Hometown specialties "reign" during Tet

Rural specialties such as fish, chicken, meat, oranges, grapefruit, clean vegetables, etc. are being sought after during Tet because they are rustic, fresh, and ensure food safety.

Specialties from the mountains…

Ms. Hai An, an office worker in Hanoi, said that this year she is taking advantage of selling mountain specialties to serve customers during Tet. Rustic dishes such as Chinese sausage, smoked buffalo meat, wild boar meat, wild chestnuts, dried bamboo shoots, shiitake mushrooms, wood ear mushrooms, and upland sticky rice are "sold out" on her online store.

Understanding customer psychology and the trend of Tet gifts this year, Ms. An takes advantage of the source of "hand-made" goods from her relatives in the countryside to provide to customers.

Smoked buffalo meat - a specialty of the Northwest region

Ms. An shared: "At first, I just bought for friends and colleagues at work, but then people ordered a lot, so I started to have a business idea."

Ms. An’s “desk” job is also leisurely at the end of the year, and the salary is not high, so she decided to sell local specialties online to serve the Tet holiday. “To ensure a safe source of goods in large quantities, I ordered local products very early. Customers not only buy them for home use but also buy them as gifts… The price is reasonable and the “homegrown” nature makes everyone like them,” Ms. An said.

The psychology of gift givers is that gifts for bosses must be expensive and luxurious to match the boss's "position". However, the recipients think differently. Ms. Hien (Hoang Cau, Hanoi) said, "Among the gifts my husband received last year, I liked the gift from a person from the northern mountainous region the most, a few kilos of wild boar meat, a few kilos of sticky rice and a bag of pistachios. Compared to a bottle of foreign wine or a gift basket full of imported candies, the value of these rustic gifts is not great, but I still like them because they are rustic, delicious and ensure food safety."

… to the plains

Other local gifts from the delta region such as Vu Dai braised fish, Dong Tao chicken, Canh oranges, Dien grapefruit, royal bananas, etc. are also popular Tet specialties this year.

Royal banana - specialty of Ha Nam, Nam Dinh

Vietnamese people love gifts from the countryside because they are homegrown, made by the villagers themselves, so they are natural, safe and trustworthy. A few months before Tet, housewives order gifts from the countryside, especially traditional dishes that are indispensable during Tet such as fruits, chicken, etc. Therefore, famous brands such as Dien grapefruit, Canh orange, Royal banana, Ta chicken, etc. are always sought after.

Ms. Mai, an accountant for a construction company in Hanoi, shared that her family has relatives in Ha Nam, so every year she calls to order royal bananas and braised fish for Tet and as gifts. “Although the prices are a bit higher than usual, Tet is the only occasion of the year, so it has to be decent. Compared to other imported goods such as cherries, American apples, Australian beef, etc., these gifts from the countryside are considered cheap,” Ms. Mai said.

Mr. Thang, a retired civil servant in Hanoi, said that his hometown is Doan Hung, Phu Tho, so every year during Tet he brings grapefruit from his hometown as gifts for everyone. After that, many people asked him to buy them, so Mr. Thang and his family switched to selling grapefruit.

“My apartment on the first floor is always full of grapefruit during Tet, but it is still not enough to meet customers’ demand. Some people order hundreds of grapefruits because grapefruit is delicious, good for health, and has a clear and trustworthy origin,” said Mr. Thang.

A high-end gift from the countryside, Dong Tao chicken, is always in short supply a month before Tet. Dong Tao chicken is a type of chicken that was once offered to the king, so it is rare and has delicious meat that cannot be confused with any other type of chicken and is very popular during Tet. This type usually has large legs with thick scales.

Dong Tao chicken - expensive specialty during Tet

Mr. Hung, the owner of a Dong Tao chicken farm in Hung Yen, said that although this year the number of Dong Tao chickens his family raises to serve the Tet market has increased significantly compared to last year, supply still cannot meet demand.

“Orders from acquaintances have almost exhausted the chickens on my family farm. Although the price is expensive (up to several million VND/kg), I cannot meet the demand because raising this Dong Tao chicken breed is very laborious and costly,” Mr. Hung said.

In addition, many other rustic dishes are also bought a lot by customers during Tet such as Thanh Hoa sour sausage, dried persimmons and dried fruits from Da Lat, clean vegetables...

Dried fruit - specialty of Da Lat

How to buy standard gifts from home

Savvy housewives share that if you buy goods in the countryside, you should choose reliable addresses, exactly as the brand name attached to each item. For example, if you buy braised fish, it must be black carp from Vu Dai village, Ly Nhan, Ha Nam. Dong Tao chicken must be from Dong Tao commune, Khoai Chau district, Hung Yen, and Dien grapefruit must be from Phu Dien village (Tu Liem, Hanoi)...

Ms. Huyen, a person who specializes in buying local products, said that once, her female colleagues ordered buffalo meat and wild chestnuts online, but when the goods arrived, they were not as expected. She said: “I also bought dried bamboo shoots and shiitake mushrooms online because the pictures and advertisements were so attractive. Luckily, I bought a small quantity because their products were not dried well, and if I did not preserve them properly, they would have spoiled immediately.”

Buying gifts from the countryside during Tet should be from people you know and have a clear origin. Another thing to note is that during Tet, it is easy for things to be “sold out” and “priced up”. Therefore, if you have time, you should order early to choose good products that are guaranteed to be of good quality and not too expensive.

When buying goods from gift shops advertised online, you should check whether the shop is reputable and what the prices are. If you have time, you should go to the store to see the goods, or pay when the goods are delivered. You should not pay in advance by bank transfer, to prevent the goods from not being as expected or being scammed.

According to VOV.VN