Rich and flavorful Thanh Chuong fermented bamboo shoots

(Baonghean) - No one knows exactly when "nhút" (a type of fermented jackfruit) originated. Many believe its origins stem from frugality. In the countryside, with its harsh climate—summer brings scorching hot winds from Laos, other seasons bring torrential rains and floods—life was incredibly difficult for the people. In March, during the lean season, rice and grain dwindled, and there were times of hunger when people thought that simply having something edible to survive was enough, regardless of taste. During that most famine-stricken period, the only things readily available in Nghe An's countryside were sweet potatoes and unripe jackfruit. Sweet potatoes served as a substitute for rice, while unripe jackfruit was processed into a savory dish.

In my hometown, every household grows jackfruit. Jackfruit trees grow in clusters and forests on the hillsides; in home gardens, there are at least a few trees, sometimes dozens. No house is without jackfruit. The trees are laden with fruit. But jackfruit only has one season a year, so people thought of pickling it to eat gradually. This pickled fruit dish was born and has lived with the people of my hometown from those times of poverty until today. That's why there's the saying, "Meat and fish are fragrant flowers, pickled jackfruit is a family treasure."

My grandmother, now 85 years old, recounted: "I don't know exactly when 'nhút' ​​(fermented bamboo shoots) originated. Growing up, around 13 or 14 years old, when girls in Thanh Chương could already hold a knife firmly in their hands, their mothers taught them how to make 'nhút'. Whether a jar of 'nhút' ​​is delicious or not is one of the standards for judging a girl's domestic skills, a strict criterion for young men choosing a wife!"

Around the third lunar month, when young jackfruit hangs abundantly on the trees and the thorns have become less sharp, it's time for women to prepare for making pickled jackfruit. The jackfruit chosen for pickling is usually the soft, slightly elongated variety for easier processing. Importantly, the jackfruit should be neither too young nor too old for the pickled jackfruit to taste good.

Freshly picked jackfruit is peeled under running water to remove the thorny outer skin (to prevent the sap from sticking to your hands). After peeling, place the jackfruit in a large tray and use a knife to finely chop it, then slice it into long, thin strips from the outside in, ensuring that the fibers, segments, and seeds are all finely chopped. After slicing, soak the jackfruit strips in rice water to remove the sap, until the strips are no longer bruised and turn white. Then, mix with salt to soften the strips and allow the saltiness to penetrate evenly.

The process of mixing fermented bamboo shoots with salt.

Finally, put the jackfruit into a jar along with chili peppers, lemongrass, galangal, and a few small pieces of sugarcane, then use a bamboo frame to press it tightly, and place clean stones on top to prevent the jackfruit from floating to the surface and turning dark. In just a few days, you'll have a flavorful jackfruit pickle for your meals. There's also a type of jackfruit pickle made from the fibers of ripe jackfruit. After eating the segments, the fibers are used to make pickle. The fibers are scraped off, separated from the thorny outer layer, washed clean, torn into small pieces, mixed with salt, a little lime leaves, chili peppers, and lemongrass, then tied tightly with banana leaf. Once the pickle is cooked, it's cut into round slices and dipped in garlic fish sauce. The pickle slices are golden yellow, like fried egg slices. When I was little, I was often disappointed because there was an egg on the dinner table at my house that day. It turned out to be just the "jackfruit fiber pickle" we ate every day...

Fermented bamboo shoots sustain the people of my hometown. Farmers are well-fed and warm thanks to them; many children have grown up on meals made with fermented bamboo shoots... "Thanh Chuong's fermented bamboo shoots are salty and sour" speaks volumes about the poverty, hardship, and suffering of the people of Thanh Chuong. "Salty fermented bamboo shoots," a clumsy way of speaking that might make you "disapprove"?!

Nowadays, life is less difficult for the people in my hometown. In every family meal, the pickled jackfruit still plays a role, creating a unique flavor. It's like pickled cucumbers and pickled eggplants in other places, and like kimchi in Korea. Now that the village is becoming a town, garden land is shrinking, and many jackfruit trees are being cut down because they don't bring much economic benefit. Only in mountainous areas like Thanh Huong, Thanh Duc, Phong Thinh, Cat Van, Hanh Lam... are jackfruit trees still abundant. And not every household makes pickled jackfruit as they used to.

Nhút (fermented bamboo shoots) has become a marketable commodity, sold in baskets and trays in rural markets; it's also displayed at stalls and counters in larger shops in towns... Therefore, the ways of preparing nhút have become more diverse. Dried nhút is dipped in garlic fish sauce and eaten with Vietnamese coriander. Eating it slowly allows you to savor the salty taste of the nhút, the spiciness of the chili, the sweetness of the sugar and young sugarcane, the nutty flavor of peanuts, the fragrant aroma of Vietnamese coriander, and the chewy, crispy texture of the nhút strands – nothing beats it. Even more appealing is the nhút salad with pork belly, various herbs, roasted peanuts, sesame rice crackers, and added spices, creating an intoxicating aroma. In winter, people often stir-fry nhút with pig's ears or pork cracklings; in summer, there's a sour fish soup made with nhút.

