Hunting for sea bass in Phan Thiet

Binh Thuan : When the fish are close to shore, Phan Thiet fishermen use nets to catch them, bring them home to eat or sell them at the wharf for 80,000-100,000 VND per kg.

At the end of September, the Phan Thiet sea has calm waves, many schools of fish swim into the gently sloping sandy coves near the shore to find food. In the early morning when the sunlight shines through the coconut trees in front of the fishing village, Mr. Truong Quang Tan, 60 years old, from Ham Tien ward, and his friends carry nets from Rang hamlet to Mui Ne to catch fish.

Mr. Truong Quang Tan (left) and his fishing partner with the fish they just caught. Photo: Viet Quoc

Looking into the distance, the two fishermen saw ripples of water behind a school of shrimp that had just passed by. "The shrimp are coming in, hurry up and set up your net," Mr. Tan said, then he and his fishing partner dove into the sea.

They waded out to a position 15-20 meters from the shore and cast a net more than 100 meters long in an arc. A few minutes later, the two men quickly pulled and gathered the net, which was full of fish. Mr. Tan and his friend took each fish out of the net, put them in a basket, and then went out to sea to continue fishing.

In the morning, Mr. Tan's group caught more than 15 kg of fish with 5 nets. On the shore, some locals and tourists waited to buy them on the spot, at 80,000 VND per kg. He sold some and brought the rest home to sell to regular restaurants.

On Mui Ne beach within a radius of about one kilometer, not only Mr. Tan’s group but also more than a dozen fishermen are hunting for fish. Each net cast, the fishermen collect 5-20 kg of fish. After catching, they sell them at the market for 80,000-100,000 VND, depending on the size of the fish.

Fishermen go to Mui Ne beach (Phan Thiet city) to catch catfish. Photo: Viet Quoc

However, not everyone caught a lot of fish. Nguyen Tuan's group, a resident of Mui Ne ward, came late so they only caught about 3 kg. "We only sell the days we catch a lot, the rest we share to make salad to eat," said Tuan.

The fish has a slender body, a pointed mouth with a red tip, and a pale yellow tail. The fish has sparse scales, a grey back, a white belly, and long blue stripes on both sides. Adult fish are larger than a thumb, 25-26 cm long. When the sea is calm, especially before a tropical depression, schools of fish swim close to shore to eat shrimp.

Mr. Nguyen Van Bay, in Mui Ne fishing village, said that the fish is a specialty of the coastal region. The fish meat is fragrant, delicious, and very healthy, and can be cooked in many dishes such as tomato soup, braised with pepper, or fried. However, the best way to make the fish salad is to make it into a salad, which is considered the "best fish salad" in the coastal region of Phan Thiet, more delicious than herring and mai fish salad.

Fresh fish just taken out of net by fishermen. Photo: Viet Quoc

After removing the head and scales of the fish, wash it, cut it into small pieces, then squeeze it with lime juice, add fresh chili, roasted peanuts, mix with onions, green onions and herbs such as basil, coriander...

"Salted fish salad eaten with grilled rice paper or rolled in dew-dried rice paper with raw vegetables and dipped in sauce is delicious," said Mr. Bay, adding that it is a delicious dish but fish for salad is not always available. Gourmets must wait until a lot of fish are coming ashore to order to be able to enjoy this delicious dish.

Viet Quoc

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