(Baonghean.vn) - During winter days, people in the highlands of Nghe An return to rivers and streams to collect moss. This is an indispensable dish for ethnic minorities in Western Nghe An during holidays and Tet.
Starting from November to December (lunar calendar), on the rivers and streams in the highlands of Nghe An, moss grows a lot. This is a favorable time for people to collect moss to process traditional dishes of the nation. Photo: Dao ThoIn Son Thanh village (Ta Ca commune, Ky Son district), during this time, Ms. Luong Thi Hoa (70 years old) is almost always present at Huoi Poc stream to collect moss. According to Ms. Hoa, moss only grows until the end of December (lunar calendar), then it will all fall off, so she has to take advantage of the opportunity to collect it, both to eat and to save for the upcoming Tet holiday. Photo: Dao ThoAfter collecting moss from rivers and streams, people process and clean the moss right on the spot. Photo: Dao Tho“This season, because there is no rain, the moss is very clean. However, when scooping it up, we still have to remove it bit by bit to pick out all the trash mixed in. Usually, if we want to eat clean moss, we have to go to the source of the streams. Although it is far, the quality is guaranteed,” said Ms. Ha Thi Tuyet in Hoa Son village (Ta Ca commune, Ky Son). Photo: Dao ThoAfter picking out all the impurities mixed in the moss, people use a pestle to pound the moss to remove the dirt that has seeped in. Photo: Dao ThoThe moss clumps collected were skillfully rolled into balls by the mothers and sisters to look like cakes, very appealing. Photo: Dao ThoThe way to prepare moss is also very elaborate, the dish that people often like is moọc. To make this dish, the moss is chopped and mixed with meat, garlic, lemongrass, fish sauce, salt and broken rice, then wrapped in banana leaves and placed on the stove. Photo: Dao ThoAccording to Ms. Ha Thi Tuyet, each spice added to the moss will create a unique flavor for the dish. Among them, lemongrass and garlic are indispensable. Photo: Dao ThoMoọc reo is a familiar dish for the people of Nghe An highlands during every holiday and Tet. Nowadays, not only the ethnic minority communities love this dish, but diners in many regions also cannot forget it once they have tasted it. Photo: Đào Thọ
