Nghe An: Traders 'compete to buy' sea elixir

(Baonghean.vn) - In this season, Quynh Luu fishermen are rushing out to sea to hunt for sea rum. This is a rare seafood, so after it arrives at the port, traders compete to buy it.

At around 6 a.m., fishermen from Tien Thuy commune (Quynh Luu) arrive at the wharf to transport sea rum ashore. Photo: Viet Hung

Unlike the way of hunting sea rum in some other sea areas, fishermen in Quynh Luu use boats with capacity from 18 CV - 22 CV to hunt this precious product.

Mr. Nguyen Van Hung, a fisherman in Manh Son village, Tien Thuy commune, said that it is currently the season for sea rum, so fishermen take advantage of the opportunity to go hunting. At around 5 p.m., fishermen bring their nets to the boat and start going out to sea, returning to dock the next morning.

Traders compete to buy this precious product. Photo: Viet Hung

"To hunt this precious product, we use nets to catch it. Any boat that is lucky can catch about 50 kg, the rest average from 20 kg to 40 kg" - Mr. Hung said.

According to fishermen, in addition to using nets to hunt for sea urchins, in the summer, fishermen also dive into the sea and use metal rakes to scoop up urchins hiding under the sand; with this hunting method, the sea urchins found are often bigger and more valuable than when using nets.

Sea rum has an earthy gray color, a tubular body, and a lot of slime and slippery substance around its body. Photo: Viet Hung

Currently, only fishermen in Manh Son village, Tien Thuy commune specialize in sea rum hunting in Quynh Luu. With nearly 80 fishing boats near the shore, each day in addition to catching tons of shrimp and fish of all kinds, fishermen also hunt from 500 to 700 kg of sea rum.

Sea rum in Dien Chau. Photo: TD

Sea rum has an earthy gray color, a tubular body and is as long as a cucumber, with a lot of slimy, slippery substance around it. The body is bulging in the middle, tapering at both ends, and has many tentacles on the mouth. After landing, traders compete to buy this precious product at a price of 20,000 - 30,000 VND/kg to distribute to markets. If you hunt for a larger sea rum, the price will be many times higher, from 100,000 - 120,000 VND/kg.

Sea rum season starts from April to July and October to December. Photo: Viet Hung

According to medicine, sea cucumber - sea rum has a salty taste, warm properties; the effects of nourishing the kidneys, strengthening yang, benefiting essence, nourishing blood, moistening the intestines, anti-aging, reducing cough, detoxifying, stopping bleeding. Sea rum is often used in cases of heart deficiency, kidney deficiency, poor blood and energy, physical weakness... In addition, sea rum is also processed into many delicious dishes such as braised banana, stir-fried mixed vegetables... with homegrown spices such as perilla leaves, betel leaves...

Viet Hung