It comes in two types of packaging:

Bags:
http://www.chotnho.com/showthread.php?t=12770

Plastic jar, frozen and (usually) shrinkwrapped:
http://nhipcau.hatnang.com/index.php...ist/popup/2215

After decades of wondering what this stuff is every time I see it at
the store, I finally bought some. The stuff is not cheap (6oz jar
is $8). I'm guessing it's fermented(?), which would explain the
nasty color and sturdy, double packaging in jars.

I know this is a long-shot, but how is it used?

-sw

Sqwertz wrote:
>
> After decades of wondering what this stuff is every time I see it at
> the store, I finally bought some. The stuff is not cheap (6oz jar
> is $8). I'm guessing it's fermented(?), which would explain the
> nasty color and sturdy, double packaging in jars.

That doesn't sound like what I bought once. It was
Vietnamese frozen crab meat in a bag, white in color,
and not fermented at all. It was largely flavorless
and awful. I've also had Vietnamese frozen squid.
Must be a different species of squid than what I like.
Overall, I'm not impressed by Vietnamese seafood, and
I doubt I'll ever buy any again.

The only Asian seafood I like is the Japanese-style
frozen eel. I'm not sure any of it comes from Japan
anymore. I think it's mostly Chinese and Korean.
If you make a big pot of rice, when you get a few minutes
away from the time to turn the heat off, put the frozen
eel (removed from the package, of course) on top of the
rice, and put the cover back on. After a few minutes,
shut off the heat on schedule. Then allow everything
to steam for 20-30 minutes. This reheats the eel and
further cooks it, giving it a jelly-like consistency.
Absolutely fantastic! And you've got the rice to go
with it.

On Fri, 03 Jul 2009 18:35:11 -0700, Mark Thorson wrote:

> Sqwertz wrote:
>>
>> After decades of wondering what this stuff is every time I see it at
>> the store, I finally bought some. The stuff is not cheap (6oz jar
>> is $8). I'm guessing it's fermented(?), which would explain the
>> nasty color and sturdy, double packaging in jars.
>
> That doesn't sound like what I bought once. It was
> Vietnamese frozen crab meat in a bag, white in color,
> and not fermented at all. It was largely flavorless
> and awful. I've also had Vietnamese frozen squid.
> Must be a different species of squid than what I like.
> Overall, I'm not impressed by Vietnamese seafood, and
> I doubt I'll ever buy any again.

This is some sort of special prep. These are small crabs with the
shell on in a blackish liquid. The ingredients are crab and salt.
Which is how a lot of the of the fermented/preserved fish products
are labeled (simply fish and salt).

-sw

Sqwertz wrote:
>
> This is some sort of special prep. These are small crabs with the
> shell on in a blackish liquid. The ingredients are crab and salt.
> Which is how a lot of the of the fermented/preserved fish products
> are labeled (simply fish and salt).

That sounds really nasty. I consider myself to be somewhat
adventurous with regard to food, but you've topped me here.
This is on the far side of the "maggot cheese" borderline.

Mark Thorson wrote:
> Sqwertz wrote:
>> This is some sort of special prep. These are small crabs with the
>> shell on in a blackish liquid. The ingredients are crab and salt.
>> Which is how a lot of the of the fermented/preserved fish products
>> are labeled (simply fish and salt).
>
> That sounds really nasty. I consider myself to be somewhat
> adventurous with regard to food, but you've topped me here.
> This is on the far side of the "maggot cheese" borderline.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B%C3%BAn_ri%C3%AAu

http://simplyvietnamese.wordpress.co...p-noodle-soup/

http://www.noodlepie.com/bun_rieu/

Viets use these to make the stock for bún riêu when crabs are out of
season.

On Sat, 04 Jul 2009 16:31:08 -0400, Duh wrote:

> Mark Thorson wrote:
>> Sqwertz wrote:
>>> This is some sort of special prep. These are small crabs with the
>>> shell on in a blackish liquid. The ingredients are crab and salt.
>>> Which is how a lot of the of the fermented/preserved fish products
>>> are labeled (simply fish and salt).
>>
>> That sounds really nasty. I consider myself to be somewhat
>> adventurous with regard to food, but you've topped me here.
>> This is on the far side of the "maggot cheese" borderline.
>
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B%C3%BAn_ri%C3%AAu
>
> http://simplyvietnamese.wordpress.co...p-noodle-soup/
>
> http://www.noodlepie.com/bun_rieu/
>
> Viets use these to make the stock for bún riêu when crabs are out of
> season.

Ahh, so this is it. I've only had Bún riêu at one restaurant in
Houston a bunch of years ago. Not many restaurants do it
authentically, but I was told the one I had was the best out there.
It was very tasty. But I've never tried making it at home.

As I said in alt.food.asian, I probably have tried (and have in
stock) all the Asian fermented fish/seafood products in existence
except this one, so I'm looking forward to trying it in some sort of
soup tomorrow (probably a Thai-ish soup).

-sw

Mark Thorson wrote:
> Sqwertz wrote:
>> After decades of wondering what this stuff is every time I see it at
>> the store, I finally bought some. The stuff is not cheap (6oz jar
>> is $8). I'm guessing it's fermented(?), which would explain the
>> nasty color and sturdy, double packaging in jars.
>
> That doesn't sound like what I bought once. It was
> Vietnamese frozen crab meat in a bag, white in color,
> and not fermented at all. It was largely flavorless
> and awful. I've also had Vietnamese frozen squid.
> Must be a different species of squid than what I like.
> Overall, I'm not impressed by Vietnamese seafood, and
> I doubt I'll ever buy any again.
>
> The only Asian seafood I like is the Japanese-style
> frozen eel. I'm not sure any of it comes from Japan
> anymore. I think it's mostly Chinese and Korean.
> If you make a big pot of rice, when you get a few minutes
> away from the time to turn the heat off, put the frozen
> eel (removed from the package, of course) on top of the
> rice, and put the cover back on. After a few minutes,
> shut off the heat on schedule. Then allow everything
> to steam for 20-30 minutes. This reheats the eel and
> further cooks it, giving it a jelly-like consistency.
> Absolutely fantastic! And you've got the rice to go
> with it.

All you are missing is a bit of sansho sprinkled over the top! I
love unagi!

--
Jean B.