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Stretching along the S-shaped land from North to South, every region in Vietnam possesses its own distinctiveness in culinary culture. The Western region, with its intricate network of waterways, carves out a culinary identity unlike any other...
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What makes the floating season delicacies of the Western region unique?
When it comes to the specialty of the floating season in the Mekong Delta, one must mention the uniquely distinct season known as the 'floating season' or 'flood season.' A season that is truly exclusive to the Southwest region of Vietnam. A season that stands out entirely from elsewhere when locals here consider it as the primary economic season after months of anticipation. Why say so?
The blooming water lilies in the Mekong Delta's floating season
Indeed, the reason being that the flood season in the Mekong Delta does not wreak havoc as fiercely as the floods in the Central, Central Highlands, or Northern regions. On the contrary, when the flood season arrives, it brings forth silver fields, lush orchards, and rivers laden with a vast amount of alluvium. Along with that alluvium, the flood season also brings innumerable precious aquatic products for the locals to exploit, improving their family's economy.
With the advantages bestowed by Mother Nature, the people of the Mekong Delta have utilized the available resources to enrich their culinary treasure trove. Despite not being as luxurious or prestigious as other cuisines, the dishes and specialties are packed with delicious flavors, enticing tastes that are truly wonderful. Only then can one understand why people are so fond of visiting the Mekong Delta.
What are the delicious, famous specialties of the floating season in the Mekong Delta?
The floating season specialties in the Mekong Delta offer a wide array of delicious and enticing dishes such as dried duckweed with braised fish sauce, sour soup with blooming water lilies and linh fish, simmered dolphin meat, and more.
Dried duckweed with braised fish sauce
When it comes to the specialties of the floating season in the Mekong Delta, one cannot overlook the dish of dried duckweed with braised fish sauce. And when mentioning this dish, one must recall the famous folk saying: 'To eat dried duckweed with braised fish sauce, one must head to Đồng Tháp to be both satisfied and yearning for more.'
Harvesting duckweed during the floating season
Dried duckweed with braised fish sauce is a daily dish for people in the Mekong Delta in general and those in the Đồng Tháp Mười region in particular. It's a very rustic dish but incredibly delicious. That's why dried duckweed with braised fish sauce is considered a favorite dish that cannot be missed in meals, especially during the floating season.
Specialty: Dried duckweed with braised fish sauce
It's very easy to enjoy dried duckweed with braised fish sauce. Just row out to the canals, marshes, or flooded areas and harvest them. Then, clean them thoroughly, break them into bite-sized pieces. For the braised fish sauce, you can use various types such as snakehead fish sauce, linh fish sauce, or saucers fish sauce. Extract the liquid, then add seasoning and simmer with fish, eggplants, or pork belly until thickened, and it's ready to be enjoyed.
Simmered dolphin meat
Unlike other simmered fish dishes like carp, catfish, tilapia, snakehead fish which are available year-round, simmered dolphin meat is only found during the floating season, and to enjoy this dish, one must wait for the flood season to come.
Catching this type of fish is relatively easy, just rowing to where they usually inhabit, using traps, fishing nets, or setting up nets for a while, and you'll have several kilograms in no time.
Simmered freshwater dolphin meat
After catching the fish, remove the fins and tail, clean the stomach, then wash thoroughly with vinegar to remove the fishy smell. When cooking the fish, use spices such as coconut water, pepper, chili, fish sauce, etc. Then, cook it until the sauce thickens, add a bit of fat and ground pepper... and it's done.
When served with fish, nothing beats using various types of greens such as water spinach, malabar spinach, duckweed, or young shoots of garden plants.
Sour soup with linh fish and blooming water lilies
Along with dried duckweed with braised fish sauce and simmered dolphin meat, sour soup with linh fish and blooming water lilies is a pure delicacy of the floating season in the Mekong Delta.
Sour soup with linh fish and blooming water lilies in the floating season (Photo: Kennnn96)
Linh fish is a freshwater species abundant during the floating season. More precisely, it's a typical fish species in the Western region, only available and delicious during the flood season. Therefore, to enjoy linh fish, one must wait for the floating season and ideally consume it in the early days of the season. Because at the beginning of the season, the linh fish are as small as chopsticks' heads, their meat is tender and sweet.
Sour soup with linh fish and blooming water lilies (Photo: Vtquy92)
Linh fish can be prepared into various dishes such as dried, braised, sour soup, or fermented. However, regardless of the dish, none can surpass the taste of sour soup made with linh fish and blooming water lilies. Blooming water lilies have a refreshing, crispy, sweet taste, generally delicious and unique. Therefore, when cooked with linh fish and other ingredients, the sour soup becomes exceptionally delicious.
