FEILD MICE MEET IN THE MEKONG DELTA

From the first days of conquering this land, because, in order to limit the destruction of crops, the residents here have found ways to catch mice to protect crops, and also improve their daily meals. Then from those daily rustic dishes, field mice gradually became the favorite food of many locals and finally became a famous specialty known by many people. At first, hearing the name of the field mouse, perhaps not all diners have the courage to taste it, but once you have the opportunity to try it, you may be "addicted" because of the delicious taste of mouse meat. and the attractiveness from many ways of processing such as roasting, baking, frying, etc.

Field mice can be found all over the Mekong Delta provinces, but to find the best mice, you have to go to Cao Lanh (Dong Thap). Field mice often live in rice fields, they dig burrows on the banks of the fields to hide and develop. Field mice are available all year round, but most are in the flood season. At this time, mice mainly eat rice and young plants, so they are often big, shiny and the meat is also especially delicious.

The mice-eaters shared that when the flood season comes, it is also the beginning of a new mice hunting season. People in the Mekong Delta have many ways to catch mice such as laying traps, digging burrows, unloading scrubs, etc. The work of hunting mice also brings a significant source of income for people in the Mekong Delta. Talking about the job of catching mice, it is also not an easy job that requires the catcher to have experience. With inherent experience, the mice catcher will consider the direction of the mouse and judge the burrow. With skilled workers, they will be quick and catch the mouse running into the cave, or they will choose to dig deep into the cave, block the cave door to catch the mouse, there are deep caves, the worker will pour water in. burrow for mice to suffocate and come out on their own. Besides, people also use the way of placing traps right at the entrance of the cave so that the mice can enter by themselves, with this way, they can catch live mice and can be kept for a few days, selling at a higher price. Indeed, People in the Mekong Delta have countless ways of catching mice, not to mention that it is also considered a hobby of the people here.

Currently, in many areas in the Mekong Delta, there are mice meat dishes, each region has its own look, depending on the region's own specialty spices, there are many ways to process mice. But in general, there are now many ways to process mice, enough to satisfy all diners, including fastidious guests. After preliminary processing, skinning, head, tail, legs, and organs are removed, leaving only 2 livers and fat bunches (if any) will be processed into dishes.

Fried field mice with fish sauce

After cleaning, the mice will be marinated with delicious fish sauce and spices, left for about 1 hour to absorb the spices, and then fried in a pan of boiling oil until the mice meat is golden, the aroma spreads. radiate.

Fried field mice with fish sauce will be more delicious if eaten with grated green mango with salt, pepper, lemon, or tamarind sauce (depending on the taste of the eater).

Fried field mice with lemongrass and chili

Mice after being washed and drained will be marinated with lemongrass, minced chili, and spices. Often people will marinate fish sauce and sugar to make the mouse meat more delicious. Marinated mice meat will be left for about 10 minutes for the spices to penetrate into the meat. Mice must be fried on a low fire to avoid being burned, the fryer must stir evenly so that the mouse is golden brown. Fried field mouse with lemongrass and chili is served with white rice, can be used as a daily meal.

Roasted mice with coconut water

This is a dish with a very special flavor but the cooking process is quite complicated. After cleaning, the mouse will be marinated by a mixture of onions and garlic, five spices, and other spices into the mouse's belly and put into the frying pan. When the mouse meat is golden brown, take it out to drain the oil, then pour coconut water into the meat and let it simmer. We will stew until the water runs out, then add a little coconut water and cook until it boils, then brings it down. Coconut water mice meat will be eaten with peanuts, lettuce, herbs and salt, pepper, and lemon.

Grilled mice in the urn

To make a dish of rotten mice, we need to "select" fat mice for processing. Mice will be marinated with spices for about 15 minutes, then put each mouse in the jar, turning and turning at the same time. The roasting process requires constantly adding fat and seasoning so that the mice meat is evenly cooked and seasoned. The time for mice meat to cook is about 60 minutes, when enjoying we should eat it with laksa leaves, acrid bananas, tomatoes, cucumbers and dip with salt and pepper lemon.

Today, the field mouse has become a rustic dish and a specialty of the Mekong Delta. Along the roads in the eastern Mekong Delta, it is easy to see mice selling points. However, to be able to buy quality mice meat, we can go to Phu Dat mice market, located along the National Canal in Chau Doc, An Giang province. This place is famous for hunting, preliminary processing, and trading of hamster meat, at 3-4 pm, this place is extremely active. Currently, mice meat here is also transported to other provinces and cities for trading. If you are in other provinces but want to enjoy hamster meat, we can absolutely go to the wholesale markets of our province to search.