Tet dishes of Thai people in Nghe An
(Baonghean.vn) -The Thai people in Quy Chau district (Nghe An) worship their ancestors on the first day of Tet. They kill pigs and cows to make many dishes and offer sticky rice to worship the gods who have given them health and a bountiful harvest.
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On Tet holidays, sticky rice is replaced with regular rice and cooked according to ancestral customs such as khau co lam (making bamboo rice), nung khau (sticky rice) and making various types of sticky rice cakes without filling. Dishes such as grilled fish, sour fish, fish made from various types of plants are indispensable, especially dishes made from catfish. On the first morning of Tet, every family's offering tray must have two grilled catfish to worship Pu du quai (the god of cattle and buffalo) so that the god can bless a new year of livestock development.
Meat is also a staple dish during Tet, especially: chin xom (sour meat), chin giang (smoked meat). 3-4 days before Tet, people choose to buy pieces of buffalo or beef, lean meat without fat, bring it home, dip it in boiling water to make the outside rare, drain it and use a sharp knife to cut the meat across the grain into thin pieces, then mix it with a little cold rice (to ferment), a little salt, then press it into a fresh bamboo tube and dry it on the kitchen shelf. Smoked meat is cut into larger pieces and must be cut along the grain of the meat about 8-10 cm, marinated with spices, fish sauce, chili and garlic to taste, dried over a fire and then hung on the stove to cook.
During Tet, when guests come to visit, they just need to bring out a tube of sour meat, or a few pieces of bacon that has been heated over hot coals, a plate of herbs, and a little dipping sauce to have a snack to enjoy with friends.
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Along with the above dishes, the people also make dishes cooked according to long-standing customs: meat and fish are always cooked with rice flour, and vegetables are crushed to form a thick, porridge-like dish (often called canh ot, canh nhooc...)
The dishes during Tet of the Thai people in Nghe An are inseparable from the spiritual and religious aspects, connecting the living with the dead, between humans and gods. Therefore, these dishes carry many sacred and solemn meanings.
Article and photos: Tran Ngoc Lan
