Night squid fishing in Cua Lo

(Baonghean) -After enjoying the waves and a great seafood meal, Huong said: "If only there was a campfire on the beach!...". Huong works at VTC, and now she and her colleagues are on a business trip from Hanoi to Nghe An, stopping by Cua Lo beach to swim...

Sparkling image of Cua Lo at night. Photo: Internet

I went to meet the security and lifeguard at the Thu Thuy ward beach. At first, he waved his hand and said no, no, it was unhygienic! No one had ever lit a campfire on the beach before! I pleaded that the beach was deserted at the beginning of the season, and besides, the visitors were potential customers! I promise, I promise to clean it up... After a while, the lifeguard nodded.

Making a campfire requires firewood. We had to ask our friends from the 2nd Coast Guard Squadron of Cua Hoi to buy some firewood on a three-wheeled cart. We gathered around the fire. The guitars were playing and the atmosphere gradually became more exciting when a few young people started dancing and singing. Tourists on the beach gradually joined us. The fire flickered wildly on the sand, swaying in the night sea breeze and the waves rustling at the shore… Why not go squid fishing? Someone shouted! And Huong grabbed my hand again, saying let’s plan a night squid fishing trip!

Oh, I have never gone squid fishing at night, although I go to Cua Lo beach at least five or seven times a year. But I heard that night squid fishing is a pleasure, and the “peak” is when you catch it, you will personally grill that wonderful gift of the sea on a blowtorch, then nibble it, daydreaming about the sailors Xim-bat or Robinson… So let’s go! The edge of the waves is already waiting for the basket boats, when you call out, the boat owners will immediately come. How much is a trip? At the beginning of the season, it is cheap at 50 thousand…

Prepare to board the boat to go out to sea.

Fishing boats usually have 2 to 3 people.

For safety, each boat only had 3 people. The fisherman was about 50 years old, with bulging muscles that shone through his thin brown shirt. While preparing his fishing rods and a bag filled with unknown things, the fisherman hooked a blowtorch (a type of gas-powered lamp) to the boat pole, lowered the oars and said: Everyone, put on your life jackets, the sea is calm today, let’s go a little further! The sound of oars swishing was heard. The boat stretched out into the waves. The cool, seductive wind. The light from the sandbank gradually receded, and by the campfire, there were still groups of tourists singing and playing music, a few people waving to the “unwilling sailors” adventuring at night. In addition to Huong, there was another tourist in my boat who had just joined the group and asked to go with him. He was a teacher from Thai Binh who came to swim at Cua Lo beach. He said he wanted to eat a meal of “jumping” squid, but he heard that you had to go fishing and grill it right on the beach to be “authentic”! I have to correct the teacher that “blinking” squid is not “jumping”. It is squid that has just been caught at night, is still fresh, and its body reflects light and flashes. The local people of Cua Lo say “blinking” in their dialect, which sounds wrongly like “jumping”. Catching and enjoying “blinking” squid in Cua Lo is partly because of that, the most interesting in Vietnam! Hearing me say that, Huong also kept saying “oh, ah” that she always thought that fresh squid was called that when it jumped!...

- How far from shore? “About a kilometer!” The fisherman answered and decided to “drop anchor”, in fact, he let go of the oars to let the boat follow the waves. At this time, the wind was a little stronger, every now and then the boat would rise, and tiny drops of water would splash on my face, cool. The fisherman reassured me: “Don’t worry, the wind will still be safe if it gets stronger”. I stood up and looked around. The night sea was dark blue. Many squid fishing boats had “dropped anchor”. On the shore was the “coast” of Cua Lo, brightly lit like a giant warship; offshore were fishing boats with hundreds of horsepower of fishermen and boats waiting to “pick up” goods at Cua Lo Port, anchored, stretching all the way from Ngu Island, looking like a mysterious floating city. The army of adventurous squid fishing boats like us numbered in the hundreds, each boat had a blowtorch, flashing like stars in the middle of a galaxy, the feeling was wonderful. Huong stood up and called out, our “fleet” of 4 baskets had gathered in full formation. Hope you catch a lot of squid! Remember to save some to grill at the campfire! The night sea was filled with scum, eager to “conquer” the ocean!

The spoils of war after a while of fishing.

The fisherman busily refilled the gas and lit the blowtorch. The flame flared up and then subsided in the vacuum, covering the side of the boat with a white halo. We dropped our lines, the bait was just plastic and nylon nets imitating colorful shrimp. Under the sea water, there were tiny parasitic creatures, sparkling with silver scales. Occasionally, a small fish would wag its tail and play with the light. The teacher stuck his fishing rod down to chase it, it stopped and then darted away, its scales flashing under the sea water like a meteor. Oh, a squid! Huong grabbed my hand and let out a soft, suppressed cry of excitement. At that moment, it was a wonderful thing about the ocean. The transparent squid, its transparent dress spread out in a soft, undulating dance under the sea. The boat drifted slowly along the gentle waves. We let Huong drag the line after the squid. The fisherman said: “Don’t swing your net to catch it, or you might fall. If it eats, when you feel the hook is heavy, lift it straight up!”

