Buzz
Shrimp noodle soup, razor clam, sea cucumber, dual fish... are the irresistible delicacies that visitors to Cat Ba Island simply cannot miss.
Exploring Cat Ba Island? Don't forget these 7 must-try dishes
Shrimp noodle soup
Cat Ba Island is located approximately 30 km from the center of Hai Phong city. The beautiful island not only boasts stunning beaches and diverse natural landscapes but also serves as a culinary paradise with many delicious dishes. One of them is shrimp noodle soup. Essentially, this is a specialty of Hai Phong in general. The dish does not require overly complicated ingredients but stands out with its sweet and savory broth made from shrimp. The bowl of noodles consists of fresh shrimp, fish cakes, a few pieces of grilled minced meat wrapped in betel leaves, and most importantly, a dash of slightly tangy tamarind broth.
Lobster
Vietnam's coastal areas, such as Binh Ba Island, Ly Son, or Con Dao, boast this precious seafood. Up in the North, lobster enthusiasts often head to explore Cat Ba Island for a taste. The lobsters are caught fresh daily, large in size, with a vibrant red color. They can be prepared in various dishes such as grilling, salt-roasting, steaming with beer, or cooking in porridge. Even the lobster roe carries a fragrant, rich, protein-rich taste... making the porridge exceptionally delicious.
Sea urchin
When exploring Cat Ba Island, you simply can't miss out on sea urchin for its rich flavor, far superior to many other places. Chefs on the island can turn it into various dishes like sea urchin soup, salad, sweet and sour stir-fry, porridge, or stir-fried noodles. The most popular is grilled sea urchin with scallion oil and a sprinkle of peanuts. Both the flesh and eggs of the sea urchin are grilled to a golden brown, fragrant, and flavorful, dipped in a rich garlic-chili fish sauce. The best time to enjoy sea urchin is from around October to February in the lunar calendar when they have the most eggs.
Sea cucumbers
Another highly renowned specialty in the Cat Ba coastal area is sea cucumbers. The island has natural features suitable for sea cucumbers, also known as elephant trunk snails, which boast excellent quality. Sea cucumbers can be cooked into porridge or grilled, both exceptionally delicious. The flesh is sweet, chewy, and slightly crunchy, extremely appetizing. If you prefer a simple preparation, you can order steamed sea cucumbers served with peanuts, shallots, chili, and a dipping sauce. With such good quality ingredients, even simple cooking methods are attractive.
Dual fish
Vietnam boasts 30 species of dual fish, but Cat Ba Island alone has 3 types of fatty dual fish with incomparable flavors. The fish meat is sweet, firm, and nourishing. Travelers visiting Cat Ba Island not only enjoy eating dual fish but also want to try their hand at fishing underwater at night. Freshly caught fish, prepared as hotpot, steamed, grilled, or cooked into porridge, are all delicious.
Razor clam
Razor clam, also known as wedge shell, is a specialty of the Quang Ninh - Hai Phong coastal area, including Cat Ba. Razor clams here are large, meaty, and firm. The simplest way is to steam them with beer and lemongrass, then dip in chili fish sauce. Additionally, diners can also enjoy grilled razor clams or razor clam vermicelli, which are equally delicious. When simmered for vermicelli soup, this seafood usually yields a sweet and flavorful broth.
Shellfish
Shellfish is an unmissable delicacy in Hai Phong, and the same goes for Cat Ba. There are quite a few exotic types of shellfish, some even unheard of by seasoned shellfish enthusiasts, such as red-lipped shellfish, pipe shellfish... The preparation methods are also diverse: boiled, steamed... Most notably, stir-frying with various spices like coconut, chili, tamarind, ginger, kaffir lime leaves, lemongrass... to create a rich, complex flavor profile, combining sweet, spicy, salty, and sour.
According to Ha Nguyen/ Ngoi Sao
***
Reference: Travel guide from Mytour
MytourAugust 23, 2019
