As spring arrives, enjoy the unique dried seafood dishes in Soc Trang.

Unique dried pork, split shrimp, and shrimp crackers.

Upon arriving in Lich Hoi Thuong town (Tran De district, Soc Trang province), we were introduced by Mr. Thach Ho Xuan Thanh - Chairman of the Town People's Committee: "In our locality, we have many delicious dishes that are mentioned by many people inside and outside the province, and even abroad, such as dried pork, split shrimp, and shrimp crackers."

Ms. Ta Thi Ngoc Thu with her dried pork product.

According to Mr. Tam (a local resident), some places in the province also make dried pork, but it's not as good as the dried pork from Lich Hoi Thuong. Dried pork is a staple dish prepared mainly by the local Chinese community.

Speaking of this unique type of dried meat, its earliest origins and development are still found in Lich Hoi Thuong. To make delicious dried pork, you need ingredients such as lean pork, liqueur, sugar, salt, and spices.

With the right preparation techniques and balanced ingredient ratios, the dried pork has a delicious aroma and flavor. Locals usually choose pork leg, slice it into thin pieces, marinate it thoroughly with spices, and then dry it in the sun.

If the weather is sunny, two days of sun drying is enough to dry the pork, which can then be stored in bags for later use. If it rains, put it in a drying oven.

The grilled, sun-dried pork slices emit a wonderful aroma, with a spicy, sweet, slightly chewy, and crispy texture that is very delicious.

Ms. Ta Thi Ngoc Thu, owner of the Dong Hoa 2 dried pork production facility in Hoi Trung hamlet, Lich Hoi Thuong town, said her family has been in this business for nearly 30 years. Production takes place year-round, with her producing about 10kg of dried pork per day. During Tet (Lunar New Year), they can produce up to 100kg a day.

Ms. Thu said: "To make delicious dried pork, the first step is selecting the ingredients. The meat used for drying is pork leg and loin (the best cuts of meat on the pig's back). The meat must be fresh, warm, and just slaughtered."

Next, rinse with clean water, then use a sharp knife to slice the meat into thin, large pieces, about the size of an adult's hand and of moderate thickness, making sure each piece is uniform. Remove all tendons and fat from the meat.

According to her, after the initial preparation, the pork is marinated with spices including salt, sugar, pepper, garlic, etc., according to her family's own recipe.

During the marinating process, each ingredient must be adjusted to create dried meat that is both flavorful and tender. After marinating, the meat must be allowed to absorb all the flavors before being sun-dried.

To preserve the natural color of the meat, thread a string through it, hang it on a pole, and then dry it in a sunny place. Drying the meat for about two days in the sun is sufficient.

If it rains, dry it in the sun. Dried meat can be stored at room temperature for two months. If stored in the refrigerator, it can last for 5-6 months.

Sausage from Dong Hoa 2 facility.

It is known that to make 1 kg of dried pork, 3 kg of fresh pork is needed. Currently, 1 kg of dried pork is sold for 360,000 VND.

When I asked what constitutes a good quality piece of dried pork, Ms. Thu said: "A good piece of dried pork is one that, after frying, has a salty and sweet taste from the spices and the quality of the pork."

A variety of dried products

In Soc Trang province, Tran De town (Tran De district) is a coastal locality with the highest number of fishing vessels, accounting for nearly 50% of the province's total.

Besides catching seafood at sea to supply markets within and outside the province, local people have taken advantage of the abundant seafood resources to process into famous dried seafood products, a specialty of the area.

These days, the dried seafood village in Cang hamlet (Tran De town, Tran De district) is bustling as production facilities prepare dried seafood products for the Lunar New Year market of the Year of the Dragon 2024.

Ms. Tran Thi Phuong, owner of Dung Phuong dried seafood production facility, said: "We make dried seafood all year round, but Tet (Lunar New Year) is the busiest time because the demand from customers buying it for personal use or as gifts during Tet increases significantly."

Shredded shrimp, dried in the sun.