Huong suddenly burst into joy when the fishing line was stretched and pulled up into the basket a big squid the size of half a hand. The fisherman skillfully used the net to catch the squid just in time to release the fishing rod and then dropped it onto the basket floor. The fresh squid was shining with thousands of glitters. The three of us let go of the fishing rod, eagerly looking at the squid that was slowly turning opaque white, gradually forming a brown film. The fisherman flashed a generous smile and leisurely lifted the squid, gently placing it over the lid of the blowtorch. The squid gently rose and gradually dried under the heat from the blowtorch. A gentle, salty aroma of the sea wafted up. Unconsciously, we all sniffed. The fisherman said: “Grill until the outer layer is just cooked! The squid is sweet. The squid was just caught in the sea, you can eat it raw right away, it’s very healthy!” The fisherman then reached into his bag and pulled out a small jar: “My homemade wine. Let me “have a little” to thank the gift of the sea!” Ah, is this the romance of coastal people or the custom of fishermen towards the sea? Let’s just enjoy it first!

How to say it? First of all, there was a sweet, indescribable but seemingly very strong aroma that made my sense of smell well up. Then my taste buds felt something real on the tip of my tongue that had previously been stretched out in anticipation. And, I couldn’t resist anymore! My teeth clicked and immediately the fatty, rich, sweet, bitter, aromatic flavors… of all the delicacies in the world and the saltiness of the great ocean took over and dominated all my senses. Nimbly enjoying each strand of squid grilled over a blowtorch, tilting my neck back to take a small sip of country wine, making a hearty “ha” sound in the middle of the vast ocean was truly a wonderful feeling! Seeing us seemingly overwhelmed with joy enjoying the squid we caught, the fisherman said: “When we catch a lot, you guys grill it yourselves, one per person, bite the squid in half, chew to your heart’s content, it’s so delicious it’s indescribable!”. Yes, that’s right, that’s right! We eagerly let go of the line again…

Every time the boat followed the waves a little further towards the shore, the fishermen would row out to the middle of the “galaxy”. In other boats, people would occasionally burst into joy when they caught squid. Our “fleet” kept their formation tight. It turned out that Huong was much better at fishing than me and the teacher, as out of more than twenty squid, half of them were Huong’s. It took about an hour. After nibbling and then almost swallowing each of the “flashing” squids grilled with a blowtorch, we agreed to bring the rest back to the campfire to grill. Huong used a loudspeaker to call the team together, and people responded with loud “reports” of their achievements, and it was easy for some boats to catch a few kilos of squid.

The wind was colder. The laughter stirred the sea. We had absorbed a bit of the strong wine of the countryside. We were extremely excited. After the feelings of excitement, joy and even a little fear, the Zimbats and Robinsons rowed their boats back to the mainland and now dared to "show off" their dignity and ask the fishermen who were rowing. The fishermen who steered our "battleship" - a father and son family - each brought a basket to the beach to register to serve customers who went fishing for "flashing" squid during the tourist season. During the main tourist season, there were nights when there were many customers, each person went on three or four trips, each trip costing more than 100,000 VND, some customers gave more, the income was quite good. In this profession, there were also regular customers, many of whom were picky, bringing alcohol lamps, alcohol, herbs and spices, and when they were bored with grilled squid, they steamed it right on the basket. Eating like that, was truly knowing how to eat delicious food.

As for the squid caught alive in seawater, brought back to restaurants, and elaborately processed into delicious dishes from many regions while still fresh, it is very fast, but it is difficult to be so delicious that it is "dizzying" to enjoy it right after being caught! Fishermen also affirm that, in the South and the North, there is no place where squid caught at night is as delicious as in Cua Lo. That is what tourists who come back to fish for "flashing" squid all say. Having done this job for nearly ten years, fishermen have heard many stories from "people" who fish for squid at night, and they are probably not joking. I also read somewhere that "in Cua Lo, Nghe An province, with the advantage of salinity, the sea extending deep into the mainland, and few big waves, Cua Lo beach has become a suitable place for squid to crawl close to the shore to live". So, fishing and enjoying the unique dish of "flashing" squid is not only in Cua Lo, but also in Cua Lo!

Satisfied as if they had just finished a real sea trip, everyone was excitedly commenting and showing off their achievements in catching “flashing” squid. Everyone was bustling to start grilling squid on the campfire with the determination to “eat up” this wonderful gift of Cua Lo beach. The teacher from Thai Binh held my hand tightly, saying that this was a Cua Lo memory he would never forget and that he would see me again in the next sea bathing seasons! Huong looked absent-mindedly at the campfire, then said, very seriously: “During the days here, I will definitely enjoy all the dishes made from fresh squid!”. Yes, I believe that you and your colleagues, as well as tourists who come to bathe here, will enjoy and forever remember the dishes made from the unique “flashing” squid specialty of my hometown Cua Lo beach, which has entered the international culinary tourism handbook!

Sam Temple