Chicken poop sweet soup attracts diners because of its strange and ugly name

1 Introducing chicken dung sweet soup

Chinese cuisine has long been famous for its richness, uniqueness and appeal, captivating diners with a series of sweet soup dishes with distinct flavors and stories. Each dessert is not only a snack but also a unique cultural part, helping to preserve traditions over time. Among them, dishes such as red egg sweet soup, black sesame sweet soup, steamed papaya sweet soup, almond tofu sweet soup, tonic ginseng, Quy Linh extract… are always popular, especially in the Chinese community in Ho Chi Minh City. .

Among these familiar sweet soup dishes, a popular sweet soup with a strange name – “chicken dung” sweet soup, or “fish and lizard” sweet soup in Cantonese, has made many people curious. Although not widely popular, this dessert has a special appeal to anyone who has ever tasted it. The name of sweet soup makes many people confused, even hesitant. But in reality, “chicken dung sweet soup” is made from a familiar ingredient – apricot leaves. It is this unique element that creates a distinct mark for the unique sweet soup.

2 The uniqueness of chicken dung sweet soup

2.1 Rare Chinese dessert, hard to find in Saigon

In Ho Chi Minh City, there are currently not many shops selling this chicken dung sweet soup. If you want to try it, on the morning of the 1st or the full moon day, visit Ms. Nhat Binh’s tea shop, located in front of Guanyin Buddha Pagoda (in Phu Trung ward, Tan Phu district). These days the shop is always unusually crowded, partly because many regular customers come to eat sweet soup, partly because strangers hear the name of the unique sweet soup and are curious to come and try it.

According to Ms. Nhat Binh, this is a traditional sweet soup, a specialty of the Chinese people. This dish was introduced by Chinese immigrants to Vietnam. Ms. Binh’s family has been doing this dessert business for more than 20 years, the recipe was taught to her by relatives.

Previously, most of the customers were Chinese because chicken dung sweet soup was not too popular. However, recently, because of its unique name, this dessert has been widely shared on social networking sites, suddenly becoming widely known, attracting many diners to enjoy it. In particular, there are many young people who come to the restaurant out of curiosity, so she is very happy when the restaurant becomes more and more crowded, and the dessert that her family has been selling for many years is well received and praised.

2.2 Ingredients and how to make chicken dung sweet soup

According to Vietnamtravelio, chicken manure sweet soup is prepared quite simply from two main ingredients: apricot leaves and rice flour. The apricot leaves will be washed, drained and then ground with rice. This mixture is mixed with tapioca starch in appropriate proportions, made into pieces of cake and steamed. Then wait for the cake to cool before cutting it into bite-sized pieces. The first time you try it, you will see that the fibers of chicken dung sweet soup are quite similar to those of Western banh loc.

The finished tea powder fibers have a very beautiful dark green color. To prevent them from sticking together when cooked, the seller will sprinkle or mix the flour fibers with dry flour first. Fresh dough fibers will be placed on a charcoal stove, kept continuously hot. When a customer calls, the seller puts the dough into the pot to cook, then takes it out and adds fragrant ginger sugar water. Sweet soup tastes best when eaten hot, so if you buy it to take home, you should take the trouble to reheat it to enjoy a better taste.

2.3 Taste of chicken dung sweet soup

The dark black dough, moderately chewy, served with water fragrant with apricot leaves and ginger creates a simple yet equally delicious dish. You can also ask the shop owner to adjust the sweetness to better suit your taste. According to Ms. Nhat Binh, a longtime owner of a chicken dung sweet soup shop, making this dish is not difficult, but the most important thing is to mix apricot leaves and powder in the right ratio, so that the taste is not bitter, the aroma is mild, suitable for most tastes. number of diners.

Although it has an ugly name, chicken dung tea is very delicious and also has health benefits. Because the main ingredient is made from apricot leaves, the sweet soup will have uses such as regulating blood circulation, detoxifying, reducing stomach pain… In addition, this sweet soup is also eaten with sugar water cooked with fresh ginger, which is very good for the health. intestinal tract. In particular, if you eat chicken manure tea on cold days, it will also help keep your body warm from the inside.

However, because the ingredients to make this sweet soup are from apricot leaves, the smell will be quite strange and different from regular Chinese sweet soup. Therefore, if you have the opportunity to travel to Saigon, you can take the time to visit Ms. Nhat Binh’s restaurant to try the food to see if it suits your taste.

3 The unique sweet soup is only sold for 2 days each month

Another special thing about this chicken dung sweet soup is that it is only sold at Ms. Binh’s shop on the 1st and 15th of every month. Each portion of tea ranges from 16,000 to 32,000 VND. In just one day of opening, she can sell more than 500 servings of tea, equivalent to more than 10 kg of powder. In addition to chicken manure sweet soup, she also sells familiar dishes such as corn sweet soup and corn porridge.

The shop is open from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., but almost every day the chicken dung tea sold runs out early. Guests who come to eat on site will have to park their car within the premises of Guanyin Buddha Pagoda, costing 5,000 VND per trip. Because this Saigon tea shop is just a small roadside stall with limited space, many customers choose to buy tea to take home. In particular, customers of Chinese origin often buy fresh flour to prepare at home according to their preferences.

Ms. Luu Xuan Phuong (56 years old, Tan Phu district), a familiar diner, shared that this dessert used to be very rare, mainly cooked at home on March 3 according to Chinese tradition. However, because apricot leaves require elaborate processing techniques to no longer have a bitter taste or strong smell, many people find it difficult to make them themselves. When she learned that Ms. Binh sold chicken manure sweet soup, she and her acquaintances often visited the shop to enjoy and buy it to take home.

The reason Ms. Nhat Binh only sells tea on 2 days a month is because at this time the number of people going to the temple is very large, so the purchasing power is large. This chicken dung sweet soup is also completely frugal and suitable for vegetarians, so it is also very reasonable to sell at the temple gate. On weekdays of the month, Ms. Binh will sell ingredients for sweet soup at Phu Binh market, District 11.

Above is information about the unique sweet soup called chicken dung sweet soup. Although not too picky about the taste or preparation, this is still a unique dessert that many people will remember forever when they have the opportunity to taste it. Refer to the Vietnamtravelio travel guide to discover more unique dishes of Vietnamese cuisine.