Tet specialties are in season

Beef jerky producing household

At this time, many people in Hiep Hoa commune, Duc Hoa district, Long An province are busy producing beef jerky to serve Tet market demand. This is a long-standing traditional profession of the locals.

From 4 am, nearly 10 workers of Tam Ben beef jerky production facility (Hoa Hiep 2 hamlet, Hiep Hoa commune) gathered to cut, marinate meat and dry them on racks.

According to the owner of Tam Ben beef jerky production facility - Ho Van Ben, near Tet, the market consumes more beef jerky so the facility increases its operating capacity. Currently, on average, the facility produces about 100kg of various types of beef jerky per day, much higher than normal days.

Workers at Tam Ben Beef Jerky Production Facility (Hiep Hoa Commune, Duc Hoa District) dry seasoned meat on a drying rack

On average, about 3kg of fresh beef will become 1kg of beef jerky, priced from 650,000-700,000 VND/kg (depending on the type). Thanks to its delicious taste and reasonable price, over the years, Tam Ben's beef jerky products have been favored by consumers in and outside the province. Its products not only present in all provinces and cities of the Mekong Delta region but are also strongly consumed in Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, etc.

Tam Ben has 2 product lines: one-sun-dried beef jerky and dried beef jerky. Both use loin and thigh meat from local cattle. After receiving the beef, the facility washes it, cuts it into pieces, marinates it with some spices such as chili, garlic, lemongrass, fish sauce and five-spice powder, and then dries it.

“For one-sun-dried products, the facility dries them from morning until about 1 p.m., then packages them, vacuums them, and puts them in the freezer. For dried beef jerky, the facility dries them two times, then packages them, vacuums them, and stores them under normal conditions, without having to put them in the refrigerator or freezer,” said Mr. Ho Van Ben.

It is known that since the 10th lunar month every year, Tam Ben Beef Jerky Production Facility has increased its operating capacity compared to normal days because of the higher orders. Currently, the total orders the facility has received for this year’s Tet holiday are about 5 tons of dried products.

The products of Tam Ben Beef Jerky Production Facility have been recognized by the Provincial People’s Committee as 3-star OCOP products and are typical rural industrial products at the provincial level. This is the motivation for the facility to boldly expand production, improve product quality to meet the increasing demand of the market.

Hundred-year-old rice paper craft village

From the middle of December (Lunar calendar), the atmosphere of Nhon Hoa rice paper village (Ward 5, Tan An City) has been already bustling. No one knows exactly when the rice paper making profession began here, but it is known that this is a father-to-son profession and has existed for hundreds of years.

As the third generation to carry on the family tradition, Ms. Nguyen Thi Huong (Nhon Hoa 1 Quarter, Ward 5, Tan An City) said that currently, some establishments have used rice paper making machines, but she still maintains the traditional way of making it.

With just simple ingredients such as rice flour and a little salt, you can make a specific type of rice paper with its own characteristics, with softness, flexibility and reasonable price, favored by customers near and far.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Huong (Nhon Hoa 1 Quarter, Ward 5, Tan An City) produces 10-15kg of rice paper per day

According to Ms. Huong, making a rice paper does not require much effort but costs a lot of time, with many steps such as mixing flour, lighting a fire, spreading rice paper, drying rice paper, removing rice paper, wrapping into bundles, etc and requires the worker to be skillful and meticulous.

On average, Ms. Huong produces 10-15kg of rice paper per day, selling at a price of 30,000-35,000 VND/kg; in the months near Tet, the quantity increases by 30-40%.

In addition, to meet the needs and tastes of customers, in addition to the traditional soft rice paper, Ms. Huong also makes sesame rice paper with coconut milk.

Because the ingredients include coconut, milk and sesame, this type of rice paper is more expensive than traditional sticky rice one, with prices ranging from 350,000-400,000 VND/pack of 50 pieces.

“Every year during Tet, I make extra coconut sesame rice paper to serve the market demand. Sometimes I make it myself and wait for customers to buy it, sometimes I make it according to orders or customers who bring me ingredients.

Normally, I only make 2-3 packs a day, earning 200,000-300,000 VND” - Ms. Huong added.

Despite many difficulties, the people of Nhon Hoa Rice Paper Craft Village (Ward 5, Tan An City) still preserve the traditional profession (Photo: Rice paper is dried in the gentle sunlight)

According to the People's Committee of Ward 5 (Tan An City), in the past, the craft village had nearly 100 households making rice paper. However, currently, there are only about 10 households still maintaining the profession.

Despite many difficulties, they are still determined to stick with this profession and hope that the golden age will return to the craft village in the near future.

Although there is no shortage of specialty products for customers on the market, some typical specialties of the province such as beef jerky, rice paper, etc are still in high demand because of their delicious, unique flavor and guaranteed safety and quality./.

By Staffs - Translated by Q. Thien

Source: https://baolongan.vn/dac-san-tet-vao-mua-a188938.html