The mighty croc makes its way to Vietnamese dinner tables

Until recently, few Vietnamese would have thought that the crocodile would have made its way to the dinner table or become one of their favorite dishes.

But now the armored reptile is being served in more and more specialty restaurants in major cities like Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.

The restaurants import or buy the creatures from farms around the country, like Hoa Ca crocodile farm in HCMC’s Thu Duc District and make all sorts of delicious dishes.

Besides, gastronomers can easily buy them from big supermarkets such as Metro system.

In Thailand, people began breeding crocodiles in farms about 10 years ago.

Now, there are many farms with thousands of the reptiles each that people can visit to enjoy delicious crocodile soup for free.

They can also buy products made of crocodile skin - like purses and belts - and bones used to treat colds, backaches, and other ailments by traditional doctors.

Hoang Minh Tuan, the manager of Holiday Restaurant on Ngo Van So Street in Hanoi, says: “It is not difficult to find crocodile meat in Hanoi becait is no longer considered a rarity. In my restaurant, we make 31 dishes from crocodile.”

He showed us a crocodile ready for slaughter, bought from a farm in Nam Dinh Province.

It was in an iron cage. When we approached, the smallish reptile bared its teeth and thrashed its tail in what seemed a pathetic attempt to threaten.

We couldn't help contrasting it with the usual perception of this fierce creature in the wild - the Nile Crocodile that pulls down zebras and wildebeest that venture into or near fried croc the water, and the giant salties of Australia.

But here was one of them, getting ready for the frying pan.

Croc and eggplant

Tuan says after slaughtering a crocodile, the gall bladder is thrown away becait is inedible.

However, its other organs are cooked into stir-fried dishes that are in great demand.

The first dish we tried was meat roasted with salt.

With a lovely aroma and tasting like chicken, it was served with fish sauce mixed with chilies and ginger.

Next came fermented meat rolled beautifully with dill, which left a delicious aftertaste.

Then we tried croc meat simmered with eggplant and served with bun (soft noodles) and greasy consommé.

Tuan reserved the best for last – meat baked with mac khen, a specialty fruit grown ethnic minority peoples in the north.

The meat is first stewed in spices and then baked with the fruit.

The tough part is to do the meat to a turn to keep it soft but retain its sweet taste.

To make this dish, the cook must have a keen sense of smell that would tell when the mixture of meat and fruit has reached exactly the right stage.

“For a party of around six people, using 1.5 kg of meat (VND210,000 per kg), we can serve all six dishes,” Tuan says.

“However, if you need a whole crocodile, please make a reservation.” Crocodile meat is good for the skin and its blood for general health, he claims.

CROC FACT

The meat is white and its nutritional composition compares favorably with that of more traditional meats. It does tend to have a slightly higher cholesterol level than other meats.

Crocodile meat has a delicate flavor and its taste can be complemented by the of marinades.

Choice cuts of meat include back strap and tail fillet

Source ThanhnienNews