6 most unique dishes and products of Nam Dan countryside

Lam River mussels

Lam River flowing through Nam Dan district. Photo: Dinh Tuyen

In the countryside of Nghe An, almost every river, pond, and lake has mussels and clams... However, the most delicious mussels must be caught in the lower reaches of Lam River flowing through the district.Nam Dan. The clam making profession in Nam Dan is maintained all year round, but the main season is in the summer when the Lam River water level drops. The hot weather of the season is also the ideal condition to enjoy this "heavenly gift" clam dish that has the effect of activating the intestines, clearing the air, cooling the liver, clearing heat, detoxifying, and diuretic.

Lam River mussels have a sweet and salty taste, are cool in nature, and are not poisonous. In particular, mussels in the Lam River area flowing through Nam Dan district do not have a muddy smell, so they are very popular with diners. Lam River mussels can be processed into many delicious, cool, and nutritious dishes such as: stir-fried with rice paper, hot pot, mussels cooked with vegetable soup, mussel porridge, mussel rice, mussel soup eaten with rice paper.

Lam River mussels - a long-remembered rustic delicacy. Photo: Dinh Tuyen

Lam River mussels are a rustic dish… but because they are delicious, they are becoming more and more popular and gradually becoming a specialty that is rarely absent from the banquet tables of Nam Dan people. Tourists coming to Nam Dan should try some of the flavor of Lam River mussels…

Veal meat – young buffalo meat

Children herding buffaloes by the Lam River. Photo: Quoc Dan

In Nghe An, there are many restaurants specializing in tamarind meat and veal, but the most delicious and famous is in Nam Dan. Nam Dan is a plain district (some communes are semi-mountainous). Tamarind and veal here are grazed naturally on hills, fields and alluvial flats along the Lam River, so the meat is very fragrant.

Tamarind meat and Nam Dan veal have long been a nutritious food, both delicious and easy to eat, helping people to improve their health and restore their labor. “Tamarind meat” and “Nam Dan veal” have become big brands and “names” that spread far and wide throughout the country.

Nam Dan veal and veal meat has a sweet, chewy, crunchy taste from the skin and a unique aroma of the wild grass. Photo: Dinh Tuyen

For culinary connoisseurs, tamarind and veal can be used to make hundreds of different unique dishes. But when coming to Nam Dan, visitors should enjoy the special tamarind and veal dishes here. The meat has a sweet, chewy, crunchy taste from the skin and a unique aroma of the wild grass that cannot be mixed with any other region. The process of making tamarind and veal dishes is a long story...

Nam Dan Soy Sauce (Nam Dan)

Soy sauce artisan in Nam Dan. Photo: Quang Dung

Soy sauce is one of the traditional products of Nam Dan people. Like other types of soy sauce, Nam Dan soy sauce is also made from familiar ingredients such as soybeans, soybeans, sticky rice, salt... However, to form "Nam Dan soy sauce" is a separate and very elaborate process.

According to soy sauce makers:Nam Dan Soy SauceThe deliciousness comes from the small, long soybeans grown by the locals. These beans, when used to make soy sauce, are not crushed or sour. Nam Dan soy sauce that meets the standards must have a golden yellow or cockroach-colored color. When eating, diners will feel the cool taste of alluvial soil in each bean.

Nam Dan soy sauce has become a specialty in luxury restaurants across the country. Photo: Dinh Tuyen

The longer Nam Dan soy sauce is stored, the better it tastes. It is often used as a dipping sauce for vegetables and meat, for rice, braised fish, steamed tofu with soy sauce, stir-fried clams with soy sauce, soy bean soup, mixed vegetables and tubers with soy sauce, braised fish with soy sauce, etc. It is an indispensable dish for the people of Nghe An. From a rustic dish, Nam Dan soy sauce has now become a specialty in luxury restaurants across the country.

Golden Lotus

Kim Lien pink lotus. Photo: Dinh Tuyen

In Kim Lien commune, Nam Dan district, lotus has been grown for a long time. In particular, in Uncle Ho's paternal and maternal hometowns, there are very large lotus ponds that are carefully preserved by the people... In recent years, the area of ​​ponds and lakes for growing lotus in the commune has been increasingly expanded. Besides the traditional pink lotus, many other precious lotus varieties have also been brought back to grow, creating many beautiful landscapes for Uncle Ho's hometown.

From the value it brings to the landscape, the people of Kim Lien have processed lotus into new products that bring health value to tourists when they come to their homeland. These include: lotus seed cake, dried lotus seeds, lotus jam, lotus wine, white lotus tea, lotus root tea, lotus leaf tea, lotus tea, lotus heart tea, lotus scented tea...

Many products from Kim Lien lotus. Photo: Dinh Tuyen

Lotus products are considered medicinal. Lotus seeds have many nutrients: starch, sugar, protein, calcium, iron...; have the effect of nourishing the heart, benefiting the kidneys, strengthening the spleen, reducing stress, relieving tension, contributing to sedation, treating insomnia, forgetfulness, malnutrition. Lotus root has the effect of cooling the blood, cooling the liver, regulating the meridians, and circulating blood. Lotus leaves have the effect of sedation, helping to sleep, preventing smooth muscle spasms, preventing anaphylactic shock, inhibiting arrhythmia, losing weight, reducing cholesterol, stabilizing blood pressure...

Dai Hue arrowroot powder (Nam Dan)

Nam Dan is the locality with the largest cassava growing habit and movement in Nghe An today with an area of ​​up to 300 - 400 hectares, concentrated in communes with hilly land at the foot of Dai Hue mountain... Nam Dan cassava has many outstanding characteristics so that when processed into starch, it will produce the following products: Fragrant, white, smooth. Much better quality than cassava grown in other regions.

Nam Dan tapioca starch products. Photo: Dinh Tuyen

Arrowroot starch (called cat can in Oriental medicine) is very popularly used as a refreshing drink on hot days. This drink has a very good cooling effect in the summer and is also a very effective medicine for treating heatstroke and high fever.

Recently, Nam Dan district has cooperated with Japan's JICA organization to build a brand and register intellectual property protection for cassava starch to increase crop income. Cassava starch has become a product serving the local tourism development... In the summer, visitors to Nam Dan should also drink a cup of cassava starch water. Cassava starch water is delicious, fragrant and cool.

Lemon of Heaven

Thien Nhan lemons are juicy and have a fragrance that is unmatched by any other lemon. Photo courtesy: Nguyen Chau

Thien Nhan Mountain is a scenic spot in Nam Dan District. This place was chosen by King Le Loi to build Luc Nien Citadel as a springboard to defeat the invading Ming army; La Son Phu Tu Nguyen Thiep chose it as a place to live in seclusion and teach... On the barren land of Thien Nhan Mountain, there is a special tree, the lemon tree.

The lemons here are of the paper lemon variety, with thin skin, seeds, green color, round fruit that looks very beautiful; The lemons are juicy, have a fragrance that is hard to compare to any other lemon, anyone who enjoys the flavor once will not be able to forget. Most special is that God has endowed Thien Nhan lemons to produce off-season naturally without the need for human intervention or stimulants.

2 products from Thien Nhan lemon. Photo: Dinh Tuyen

Nowadays, in addition to fresh lemon products, lemons have been extracted by people into many products to serve domestic consumers and export orientation: Lemon essential oil, lemon leaf essential oil, lemongrass essential oil, pure lemon juice, honey lemon juice, lemon wine, detox soaking water, shampoo, floor cleaner, dishwashing liquid, honey lemon, honey lemon ginger, lemongrass syrup, lemon powder.../.