ms. Nhan said that this type of chicken feet is not always available. She has to order them in advance from suppliers in Hung Yen, and only sells the surplus feet to her wholesale when there are weddings that serve Dong Tao chicken. Therefore, the amount of feet imported for retail sales varies from batch to batch.

During wedding season, the supply of these chicken feet will be abundant and more consistent. However, in the current hot summer weather, Dong Tao chicken feet are quite rare.

"Since the beginning of July, I've only received one shipment," she said. This shipment of chicken feet is size 5-7 feet/kg, and she sells them for 350,000 VND/kg, meaning each foot costs about 50,000-70,000 VND.

The bigger the chicken feet, the more expensive they are, and many people are eager to buy them. (Photo: Provided by the interviewee)

With a size of 2-3 feet per kilogram, she sells them for 200,000 VND each. However, these extra-large chicken feet are very rare, and discerning customers often seek them out to use in stews or marinated in lemongrass and lime. Therefore, whenever she has them in stock, she prioritizes selling them to her regular customers and doesn't advertise them online like the more common size Dong Tao chicken feet.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Phuong, a supplier of Dong Tao chicken feet on an online marketplace with hundreds of thousands of members, admitted that this type of chicken feet is quite expensive but is still sought after by many customers.

According to her, a few years ago, Dong Tao chicken feet were very rare and therefore extremely expensive, but there still wasn't enough to sell. In recent years, in addition to purebred chickens, households have also crossbred them to produce commercial Dong Tao chickens with more affordable prices, fitting the budgets of many people. As a result, the supply of chicken feet has increased significantly.

"The commercially raised Dong Tao chickens have smaller legs than the purebred variety, and the selling price is also lower," she shared. The common size is usually 5-8 legs per kilogram, with prices ranging from 350,000 to 450,000 VND per kilogram depending on the time of year.

During this period, Ms. Phuong sources her goods from various suppliers because demand is high but supply is limited. From August onwards, there are many weddings and engagements, and she imports 30-40kg of Dong Tao chicken feet per shipment to fulfill customer orders. She makes 2-3 such shipments per week.

Retired teacher raises Dong Tao chickens, earning billions of dong annually . Despite being 74 years old, Mr. Dinh Xuan Thuc ( Ninh Binh ) still regularly cares for his flock of thousands of Dong Tao chickens every day, bringing in an income of billions of dong each year.

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/chan-ga-200-nghin-dong-chiec-van-dat-khach-lung-mua-an-2307067.html