Quang Ninh not only attracts tourists by its impressive landscape but also by its rich cuisine, with many "heaven-sent" specialties such as blood worms, sea worms, clams, and horseshoe crabs.

Sandworm

Sandworms have many different names such as sea worms, sea worms, earth ginseng, sandworms, and ground ginseng. This type of seafood has a rather scary appearance, reddish brown in color, at first glance it looks like an earthworm but is larger, with a body with many tiny veins.

This type of creature often hides under sand crevices and caves in coastal areas, sometimes at a depth of up to 30m. Sandworms can only be harvested when the sea level drops, around March to July every year.

If fresh sea worms are soft, chewy and crispy, they are often processed into delicious dishes such as stir-fried kohlrabi, soup, porridge, etc., then dried sea worms are attractive because of their crunchiness and can be preserved and used for a long time.

In particular, when grilled, dried sea worms have a very attractive aroma, becoming a favorite snack for men and are considered by many gourmets to be more delicious than grilled squid.

Each kilo of fresh sea worms costs about 300,000-400,000 VND. Dried sea worms cost much more, ranging from 4-7 million VND/kg (depending on the type).

Sandworms have high nutritional value, containing up to 18 amino acids and 17 minerals necessary for the body. According to Oriental medicine, this specialty is good for men's health, people with asthma, children with rickets,...

Sam

Horseshoe crabs are marine creatures that live in places with high tides and are found in abundance in the seas of Quang Ninh and Hai Phong.

At first glance, the crab looks like an iron helmet, with a hard and thick shell and a flat, round body. They have 8 pairs of legs and 4 eyes (2 bulging eyes on the sides of the body and the remaining 2 eyes on the head). The crab's tail has a ridge with a pointed, triangular tip.

Horseshoe crabs usually live in pairs, with the male clinging to the back of the female. There is a folk saying "sticking together like horseshoe crabs", which represents the faithful and loyal love between husband and wife. When going to sea, fishermen often catch horseshoe crabs in pairs. If only one gets caught in the net, they will release it back into the sea.

According to fishermen, the season for horseshoe crabs lasts from April to September. Horseshoe crabs are usually sold in pairs, at around VND700,000-1,200,000/pair during the season. During times of scarcity, the price of horseshoe crabs can rise to VND1,500,000/pair.

Sea urchin meat is delicious but the preparation process is very elaborate and only experienced chefs can do it. If sea urchin is not prepared carefully, it can cause poisoning to the eater.

After being cleaned, the crab can be processed into many delicious dishes such as grilled crab cartilage, crab meat stir-fried with vermicelli, crab stir-fried with lemongrass and chili, sweet and sour crab legs stir-fried,... The most delicious and popular are crab meat salad and sweet and sour crab legs stir-fried.

Because sea cucumbers are difficult to catch, do not live long, and require elaborate processing, they only appear on the menus of a few famous restaurants at very high prices.

bored

Clams are a type of mollusk related to clams but are larger in size and are considered very nutritious. Clams are currently found in the seas of some places. Clams in Quang Ninh are considered to be more fragrant and delicious.

According to locals, sea cockles are harvested from around March to the end of October of the lunar calendar. At this time, cockles are plump, fresh and sweetest. However, harvesting this seafood is not easy, because they are hidden deep in the sand and are very difficult to find, especially in winter.

Cockles are also considered a nutritious food. Cockles meat contains all the proteins, carbohydrates, lipids, vitamins and minerals necessary for the body.

Because they are rare and contain many nutrients, cockles are expensive. For the type of 8-10 cockles/kg, the price is from 750,000 - 1,000,000 VND/kg. The type of 15 - 20 cockles/kg is priced at 450,000 - 600,000 VND/kg.

Although expensive, cockles are still a favorite specialty of many diners, sought after by many because of their delicious taste and ability to be processed into many rich and nutritious dishes. Among them, the most popular is cockle porridge.

earthworm

There are many blood worms in some provinces such as Thai Binh, Quang Ninh, Hai Phong, Hai Duong... In Quang Ninh, the areas with the most blood worms are Dong Trieu, Quang Yen, Uong Bi. Blood worms in this area cost from 400,000-700,000 VND/kg, depending on the time.

Rươi lives in brackish water and rivers with high and low tides. To catch rươi, people have to build banks, dams, and dig canal systems to lead water from the river to the fields and lagoons.

The season for rươi does not last long. Currently, small traders will buy large quantities and store them in cold storage to sell year-round. High storage and transportation costs push the price of rươi up.

Rươi can be processed into many delicious dishes such as rươi rolls, braised rươi, rươi fish sauce, rươi hotpot.