Hanoi (VNA) - For the Dao Do (RedDao) people in the northern province of Ha Giang or the Muong in the centralprovince of Thanh Hoa, Sau tre (bamboo worm), once a staple, has become a raretreat.

Only elders in these two ethnic minoritycommunities residing mostly in the northern and central provinces know how tocollect the worm and make tasty dishes with it.

Once it is cooked, Sau tre takes on a goldencolour. The worm looked like a chrysalis, somewhat smaller. Despite theeye-catching decoration and colour, many initially hesitate to taste the dish.

But once one summons sufficient courage to tryit, one will take to it immediately. The worm is succulent, juicy, and theherbs used blend well with it.

There are different ways to cook Sau tre. Itcould be deep fried, steamed or braised, but the most popular dish was Sau trestir fry.

The worms are washed and cleaned carefully,seasoned with salt and set aside for 15 minutes. Fat (lard or oil) is heated ina pan, and shallots as well as the worms are added to it. After stir-frying forabout three minutes, when the worms taken on a light golden colour, finelychopped lime leaves are added. A quick stir-fry, and the dish is servedimmediately.
The mild scent of the bamboo, the strong flavourof Sau tre and the light bitterness of lime leaves make for a special, tastydish perfect to enjoy on cold and humid days.

Sau tre was a special dish for mountainouscommunities. People began collecting them when they lived mostly of the land,and food became scarce.

As other food became more easily available inthe market, the Sau tre was no longer a must. Young people soon forgot how tocollect and cook it. Also, Sau tre requires a lot of ingredients, additives,and several steps are involved, from collecting it to preparing it and cookingit. It can even take more than a day to serve a Sau tre dish.

Finding Sau tre

The bamboo worm season normally lasts fromSeptember till the end of October, during which the worms are the fattest andgive birth the most.

To collect Sau tre, a knife and a basket are thetools required. People look for dry and almost dead bamboo grass, chop themdown then empty the stalks to get the worms inside. On a lucky day, one can get1 to 1.5 kg of Sau tre. The worm is white and 3.5 to 4cm long.

In Vietnam, this special worm can be found inthe northern mountainous provinces of Dien Bien, Lai Chau, Son La and Ha Giangor central provinces like Thanh Hoa and Thua Thien-Hue.

Even during the breeding season, it is not easyto get them, because not every bamboo section will carry them.

During its season, prices for this mountainspecialty can go be up to half a million VND (23 USD) per kilo, but supplystill fails to meet rising demand. People have to order about a week in advanceto be served this dish.

Another factor that raises the price of bambooworm is difficulties in transporting them.

“Delivering the bamboo worm alive is hard to do.And if they are not careful enough, the worms will die so the dishes will notbe as tasty as expected,” said Le Van Tho, a Sau tre wholesaler. “Therefore, assoon as I gather enough of them, I do not wait. I get them straight to thecustomer, so they are fresh and my loss is reduced.”

But for those who have taken to them, all thetrouble taken and the price are worth it.

“I have to order bamboo worms in Thanh HoaProvince one week earlier,” said Nguyen Hoang Quan, who lives on Hoang Hoa ThamStreet in Hanoi. And he sometimes waits for two hours at the bus terminal tocollect the delivery.

“My very first time, I felt creepy on seeing theworms on the table, but I fell in love with their crispy, aromatic and greasytaste after my first attempt.

“After just one bite, I wanted to have more andmore, and have, unconsciously, become addicted to them.” — VNA