Nghe An countryside is happy to "touch" Tet pigs

For pigs raised for Tet, people in rural areas usually only raise 1 to 2 pigs and choose pigs with thick hair, long bodies, and black pigs are better. Photo: Xuan Hoang

There was a time when the custom of "touching" pigs was lost due tomarket economydeveloped, just take money to the market, like which piece then cut that piece to bring home. But since the African swine fever appeared in the pig herd, the custom of "touching" pigs on Tet holiday tends to return in rural areas from the lowlands to the mountains of Nghe An.

According to the people, to have a delicious, clean pig to "touch" for meat to eatTet, households in the hamlet usually raise pigs from mid-year. Mr. Tran Dinh Hoi in Nam Thanh commune, Yen Thanh district said that since June, his family started raising 2 pigs for meat. With food sources from agricultural by-products mixed with green vegetables grown in the home garden, by the end of the year, each pig only reached a weight of more than 60 kg. To have clean pork for Tet, 5 families in the hamlet gathered to slaughter pigs on the 27th of Tet.

"The pig is cleaned of hair, butchered, the meat and bones are cut crosswise and divided into 5 equal parts; the entrails are served with sauce on the spot, like a family's New Year's meal. By butchering a pig, not only can we buy meat at a lower price than the market price, but we can also feel secure when eating clean pork that we raised ourselves," Mr. Hoi shared.

In addition to slaughtering pigs, people also slaughter cows to celebrate Tet. Photo: Q.An

Even in my family, every year my younger brother raises a pig to slaughter for Tet at the end of the year, or if we don't raise a pig, we order a pig from a neighbor to slaughter and share. Before Tet, before wrapping banh chung, the family slaughters a pig, a portion of the meat is used to make the cake filling, and the rest is used to prepare Tet dishes.

Highlanders on the occasion of Lunar New Year often slaughter cows and pigs together for meat. Mr. Mua Ba Ma - Head of Son Ha village, Ta Ca commune (Ky Son) said, to havefoodFor Tet, families in the village often slaughter pigs and cows together. Accordingly, if any household in the village can raise cows or pigs, 4-5 households will share, if they cannot raise them, they will buy them and slaughter them together. Therefore, the days before Tet, the atmosphere in the village is always happy and bustling.

"Because of the Mong people's custom of not going anywhere during the 3 days of Tet, around December 25 to 28, families start topig slaughter, cows, organize guests to eat and drink, welcome the new year", Mr. Mua Ba Ma said.

Pork is divided equally among the households receiving it. Photo: Q.An

Pigs raised in the traditional way eat only vegetables, rice bran... the meat will be drier, firmer and more delicious. According to people, pigs raised for Tet slaughter are usually chosen from pigs with thick hair, long bodies, black pigs are better... raised for many months. A pig that eats meat is not too big, usually from 50 to 70 kg. Nowadays, the need for food during Tet is not as high as in the past, so with a pig of that size, slaughtered, 4-5 families can eat comfortably.

In rural areas, when the "touch" pig slaughter begins, Tet is already here. Therefore, the Tet atmosphere in the villages seems to come earlier. The day of the pig slaughter is probably the happiest day, the pork is divided equally among the households eating the touch, everyone gets to enjoy a meal of fresh offal.

However, Mr. Ngo Duc Quynh - Deputy Director of the Department of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine recommends that if people buy pigs to slaughter during Tet, they should buy pigs with clear origins and clean of diseases. Because if they slaughter infected pigs, the consequences will be poor meat quality and the risk of disease spreading among livestock right after Tet./.