Mid-Autumn Snails - Traditional Hanoi Cuisine

Besides sweets for children, Hanoians also have many unique dishes made from snails during the Mid-Autumn Festival such as: snails cooked with salt, snails steamed with ginger leaves, snails stir-fried with star fruit, snails with banana and bean sprouts, and boiled snails.

Every August of the lunar calendar is also the harvest season, so snails are usually very delicious, full of flavor, and the meat is fatty and crispy. Moreover, the snails at this time have passed the reproductive stage, so there are less stones and the meat is more fragrant.

Snails contain a lot of vitamin A and according to traditional medicine, snails have a sweet taste, are cold, have diuretic effects, improve eyesight, detoxify and treat red eyes. In the past, Hanoians believed that eating snails during the Mid-Autumn Festival would help improve eyesight for both children and adults, thereby allowing them to see Cuoi and Hang on the moon more clearly.

Many delicious dishes made from snails on the occasion of the Mid-Autumn Festival have become unique culinary marks of Hanoians, from simple dishes such as boiled snails, snails stewed with banana and bean, snails stir-fried with star fruit to sophisticated, elaborate dishes such as snails cooked with water, snails stir-fried with star fruit.

1. Snails cooked with salt

This is a dish that clearly shows the elegance of the "playful" style of Hanoi people. The snails used to make this dish are usually Vietnamese stuffed snails with thin shells and thick meat to make the meat crispy and fragrant. Soak the snails in rice water with a few slices of chili to release all the mud, then wash them.

First, the person who makes it chops and scoops out the raw meat, gently squeezes it with lemon and salt to remove the slime but keeps the shape intact, especially the thin skin bag on the back near the corner of the mouth. Next, mix the minced pork with chopped wood ear and shiitake mushrooms with a little seasoning and pepper, then roll it into small balls and stuff it into the skin bag with the corner near the mouth to thicken the back of the snail. Then, steam it for 4-5 minutes until cooked. For the broth, simmer it from pork or chicken bones until clear, add a little filtered snail broth to bring out the snail aroma, and season to taste.

Pick up a few steamed snails stuffed with ham, wood ear mushrooms and shiitake mushrooms and put them in a bowl, ladle in the naturally sweet broth, sprinkle with shredded young lemongrass leaves, add a few coriander leaves and enjoy with noodles or white rice.

The ingredients for this dish are not many but are elaborate, meticulous and the most difficult part is getting the snail meat because if there is a strong impact, it can easily tear the thin skin bag on the back, making it difficult to stuff the wood ear mushroom into it.

During the difficult subsidy period, this dish gradually fell into oblivion and was lost. Currently, many Hanoian culinary artists have been and are recreating it to preserve the unique culinary features of Hanoi.

2. Steamed snails with ginger leaves

In the old Hanoian Mid-Autumn Festival tray, besides moon cakes and autumn fruits for children, there are also savory dishes for adults such as snails steamed with ginger leaves and grass carp salad. These are dishes for the elderly to enjoy while enjoying the moon and watching the blooming night-blooming cereus flowers, hence the saying "Eating snails while watching the moon".

A few days before the full moon of August, mothers often buy snails, soak them in thick rice water, skillfully dry them on the kitchen loft, then soak them in thick rice water again. Repeat the process a second time, but make sure the snails are still alive. Finally, put the snails on a tray, crack an egg so that the snails become plump, golden, crispy, and delicious, then process them.

3. Snails with banana and bean

This dish is imbued with the Northern flavor and often appears on the salty menu on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month. The mild sourness from the rice, the richness of the shrimp paste combined with the delicious crunchy snails, fatty pork belly, and the sweet banana in the golden shimmering water awakens the taste buds of the most discerning gourmets. Depending on the taste of each family, some families add garlic and a little bit of the river bone leaves, which is very attractive.

The secret to creating a natural consistency for this dish is to take 2 boiled bananas, puree them and cook them together. To keep the bananas white, soak them in water mixed with diluted lemon juice or use lime water. Some places keep the banana peel after peeling, stir-fry them together, then stew them to create a unique flavor.

4. Snails stir-fried with star fruit

A plate of fatty, crispy snails mixed with the light sourness of star fruit and the sweet aroma of ginger leaves is a delicious gift on Mid-Autumn Festival night for many families in Hanoi.

5. Boiled snails

The most rustic, simple and popular dish is boiled snails, which many families in Hanoi make during the most beautiful full moon season of the year. Boiled snails use jackfruit snails, screw snails, or rock snails, all of which are delicious. Soak the snails in rice water to make them fat and release mud and slime. Then, wash them. Some families are more elaborate and make jackfruit snails hung in the kitchen (soaked in thick rice water, hung in the kitchen to dry, then put back in the rice water to soak, then take them out to dry. Finally, put them on a tray, crack an egg into the snails and feed them to fatten them up.

Boil snails with lemon leaves, ginger leaves or grapefruit leaves, some families add a few tablespoons of fermented rice. When the snails boil for a few minutes, the aroma will spread, open the lid and stir gently until the snails are cooked, take them out and enjoy. Do not boil for too long or the snail meat will shrink and become tough, losing its delicious crunchy taste.

Article and Photos: Bui Thuy

Vnexpress.net

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