Prices for dried seafood here vary, catering to different customer needs and budgets. The most expensive is dried black catfish, currently priced at 6.5 million VND/kg. Prices will certainly be higher closer to the Lunar New Year because this type of dried fish is very rare; customers need to order it several days, even months, in advance.

Currently, dried green squid costs 1.5 million VND/kg, dried two-bladed squid costs 900,000 VND/kg, and dried squid starts from 1.1 million VND/kg…

Each year, the price of dried fish will depend on the catch volume of local fishermen's boats operating at sea, with prices fluctuating up or down by 50,000 - 100,000 VND/kg for each type of dried fish…

For almost a month now, Thao Nguyen dried seafood production facility (Tran De town, Tran De district) has been busy preparing various types of dried seafood to serve the Tet holiday market.

Ms. Nguyen Nhu Y, owner of Thao Nguyen dried seafood production facility, said that her family owns a large-capacity fishing vessel that fishes far offshore, so the raw materials are always readily available, ensuring freshness and a wide variety. Therefore, the wholesale and retail prices of dried seafood at her facility are 5-10% lower than other local facilities.

According to Ms. Nguyen Nhu Y, to ensure the product has a delicious aroma and meets food hygiene requirements, those who make dried food must go through many steps, from selecting raw materials to the processing steps such as preliminary preparation and marinating… Most of it is done manually and dried directly in the sun.

This year, due to a decrease in the catch of seafood by fishing boats compared to last year, prices have increased depending on the type of dried seafood. For example, dried squid has increased from 100,000 VND/kg, dried yellowfin fish from 10,000 VND/kg or more, and dried shrimp from 50,000 VND/kg...

Famous for its dried seafood village in Cang hamlet.

The dried fish village of Cang Hamlet (Tran De town, Tran De district) is famous in Soc Trang province for processing and exporting various types of dried seafood, specializing in supplying specialty dried fish such as black stingray, dried scad, barracuda, buffalo tongue, split shrimp, etc.

Dried seafood products in Cang Hamlet are always in high demand.

With prices ranging from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands, or even millions of dong per kilogram, customers can easily choose according to their needs.

Mr. Le Thanh Hai, from Binh Tan District (Ho Chi Minh City), said: "We've heard about the delicious and clean dried seafood here, so whenever we have the opportunity to go to Soc Trang, we always go down to Tran De to visit and buy dried seafood to bring back to eat or as gifts for relatives."

"The dried seafood here is clean, delicious, and processed using traditional methods without artificial colors, so you can rest assured it's safe."

Mr. Nguyen Trung Nghia (a resident of Cang Hamlet) shared: "Cang Hamlet's dried fish has long been famous for its delicious taste. To produce delicious dried fish that meets food hygiene standards, producers must go through many steps such as selecting fresh ingredients, processing, marinating, etc."

According to the leaders of Tran De town's People's Committee, the dried seafood village in Cang hamlet has been established and developed for decades, with many families having been involved in the dried seafood making profession for a long time and considering it their main source of income.

Thanks to maintaining and developing the dried seafood processing industry, many families in Tran De town have achieved stable lives and become relatively wealthy over the years.

Mr. Ong Tien Chuong, Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Tran De town, said: "The coastal town has advantages in exploiting and catching aquatic products. The entire town has 410 fishing vessels, including 336 offshore fishing vessels with an annual output of over 40,000 tons."

Shrimp crackers in Cang Hamlet.

Local people have taken advantage of this resource to process it into distinctive local dried seafood products. To date, the town has 12 dried seafood processing facilities and dozens of stalls selling dried seafood throughout the area."

According to Mr. Ong Tien Chuong, the local government is currently reviewing and planning to develop distinctive dried products into OCOP (One Commune One Product) products.

At the same time, efforts will be made to encourage small and medium-sized enterprises to establish production cooperatives, gradually moving towards the formation of cooperatives to promote production and consumption linkages in the market.

Source: https://www.baogiaothong.vn/xuan-ve-thuong-thuc-nhung-mon-kho-doc-dao-o-soc-trang-192240106105702682.htm