While fresh ball sea cucumbers are being mysteriously sought-after off Vietnam’s southern coast, the creatures are believed to be a healthy food that can cure diseases by people ashore, despite the lack of justification for their medicinal values.
Dried ball sea cucumbers are available at a wide range of prices, from VND1 million to VND2.2 million (US$47-104) a kilogram, depending on quality, in Ho Chi Minh City, with traders claiming that the creature can be made into “delicious, nutritious and healthy dishes.”
The creature is called banh long (fur ball) in Vietnamese, as it looks like a tennis ball.
Many fishermen in Phu Quoc Island, off Kien Giang Province in the Mekong Delta, have given up their traditional fishing job to hunt for the ball sea cucumbers to sell to Chinese brokers at high prices.
Fishermen, however, have no idea why the foreigners are willing to pay high prices for the creature that has long been considered having no economic value.
The nutrition and health values of the dried creatures, meanwhile, are claimed only by people who sell them, rather than experts.
“Ball sea cucumbers are expensive because they are very nutritious and delicious,” said a small trader who sells dried products at Binh Tay market in Ho Chi Minh City.
Dried banh long is available at her store at VND2.2 million a kg.
The trader said 100 percent of her products are caught in Phu Quoc, but they are only available in limited quantity due to the complex procedure to get them processed.
“The fresh banh long must be carefully washed and boiled before being dried,” she explained, adding that making a dish from the creature too is complicated.
The ball sea cucumber must be soaked in water three to four days before cooking so that they will expand to bigger sizes.
“It helps balance body temperature, reduce blood fat, promote blood circulation and it is good for the kidneys,” the vendor claimed.
Another vendor at Binh Tay market said she has been selling ball sea cucumbers long before they became known by the general public.
“I mostly sold to luxury restaurants or gourmets who bought them to give away as gifts,” she said.
No proof of medicinal value
A large number of fresh ball sea cucumbers are transported to a facility in HCMC’s Hoc Mon District in trucks on a daily basis, where they will be washed, dried, and packed.
The man who runs the facility said the dried banh long will be distributed to restaurants and even exported.
The owner said he does not know where the banh long are from.
“I just bought from different sources,” he admitted, adding the creature is no delicacy or panacea.
“I heard that the sea ball cucumber must be properly cooked, otherwise it will break eaters’ teeth.”
Tran Van Nam, deputy head of the HCMC Traditional Medicine Institute, said he has never heard of a creature called banh long, or ball sea cucumber.
“The nutrition and medicinal values, if any, of the creature are unverified,” he said.
“Consumers should be cautious when eating ball sea cucumbers.”
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Đăng ký: VietNam News
