The bus took me from Lao Cai station to Sa Pa, the bus crossed Coc Leu bridge, looking at the noisy and ivory-colored river, I wondered about the sturgeon. The local girl sitting next to me smiled: "You should go to Sa Pa, that is the kingdom of sturgeon". Seeing the pride of the people here about such a fish, who wouldn't be determined to experience a famous specialty like Sa Pa sturgeon.
The small town was covered in clouds and chilly cold. Wandering on every street of Sa Pa, I immediately caught the irresistible scent of grilled sturgeon, a lovely temptation in the cold. And when the wind blew the clouds away, signs of specialties related to sturgeon appeared. Every street, every corner, every small shop and even luxury restaurants, everywhere I saw invitations to eat Sa Pa sturgeon. Sa Pa now, at this time, is not only clouds and mountains.
Sturgeon hot and sour hotpot in Sa Pa
I sat shivering in the small restaurant, curiously waiting for the sturgeon hotpot, surrounded by the fragrant smell of the sturgeon being prepared. The restaurant owner brought out the hotpot along with a plate of fresh sturgeon. Looking at each piece of light pink sturgeon with yellow veins, I was immediately impressed by the thick, firm fish meat. The restaurant owner laughed heartily, sharing that Sa Pa sturgeon is raised with clean water from the Lao Cai mountains and forests, specifically in Ban Khoang and Ta Van communes. This sturgeon has "saved" countless people here because of what it has brought.
Sturgeon has many special features. This fish can live in both salt water and fresh water, as long as the place where they live has a clean water source. Sturgeon has no bones but only cartilage. Sturgeon meat has a special aroma when processed and has many health benefits. In Sa Pa, people also prioritize pregnant women to eat sturgeon to provide nutrition for both mother and child.
When I dipped each slice of sturgeon into the hot pot, very quickly after that, the sweet aroma from the fish began to spread, in the cold that even my fingers wrinkled, the seductive scent in the cold mist was truly too "harsh" for those waiting for the fish to cook.
The fish is cooked in the hot pot but the aroma is still strong, the fish meat is fatty, sweet, firm but not tough, because the fish has no bones, so the cartilage when cooked "melts" out the characteristic fatty taste of this type of fish. The hot pot broth is hot, sour, sweet and spicy, the firm, fragrant sturgeon pieces dipped in a bowl of salty fish sauce with a little chili and lemon, bringing an ecstatic feeling of pleasure in the palate.
Sa Pa sturgeon is a famous specialty of this sea of clouds. And perhaps only here, sturgeon can reach the standard of deliciousness because of the freshness that Sa Pa has brought to it.
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