Even more appealing is the fermented bamboo shoot salad with pork belly. Fermented bamboo shoots are squeezed from earthenware jars, pork belly is boiled until just cooked, then placed in a bowl of cooled boiled water, sliced ​​into small pieces, and mixed with herbs (basil, perilla, lime leaves, chili peppers), crushed roasted peanuts, sesame rice crackers, and seasonings. The salad is then mixed well. The refreshing sourness of the fermented bamboo shoots, the richness of the pork, the nutty flavor of the peanuts, and the aroma of the spices awaken all the taste buds. It's no wonder that fermented bamboo shoot salad has become a popular appetizer, especially at drinking parties in the countryside.

In winter, stir-fried young bamboo shoots are an indispensable dish in meals. But only stir-fried with pork fat is truly authentic. The fat is rendered, shallots are sautéed until fragrant, then the seasoned young bamboo shoots are added and stirred quickly. Finely chopped lime leaves are added and stirred well. On a cold day, coming home from work and smelling the fragrant stir-fried young bamboo shoots makes your stomach rumble, wanting to immediately sit down at the table. Raising a bowl of steaming sticky rice to eat with chopsticks of stir-fried young bamboo shoots, while it's drizzling and windy outside, the family meal feels so warm and cozy. The sour and salty taste of the young bamboo shoots, combined with the richness of the fat and the aroma of the shallots, makes you want to linger on the tongue, savoring the flavor endlessly. And so, for those far from home, every time winter comes, when the biting cold seeps into every fiber of their being, they feel an intense longing for home. At that moment, all I wanted was to go home, to return quickly, just to have a hot meal with my parents, a simple dish of stir-fried bamboo shoots, to feel the warmth of family, to regain strength before rushing back into the hustle and bustle of life...

In summer, there's a delicious sour fish soup with fermented bamboo shoots. Tilapia, catfish, snakehead fish, and crucian carp are cooked with fermented bamboo shoots – it's incredibly tasty. Tilapia and snakehead fish are grilled, scaled, and deboned, leaving only the white flesh; the fermented bamboo shoots are lightly stir-fried, then water is added and simmered over low heat. Once the soup boils, the fish meat is added, along with some finely chopped betel leaves, resulting in a fragrant, tangy, and slightly sweet soup. A little chili pepper adds a touch of spiciness, and it's absolutely delicious with rice. A more elaborate version is fermented bamboo shoot soup with crucian carp. Crucian carp are caught, kept in a water tank for a few days without food, their intestines thoroughly cleaned, then removed, rinsed with clean water, and placed whole while still alive into a pot of boiling fermented bamboo shoots, along with seasonings. This type of soup has a rich, fresh fish flavor, and a sweet, savory taste. In my hometown, there's also fermented bamboo shoot soup with small peanuts (each peanut containing only one or two kernels). The peanuts are crushed, simmered until tender, then the fermented bamboo shoots are added, and a little water is brought to a boil. And just like that, you have a rich and flavorful sour soup, served with a handful of chopped lettuce – it's absolutely delicious!

Nhút (fermented bamboo shoot) is now available in restaurants of all sizes in the central districts and cities. Considered the safest and cleanest vegetable, it's free from pesticides and preservatives, and is entirely processed using traditional methods. Furthermore, its high fiber content makes it increasingly popular. Every tourist visiting Nghe An orders nhút at restaurants and, after eating, buys several jars as souvenirs. Nhút has traveled with the people of Thanh Chuong to all regions of Vietnam. Now, you can easily buy Thanh Chuong nhút in Hanoi, Saigon, or Da Nang. It's also sold online, with websites and Facebook pages advertising the "Thanh Chuong Nhút" brand. With abundant raw materials and widespread popularity, if production technology is improved, it could potentially become an export product.

Pickled bamboo shoots are packaged in boxes and shipped to all regions of the country.

My mother, during jackfruit season, would buy dozens of young jackfruits, meticulously peeling, washing, cutting, chopping, and salting them. Then she would pack them into cans and jars, and send them by bus to my uncles and aunts who lived far away. "A penny's worth of goods, a pound's worth of effort," she'd pack them, send them by bus, and my uncles and aunts would drive all the way there to receive them. But it was a gift, a token of affection and care from my sister-in-law to her younger siblings... There are people who have been away from home for half their lives, only wishing to eat the salty pickled jackfruit from their hometown again. A relative of my friend went to Czechoslovakia to work and trade. He only returned home once every few years because he missed the pickled jackfruit. When he left, his luggage consisted of only a few plastic jars of pickled jackfruit; the plane fare was hundreds of times more expensive than the value of those jars of pickled jackfruit. Then he suffered a stroke, and in his final days, all he craved was a meal of pickled jackfruit from his hometown...

No matter where they go or what they do, the people of my hometown still feel a sense of pride in being children of the "nhút" region. Nghe An's land is rich in sentiment and loyalty, and perhaps also because of the "nhút" (a type of fermented bamboo shoot).

Text and photos: THANH PHUC