Grilled snakehead fish wrapped in lotus leaves
Among the specialties of the floating season in the Mekong Delta, it can be affirmed that: 'Grilled snakehead fish wrapped in lotus leaves' is the dish that most accurately reflects the rustic essence of Mekong Delta cuisine and its people. This assertion is made because the dish is prepared very simply and without any complexity.
Grilled snakehead fish wrapped in lotus leaves (Photo: Nguyenvinhha _tg)
Evidence of this is the snakehead fish, freshly caught, cleaned, skewered straight from mouth to tail. Then, it's stuck into the ground, covered completely with dry straw and burned until the embers die out. When the fish is cooked, remove the burnt scales to reveal the white flesh, then place it on lotus leaves or banana leaves.
Rustic delicacy: Grilled snakehead fish wrapped in lotus leaves
If you're in the countryside, simply use your hands to peel the fish meat and dip it in chili salt. For a tastier experience, wrap it in young lotus leaves with some vermicelli, herbs, and dip it in tamarind sauce. Especially, enjoying grilled snakehead fish wrapped in lotus leaves must be accompanied by rice wine and traditional folk songs to truly embody the essence of the Mekong Delta.
Field shrimp salad with blooming water lilies
Similar to blooming water lilies, the floating season is when field shrimps (also known as rice paddy shrimps) thrive abundantly. Just a little effort to set traps in flooded fields or drag nets along channels will yield plentiful harvest. However, people often don't consume them directly but combine them with other ingredients to create delicious dishes. And the most popular dish is field shrimp salad with blooming water lilies.
Field shrimp and blooming water lily salad (Photo: Thaitranluong)
Preparing field shrimp and blooming water lily salad is quite simple. Clean the shrimp, drain, then fry in hot oil until they're crispy. Once cooked, remove and let cool, then mix with blooming water lilies, vinegar, sugar, salt, lime, and chili. Let it marinate for about ten minutes for the flavors to blend, then serve on a plate for a delicious dish.
Fermented fish hot pot
Famous as a signature dish of the rivers and waterways of the Mekong Delta, fermented fish hot pot is not unfamiliar to tourists. However, finding a truly delicious and authentic fermented fish hot pot is not something everyone knows. Therefore, to enjoy it properly, one must head to Can Tho, Dong Thap, or An Giang, especially An Giang - known as the kingdom of fermented fish in the Mekong Delta.
Specialty: Fermented fish hotpot in the Mekong Delta
Typically, a fermented fish hotpot cooked during the floating season is served with various types of greens. However, the most delicious are the specialty greens of the floating season such as blooming water lilies, duckweed, banana flowers, malabar spinach, and water celery. For extra deliciousness, it must be accompanied by young linh fish, only then can it truly embody the essence of the floating season specialty in the Mekong Delta.
Grilled field mouse
When it comes to the specialty of field mouse meat, most people hesitate and dare not eat it because they think mice are prone to diseases. In reality, that's true, but it only applies to mice living in dirty places like garbage piles, sewers, indoors... However, in the Mekong Delta, it's different. The mice used for cooking are those from the fields, they only eat rice so they're very fat, fragrant, and clean. That's why their meat is very delicious and nutritious.
Must-try specialty of the Mekong Delta (Photo: tngoc292)
To make grilled field mouse, people choose plump, fat mice, then remove the fur, clean the intestines, trim the nails, and marinate with spices for about 15 minutes. When the meat absorbs the spices, it's hooked onto a sharp hook and grilled in a large pot. During grilling, the meat is basted with fat and seasoning, and after about half an hour, it turns golden brown. Remove the lid of the pot, arrange the mice with cucumber, laksa leaves, and chili salt.
Grilled snails with fish sauce and pepper
Buffalo snails are available in the fields all year round, but to enjoy them, you have to spend some time walking along the canal banks, about twenty minutes, and then you'll be tired. However, the tastiest snails are usually found during the floating season. During this season, with the abundant food sources from microorganisms in the floodwater, buffalo snails have very fatty, delicious, and sweet meat.
Grilled buffalo snails with fish sauce and pepper (Photo: Tuananh184)
Buffalo snails can be prepared in many dishes such as steamed with lemongrass, braised with banana, or cooked in porridge... but the best is still grilled buffalo snails with fish sauce and pepper.
To make this dish is very simple, just set up a fire, mix a cup of fish sauce with pepper, chili, onions, and a bit of sugar. Then put it on the grill and you'll have a delicious dish ready to eat. When eating snails, it must be accompanied by one of the greens such as laksa leaves, laksa leaves, young mango leaves... The dipping sauce must be the sour fish sauce of lime, the spicy of chili, the pungent flavor of pepper, that's the essence.
Filial Piety
Contributed by: Ngô Như ý
Keywords: Enchanted by the flavors of the Mekong Delta's floating season specialties
