Before leaving on my trip, I had a lovely phone conversation with Diane from White on Rice Couple. She's Vietnamese and lives in southern California, has traveled back many times and is a huge foodie. Her insights gave me good background as I ate my way through the country.
In our conversation, she mentioned snails. Specifically, a street in Saigon that has a plethora of food stalls selling dishes of snails. I wasn't scared of snails… I had eaten them before in French restaurants, sauteed in butter with garlic and parsley. Escargot (French snails) are usually pretty small, about 1/2 inch. They have a mildly briny taste and firmly chewy texture. To me, they are more a vehicle for eating bread with garlic and butter.
I never found snail street, but looked for them every time I was in a restaurant. In Hanoi, at Quan An Ngon, I finally ordered snails. The couple sitting next to us romantically scooped out the meat, tilted their heads back and dangled them into their mouths.
When mine arrived, I tried to exude the same romance. The shells were huge, at least 2 inches. I wasn't able to pull them out as effortlessly, but nonetheless, popped the whole thing into my mouth. I bit into the first one and the juices burst in my mouth and trickled down my throat, making me gag a little and cough a lot. I tried again anyways. Oy. I couldn't do it. The flavor of the broth was nice with chilies, lemongrass and basil. But without a spoon or any bread to sop up the juices, I wasn't able to fully enjoy it.
So now on the list of things I've tried, but don't need to eat again:
1. Cow's Feet
2. Kidneys
3. Large Snails
What's on your list?