Local delicacies that are horrifying to foreign tourists.

Text and photos:Lam Linh

Not only animal meat, but offal is also a dish that Vietnamese people make full use of. In the "list of offal," ethnic minorities in the highlands of the Northeast and Northwest have dishes like thang co and nam hia. Even Vietnamese people find these two dishes difficult to eat, let alone Westerners! Nam hia is a dish made from the small intestines of a goat, still containing its feces, cooked with blood. This dish, which is both smelly and bitter, is popular in Son La province. Thang co, on the other hand, is found in many places like Lao Cai and Ha Giang. This dish, made from horse meat, might deter many from trying it. Thang co is always available at mountain markets.

Thang Co is prepared very simply. After slaughtering the horse, the tenderloin and lean parts are separated and sold. The bones, tendons, fat, scraps of meat, congealed blood, and offal are all chopped into small pieces and put into a pan. Traditional seasonings including salt, cardamom, and galangal are added and the mixture is stirred over a fire, then water is added and it is simmered continuously for many hours. The scum is skimmed off while simmering. Thang Co has a distinctive, strong smell that anyone who smells it once will remember. The color of Thang Co is thick and unappealing. When someone comes to eat, Thang Co is served piping hot in a bowl, and they eat it while blowing on it to cool it down. Thang Co is served with mint leaves, adding a unique flavor, and accompanied by a glass of strong corn wine.

Compared to many dishes considered unappetizing by people from other culinary regions, rat meat is also seen as a horrifying dish. The rats used are plump field rats that have just gorged themselves on the scattered rice grains in the fields after the harvest. Therefore, delicious rats aren't always available. The rat meat season in the Red River Delta is around May and September, while in the Mekong Delta it's around October, during the flood season. After the rice harvest, people eagerly go to the fields to trap rats. These plump field rats, when grilled or roasted over straw, are especially delicious, tasting much like suckling pig. Although rat meat isn't abundant, it can be used to make many tasty dishes. Those who enjoy drinking during the rice harvest season won't miss this delicacy. Not everyone dares to eat rat meat, especially city dwellers, because just looking at it is disgusting!

While not on the list of offal or live animals, balut (fertilized duck egg) – a nutritious dish often found in Vietnamese breakfasts and afternoon meals – has a rather horrifying appearance in the eyes of foreign tourists. According to traditional medicine, when eaten with spices like Vietnamese coriander and fresh ginger, it's considered a remedy for anemia, weakness, stunted growth, headaches, dizziness, and erectile dysfunction. It's a warming breakfast or a light afternoon snack. Balut is sold throughout Vietnam; many enjoy it, while others find it disgusting and cruel because the duckling hasn't fully developed before becoming a dish. It's best eaten hot and young, as older balut, with its fully formed feathers and wings, is unappetizing.

And needless to say, when you see a bowl of blood pudding still fresh with the color of blood, a plate of entrails including liver, gizzard, lungs, intestines, and liver. Yet, it's a delicious dish, loved by everyone who's tried it. Chewy, crunchy, and slightly firm, with a touch of mint leaves and a little shrimp paste and lime dressing, it's a memorable drinking session. And then there's the animal offal, accompanied by the pungent, unpleasant smell of shrimp paste. Have you ever seen a foreigner try this dish?

Finally, on the list of dishes considered horrifying by foreign tourists are insects. Insect dishes are not uncommon in many Southeast Asian countries like Cambodia and Thailand. In Vietnam, too, there are various fried and roasted insect dishes, including grasshoppers, crickets, spiders, and scorpions… But the most notable is eating live coconut beetle larvae. Coconut beetle larvae live inside coconut trees, sucking all the nutrients from the trunk. When the larvae become plump and fat, the coconut tree dies. In Tra Vinh, three types of beetle larvae are prepared as a specialty dish: date palm beetle larvae, coconut beetle larvae, and ground beetle larvae. These are the larvae of the palm weevil. To enhance the flavor, peanuts are stuffed inside the larvae. The richness of the larvae combined with the richness of the peanuts creates an indescribable sensation. Many people say that dishes made from beetle larvae help men improve their sexual performance.

One of the most challenging ways to eat palm weevils in Can Tho is by consuming them raw. Plump, golden-yellow weevils are placed in a bowl of delicious fish sauce mixed with chili peppers. The weevils suck up the sauce, wriggling their bodies. A brave person picks up a still-wriggling weevil, pops it into their mouth, and bites off the head. The weevil wriggles and falls straight into their mouth. A crunching bite reveals the rich, fatty body of the weevil, the salty fish sauce and chili, and the chewy, delicious shell. It looks easy, but it's difficult to eat, so not everyone is brave enough to try it. However, this is one of the best ways to eat palm weevils, offering an unforgettable experience.

Culinary culture is a strong point of Vietnamese culture. Many delicious dishes are mentioned with pride by people from all over the world, such as pho, spring rolls, bun cha, banh mi… And there are also some rather unusual dishes, like the ones above, which pique their curiosity and interest. Truly, a delicious taste is remembered for a long time!

The Thanh