Irresistible Island Specialties of Ly Son

Ly Son boasts a wide variety of delicious fresh seafood, combined with rich spices and prepared in the rustic yet refined local style. Let's explore Ly Son's specialties with Mytour.

In recent years, the number of tourists visiting Ly Son (Quang Ngai) has been steadily increasing. The unique, pristine landscapes and the intriguing island life irresistibly attract visitors from afar. For food enthusiasts, Ly Son is a place to enjoy countless types of delicious fresh seafood, paired with rich spices and skillfully prepared in the local style.

At the upscale restaurants on the island, tourists can enjoy 'premium' dishes such as fish cakes, sea cucumbers, sweet and sour stir-fried sea bass, king crabs... Meanwhile, a world of affordable yet enticing dishes awaits foreign visitors at the local markets.

Delicious and Affordable Market Finds

To awaken your taste buds, start with the stir-fried razor clams with lemongrass. These small clams, with shells as hard as rocks, have succulent, sweet flesh, complemented by the fragrant lemongrass, making it impossible to stop at just one basket. Sea urchins, a delicacy in the city, are expensive, but here, when in season, tourists can enjoy them abundantly.

Food at the market is incredibly affordable. A bowl of fish sauce vermicelli costs only 2,000 dong, while a small banh xeo leaf is just 500 dong. After indulging in rich sea urchin porridge and a plate of grilled sea urchin with fragrant scallion oil, some have had to take a break to avoid... excessive energy.

Exploring the island, feeling a bit famished, we immediately think of the fragrant aroma of baby fish sauce when it rains in the afternoon, a plate of hot rice with a smear of fish sauce wakes everyone up!

On the island, amidst the simple yet palate-arousing dishes, perhaps the most refreshing is the seaweed salad. A handful of fresh green seaweed quickly rinsed, tossed with a few sprigs of mint, crushed peanuts, a bit of fragrant fried shallots, and a drizzle of fresh lime juice... creates a crispy, delicious, and refreshing salad.

Seaweed sweet soup is also a popular sweet and cooling treat on the island. Amidst the blazing noon sun, the cries of the sweet soup vendors echo in the narrow alleys. A bowl of seaweed sweet soup, clear and golden, with the coolness of rock sugar and the refreshing taste of sugarcane juice, is quite mouth-watering.

In addition to seaweed, garlic – a specialty of Ly Son island – is also turned into a tantalizing salad. The garlic bulbs are peeled, leaving only the stem, the outermost layer discarded, washed, steamed until tender, then mixed with various spices, sprinkled with a few peanuts, creating a salad with a pungent garlic flavor, quite delicious.

Then there's the stir-fried scallops (also known as clams) with papaya. The scallop flesh is almost the size of the little finger, with a very fresh brick-red color. The ripe papaya is sliced into strips.

Heat a pan with garlic-infused oil, stir-fry ripe papaya until soft, then add sea urchin innards, season with spices, fresh herbs... and plate. The vibrant red of the fresh sea urchin blends with the golden hue of papaya, accented by the green of the herbs, making the sea urchin stir-fry a visually stunning dish.

Gifts from the Sea

Besides the famous king crabs, flat crabs are also considered a specialty of Ly Son. Previously rare, flat crabs used to emerge only from deep rocky crevices after thunderstorms, but now many households have managed to breed them.

Dried crabs may look desolate and wild, but when grilled, they exude a fragrant aroma. Peeling off the charred black shell reveals firm, white meat, dipped in chili salt offering a savory-sweet aroma.

Another precious product of this island region is the devil fish, with dark brown scales resembling freshwater carp but larger. They are named so because they primarily inhabit rocky reefs, making them difficult to catch.

Devil fish are firm, succulent, and subtly sweet, with the best part being the back loin. When eating this fish, everyone must scoop up a bit of the loin to savor its unique richness. In winter, islanders often grill the fish, while in the hot summer, they make soups, sour soups, hot pots, and porridge.

Seafood feasting on the island is never enough; many tourists even want to bring some back as gifts. Ly Son fish cakes are the best choice. These fish cakes are always made from freshly caught red snapper, ensuring a delightful aroma and flavor.

That's why Ly Son fish cakes are only available when the sea is calm and the boats bring in the catch. Another key factor contributing to the irresistible aroma of these fish cakes is garlic.

Fresh fish mixed with Ly Son garlic needs no frying or steaming; it's already incredibly fragrant. And there are many more delicious dishes waiting for distant travelers to discover on Ly Son...

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Source: Mytour Travel Guide – By: DNSG