Attractive hotpot with crab

Simple processing

Mr. Nguyen Quoc Tuan, Director of Sen Viet Hai Duong Company Limited, who has many years of experience in restaurant business and processing dishes from rươi, said that among the dishes from rươi, processing rươi hotpot is a bit simpler. “Currently, there are 2 ways to process rươi hotpot, which are whole rươi hotpot and rươi hotpot. No matter which way you do it, you need spices such as tangerine peel, dill, fresh chili, fresh bamboo shoots, green onions, ginger, betel leaves... The broth should be made from chicken broth or bone broth to make the hotpot more delicious. With whole rươi hotpot, you just need to clean the rươi and put it in the broth that has been seasoned to taste, the cooked rươi is served with Chinese cabbage," said Mr. Tuan.

To have a delicious hot pot of roe, the ingredients need to include ground pork belly and chicken eggs. The roe is beaten with other ingredients until it becomes powder, then dropped into boiling water. According to Mr. Tuan, to avoid the hot pot from being powdered, which can easily burn when eaten, the step of dropping the roe into the pot is very important. The water needs to be boiled, then turn off the stove and wait for it to cool down a bit, then slowly drop in each ladle of roe powder, then turn on the stove to low and continue cooking for about 15 minutes until the roe is cooked.

The hotpot can be eaten with many different types of vegetables, tubers, and fruits, but it is best eaten with Chinese cabbage, celery, lotus root, fresh bamboo shoots, and some types of mushrooms. If you add a bowl of dipping sauce mixed with fish sauce, lemon, chili, and sliced ​​onions, the flavor will be even stronger.

“Some other localities in the North also have rươi, but through practical experience, I have found that only rươi in Hai Duong meets the criteria of having a lot of powder and not having a fishy smell. Dishes made from rươi from Hai Duong, including rươi hotpot, are also more fragrant and delicious,” Mr. Tuan shared.

Delicious food for guests

On cold days, gathering with friends and relatives to enjoy delicious hotpot is probably the joy of many people.

Mr. Nguyen Quoc Tuan said that these days, out of 10 groups of customers coming to his company's roe restaurants, about 4 groups order roe hotpot.

It's the season of the earthworms, so many families choose to prepare and enjoy earthworm hotpot. Ms. Tran Thi Ngoc in Zone 6, Tan Binh Ward (Hai Duong City) said: "To cook a earthworm hotpot for 4 people, it usually costs from 500,000 to 600,000 VND. When my family has guests from far away, I often make earthworm hotpot to treat them. Sometimes I make hotpot with handfuls, sometimes I make hotpot with whole earthworms to change the dish."

As for Mr. Vu Van Tien, a native of Kinh Mon but currently living in Hanoi, every year when the season comes, he asks his family to buy Tu Ky roe to send up to freeze for later use. “Each dish made from roe has a different flavor and way of enjoying it, but all leave unforgettable aftertastes. Roe cake and braised roe are traditional dishes that my family makes every year, but in recent years, I have occasionally changed the meal with hot pot. On winter days, the whole family gathers around a pot of fragrant roe hot pot, enjoying the specialty of our hometown is really appealing,” said Mr. Tien.

“Some people like to eat hotpot with seafood and vegetables such as sweet potatoes and corn, but I personally like to eat this dish with mustard greens. That way, the flavors of other foods will not be mixed in, and you can fully enjoy the unique flavor of the hotpot,” said Mr. Vu Van Muoi in Vinh Hong commune (Binh Giang).

Hai Duong is in the season of rươi, the weather has also turned cold, very suitable for everyone to enjoy dishes made from rươi, including warm and nutritious rươi hotpot.