"Magic" becomes a specialty

(Baonghean.vn) - Bamboo shoot worms are now a specialty of the Mong ethnic group. But for a long time people believed that bamboo shoot worms were a deadly poison.

Customers buy bamboo shoot worms in Muong Xen town (Ky Son)

Although I have tasted many dishes made from insects such as worms, silkworms, pupae, grasshoppers, stink bugs... but sitting in front of a plate of simply prepared bamboo worms, I still feel disgusted, as if they are still alive. Trying to overcome all the hesitation, I hesitantly picked one up and put it in my mouth. It was a bit of a panic. But then the initial feeling quickly gave way to the delicious, fatty aftertaste. Those who enjoy this dish for the first time all feel that the bamboo worms are delicious with a very unique flavor that silkworm pupae or bamboo worms do not have.

1 kg of bamboo worms is sold for 250,000 VND

According to local people, in the past, bamboo worm was only a dish of the Mong people living precariously on the mountain top. Gradually, people from other ethnic groups also tried it and it has become a specialty of the Ky Son mountains and forests. When the bamboo worm season comes, Mong people carry bamboo tubes to bring the worms to the city. Their customers are not only Mong people who have left their villages but also many Thai and Kinh people who come to buy and process the worms to make their meals more interesting.

Ms. Xong Ni Co (Block 3, Muong Xen Town), originally a Mong ethnic in Muong Long 1 Village, Muong Long Commune, Ky Son District, said: When she was still in the stream, she often went to collect bamboo worms to eat. Later, when she moved to town, but every bamboo worm season, her family often bought bamboo worms to eat to ease the longing. Seeing that many people were looking to buy this worm, in the past two years, she has been a bridge to collect bamboo worms in the village to sell to customers in town.

Older sisterMs. Xong Ni Co (left) meticulously selects bamboo shoot worms to put in bamboo tubes to store for gradual sale.

On a weekend afternoon, at Ms. Xong Ni Co's bamboo worm stall, there are many sellers and buyers. Teacher Nguyen Van Minh from Vinh city comes here to teach, meticulously selecting each worm to prepare for dinner. He said that the rumors about other uses of bamboo worm may be unfounded and unverified, but according to him, this is a clean dish, not too expensive, and easy to prepare. Just put the worms in a pan, stir-fry, add spices, and a few chopped lemon leaves and you have an interesting snack.

Bamboo shoot worms after being processed

In fact, there have been many scary rumors about bamboo worms. Some evil people use tiger whiskers to put into bamboo shoots, after a while the whiskers on the shoots will automatically turn into a highly poisonous worm. The person who makes bamboo worms will use them to harm, poison, and even cast spells to force others to obey their will.

It seems that this mythical story has caused the bamboo worm and the Mong people to be "wrongly accused" for a long time. Mr. Ho Ba Ly in Muong Long commune confirmed that the story is completely fabricated. Every day, he still goes to find and bring worms to town to sell. He only needs to look at the bamboo shoots to know which trees have worms, how many or how few, and whether they should be cut down or not. Trees that are eaten by worms up to waist level are usually detected, but trees that are taller than a person's head, or about 3m tall, have larger worms and more quantity. Normally, each bamboo shoot gives 200 - 300 grams of worms. After splitting the tree to get the worms, the foresters put them in bamboo tubes and take them to the market to sell.

Bamboo worms have overcome fabrications and fabrications to gradually become an indispensable specialty of ethnic minorities. Not only that, cadres and teachers working in the highlands also bring bamboo worms back to the lowlands as gifts to invite relatives and friends to enjoy. "Bamboo worms are strong, just put them in bamboo tubes without any preservation, they can live for a few days, if put in the refrigerator, after a few weeks, even a month, the worms will still be healthy as usual" - Ms. Xong Ni Co added.

Hoang Minh