Mai Xa mussel vermicelli carries the rich folk culture of Quang Tri

One of the typical delicious dishes of Quang Tri, Mai Xa mussel vermicelli is always chosen and favored by tourists.
Mai Xa mussel vermicelli is named after its birthplace - Mai Xa village, Gio Linh district, Quang Tri province.

With its own unique flavors, imbued with the folk culture of Quang Tri, Mai Xa mussel vermicelli has been honored to be recognized in the TOP 100 culinary dishes and typical specialties of Vietnam (2020-2021) according to the criteria for announcing the value of Vietnamese cuisine and specialties in Decision No. 100/KLVN-TOP/2021 of the Vietnam Record Organization in the journey to promote Vietnamese cuisine and specialties (2020-2021).

Mai Xa Village is one of 65 traditional ancient villages of Quang Tri, located in Gio Mai Commune, Gio Linh District. It is a rural village on the Thach Han River, famous in history.

Mai Xa village with its traditional craft of raking “chat chat” and famous for its wonderful folk vermicelli dish, is a unique specialty of this village. Canh Hom River is a branch of Thach Han River, flowing close to Mai Xa village, with very unique characteristics of soil and water that has produced “con chat chat” (a type of freshwater mussel) with a very rich and special sweet flavor, combined with the traditional processing method of Mai Xa people has created a very unique dish made from Mai Xa mussels, not available anywhere else.

Talking about Mai Xa mussel vermicelli, there are 2 types for diners to choose from: dry vermicelli and vermicelli soup. To prepare Mai Xa mussel vermicelli, first you have to put the mussels in a pot to boil, when the water boils, you have to use large chopsticks to stir continuously so that the mussels open their shells.

Scoop the clams out into a basket, use the boiled water to make the dish, and put the clams in a basin of water to collect the meat. To eat "dried Mai Xa clam vermicelli", first put the pan on high heat, saute the onions until fragrant, then add the clam meat and stir-fry until it is firm, season with spices such as traditional Cua Viet fish sauce, chopped fresh chili, ...

The broth is seasoned with spices, finely ground fresh ginger, and a little bit of Cua Viet fish sauce, creating a very rich flavor. The noodles used are thin fresh noodles, handmade from rice flour and tapioca flour, pure white, chewy, and delicious. A bowl of "dried Mai Xa mussel noodles" includes fresh noodles, stir-fried mussels, and herbs on top. Depending on the taste of the eater, add more or less broth. Mai Xa mussel noodles will be more delicious when eaten with a little Cua Viet fish sauce, chili, garlic, and fresh ginger.

With the dish “Mai Xa water clam noodle”, the clam meat does not have to go through the stir-frying process. The dish “Mai Xa water clam noodle” has a very special flavor, diners will enjoy the sweet, fatty taste of Mai Xa “chat chat” mixed with the salty taste of Cua Viet sea fish sauce, the strong aroma of fresh ginger, the spiciness of chili, ... and Quang Tri rice noodles.

Eating Mai Xa mussel vermicelli is not only enjoying a delicious dish of Quang Tri, but also enjoying the whole flavor of the homeland in each strand of vermicelli, each spoonful of broth, even in each faint aroma of the bowl of mussel vermicelli.
The uniqueness of Mai Xa mussel noodle soup is not simply that diners are served a pre-made bowl of noodles right at their table like they often see elsewhere. The uniqueness here is that diners can mix the “ingredients” themselves to create a bowl of “Mai Xa mussel noodle soup” that is unique to their taste.

When diners order a bowl of mussel noodle soup, the restaurant will bring to the table a bowl of steaming broth, a bowl of noodles with fresh white noodles and stir-fried mussels (or “fresh” mussels).

Besides, there is no lack of a bowl of spicy chili salt, fresh pepper and finely crushed fresh ginger, a plate of green vegetables and other herbs to eat with. Depending on taste, users can mix and make for themselves a bowl of authentic Mai Xa mussel vermicelli.
Enjoying Mai Xa mussel vermicelli, diners will clearly see the graceful, strong, yet sweet and rich image of Quang Tri homeland, contained in this simple but wonderful folk vermicelli dish.

In addition to Mai Xa mussel vermicelli, diners can also enjoy stir-fried mussels with rice paper. The sweet and fatty taste of Mai Xa stir-fried mussels with spices, combined with the fragrant, rich, crispy taste of Quang Tri rice paper, diners can hardly forget if they have enjoyed it once, especially on hot summer days.

When coming to Quang Tri, tourists should not miss this dish on the list of 100 typical Vietnamese specialties!

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