The spirit of the countryside comes to the city.
(Baonghean)A few plastic tables and chairs, a charcoal grill… and if they're feeling more "well-off," a tarpaulin cover – that's the equipment of those selling grilled corn at night on the streets of Vinh City.
In summer, venturing out at night leads you straight to a sugarcane juice, tea, or coconut water stall, leisurely sipping watermelon seeds until late at night. But in winter, you seek refuge in the countryside, chatting with a few friends over a steaming pot of boiled corn. That atmosphere helps ease homesickness, and the longing for the old days of boiled corn by the fire with family.
Freshly picked corn from the field is peeled, washed, and the corn silk is placed at the bottom of the pot. The pot is then placed on the stove, covered with banana leaves, and boiled for a while before being ready to enjoy – it's deliciously sweet. To grill corn well, you need a charcoal stove, and it must be made of wood charcoal. A sharp iron rod is threaded through the corn cob and placed over the fire, then turned evenly until cooked.
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A "corn oven" on the sidewalk. |
In the city, people grill and boil corn in a much more sophisticated way. The corn is boiled, then seasoned with chili sauce and placed over a charcoal fire. When almost cooked, the griller adds a little butter and continues to grill until evenly cooked. The bottom layer of the boiled corn consists of water and sugarcane stalks, followed by corn and sugarcane pieces. The sugarcane is cut into bite-sized pieces, placed in a plastic bag, and topped with some crushed fresh ginger before being steamed with the boiled corn. You can personally select the best ears of corn and will feel very refreshed if, after eating steamed or grilled corn, you have a few pieces of steamed sugarcane and a glass of corn broth. The corn broth has the sweetness of sugarcane and corn, along with the rich, warm flavor of ginger.
A corn vendor on Truong Thi Street said: "The corn is bought from Nghi Loc and Nghia Dan districts... and we have to place long-term orders to ensure a steady and sufficient supply from the corn supplier. Sometimes, when it's scarce, we have to order corn from the Central Highlands, but the price is a bit higher."
Sitting and eating corn while chatting, one can truly appreciate the rich, rustic flavors, and the homesickness seems to lessen. The spirit of the countryside has now "come to the city." Somewhere in the city, people seek out corn, green tea, and tobacco... they want to meet friends, to reconnect with the spirit of the countryside, with the rustic atmosphere amidst the hustle and bustle of everyday life.
Vo Van Dung
