Cultural Differences in Eating Snails

Japanese people don't dare eat

snails living in the fields,

in rice paddies, or

in little ditches, everyone.

Today I discovered a dish that I bet many

Vietnamese people, when they see it,

will get excited right away.

But Japanese people are quite wary of it,

They don't even

dare to catch them

or even try eating them.

In Japan, these bitter snails are extremely

plentiful. That's because Japanese

people don't eat them, so there are

so many of them.

But anyone in Vietnam who's tried

these bitter snails gets hooked.

For anyone who grew up in the countryside,

field snails are nothing new.

Back then, after a rain, we'd go out to the fields for a bit and

could catch a whole basketful,

then bring them home, soak them clean,

and cook them in all sorts

of dishes. Boiled snails,

snails stir- fried with lemongrass and chili.

Just thinking about it

makes me crave them already.

But when I told Japanese

people that these

snails could be eaten

Some people look at me with disbelief,

surprise, and can't

believe this snail is edible.

I think that's understandable, because

every country has different eating habits.

Some things that are humble dishes to us Vietnamese

are completely unfamiliar to Japanese people.

Japanese people often pay close attention to where

food

comes from, where the snail lives,

and how it's prepared,

so they won't necessarily dare to eat one just because it's caught

in a field. When I see these snails,

I remember my childhood

in the countryside.

It's only when you're far from

home that you realize some dishes

that seem

so ordinary actually hold

a whole world of memories,

everyone.