For many years, people in many suburban areas in Hanoi have hunted rats at harvest time for sales and special dishes.
Canh Nau Village in Thach That District in Hanoi is famous for rat hunting. The harvest time is best for catching rats.
Visiting the village this time, it is easy to find local children running across fields to look for holes, which are often located at the edge of the field. Besides pouring water into the holes for rats to turn up, professional hunters use dogs to look seek the holes.
Local residents say rats often eat rice and are very safe to be used in dishes.
The way to slaughter a rat is different from that of other animals. Rats are put above a bucket and boiling water is poured onto them, but it is important not to scratch their skin. Then cold water is used for cleaning the fur.
When it comes time for sales, the head must be kept to prove that the meat is genuine. In Canh Nau, rat meat is a special food. Before being used for processing a dish, rat head, tail, legs and viscera will be removed.
After cleaning rats will be cooked like dogs
After burning
Mr. Quan’s family has sold rat meat at the village temple for the past 20 years. At harvest time, his family sells hundreds of rats every day, he said.
Big rats priced at VND80,000 (USD3.8) per kilogramme and smaller ones at VND60,000 (USD2.85) per kilogramme.
A dish of fried rat is priced at VND100,000 (USD4.76). It is as highly appreciated as chicken and dog meat.
