Coconut rice
To make coconut rice, people use good rice, after washing it with coconut water, let it drain, then put it in a coconut and steam it. The coconut used to cook the rice must be a Siamese coconut. After choosing a satisfactory coconut, people do not touch the inside of the coconut, just peel it to make it look attractive. Next, they cut a part of the coconut horizontally to drain the water and use that cut piece as a lid to cover the "coconut rice pot". Next, the chef will show off his talent by putting rice in the coconut, then pouring in enough fresh coconut water and closing the lid.
The most difficult thing when cooking coconut rice is to make sure that the coconut water and rice are evenly distributed. If there is too much water and too little rice, or vice versa, the coconut rice will be mushy or hard, and the flavor will be ruined. Coconut rice is delicious when eaten hot. If left for a long time, the pure white rice grains will absorb the oil from the coconut and turn a light yellow color. Coconut rice must be eaten with coconut-fried shrimp to suit the taste. After removing the legs of freshwater shrimp, squash shrimp, long-legged shrimp, and green-legged shrimp, wash them and marinate them with sugar, salt, and MSG for a while to absorb. Roasting coconut is also simple. After putting the shrimp in the pan, add coconut milk to the pan and simmer. When the shrimp absorbs the coconut milk and turns red, the coconut-fried shrimp dish is considered done. At this point, the shrimp meat soaked in coconut will have a chewy, crispy taste.
If you come to Ben Tre and do not stop to enjoy coconut rice or coconut fried shrimp, your trip to the land of coconut is not complete.
Coconut candy
In the South, there are many places that produce coconut candy, but the most delicious is still Ben Tre coconut candy, and especially Mo Cay candy. That is why there is a folk song that has been passed down from ancient times to the present day: "Mo Cay market has famous candy".
The first and indispensable ingredient for making coconut candy is coconuts. However, to create the right flavor of Ben Tre coconut candy, it is necessary to rely on the unique technique of the profession. The way to make Ben Tre coconut candy in the eyes of local people seems to be an art. First, it is necessary to be very delicate in choosing the ingredients. The sticky rice used to cook malt must be spring sticky rice, with large, evenly ripe grains. The coconuts used to make candy are also very carefully selected. These are the coconuts that have begun to dry to have the most characteristic coconut flavor, sweet milk and create the very unique fat of coconut candy. The raw sugar used to make candy must also be good, new sugar, with a bright yellow color like turmeric, with a certain elasticity... All combined with the skill, experience and skillful candy making technique to create batches of delicious, rich candy, always satisfying even the most demanding diners.
Coconut wine
Coconut wine is a strange specialty of Ben Tre. Unlike other wines, coconut wine does not make you drunk but only makes you ecstatic and lingers with a very special aftertaste. Not as ethereal as Can wine, not as spicy as Bau Da, not as bitter and salty as Apple wine, coconut wine has the aroma of the land, of the people, of the coconut trees of the countryside to a rich degree. Drinking coconut wine is not to get drunk but to get drunk, something that lingers but has a full aftertaste. The wine has a sweet and cool taste with the characteristic aroma of native coconut, both passionate, elegant and gentle.
Coconut wine has now become a commercial product. The funny coconut-shaped wine jars, contained in small mesh bags, have become elegant gifts, imbued with the love of the coconut countryside, introduced all over the country. Along with that, coconut wine is contributing to promoting Ben Tre specialties and also adding to the rich treasure of wines in Vietnam.
Coconut worms
Coconut worms - one of the specialties of Ben Tre - is the name of a type of coconut worm. This dish is especially not for the faint-hearted because just looking at the chubby worms, few people have enough courage to enjoy it.
From coconut worms, people can process them into many different dishes, such as fried coconut worms rolled in flour, grilled coconut worms, or even eaten raw.
Writer Vu Bang, a gourmet in the Vietnamese literary world, also had to admit that coconut worms are a delicacy that is classified as “super class”, surpassing other foods. That is why coconut worms do not need any side dishes like vegetables, eating coconut worms just “eating a single worm” is enough to have enough flavor.
Coconut tubers
The heart of the coconut, the coconut palm, is the youngest part of the coconut tree. It is sweet, refreshing, and a nutritious, healthy food.
Since ancient times, people have known how to peel off the outer shell to get the most delicious part, processing it into countless attractive and seductive dishes. These are stir-fried coconut tubers with chicken gizzards, fried coconut tubers with pancakes, stir-fried coconut tubers with shrimp, coconut tubers with steamed coconut tubers, coconut tubers cooked with shrimp and meat, coconut tubers salad, coconut tubers soup with meatballs, or simply eaten raw...
The essence of heaven and earth and the preciousness of the tree are all expressed when eating. The sweet taste, crunchy when chewed, the freshness and water in each piece of coconut root make the dish easy to absorb and suitable for many people.
